How to Convert HEIC to JPG on Windows (3 Free Ways)
By the UtilityNest team · · 5 min read
You plug your iPhone into the family PC to grab the birthday photos for a slideshow. The folder fills up with files called IMG_4471.HEIC, the thumbnails are blank, and double-clicking one gets you a message about a missing extension. The slideshow is tomorrow.
This happens to almost everyone who moves photos from an iPhone to Windows. Since iOS 11, iPhones save photos as HEIC by default. The format is clever (roughly half the size of a JPG at similar quality), but Windows does not always ship the codec needed to open it, and many websites and upload forms reject it outright.
The short version: for photos you need right now, drop them into the free HEIC to JPG converter. If you deal with iPhone photos all the time, add HEIC support to Windows. And to avoid the problem in future, change one setting on the iPhone.
Why Windows struggles with HEIC
HEIC images are compressed with HEVC (H.265), the same codec used for modern video. HEVC is patent-licensed, which is why Microsoft does not always include it for free. Depending on your PC you may see blank thumbnails, an error in the Photos app, or a nudge to visit the Microsoft Store.
Method 1: Convert in your browser (fastest, nothing to install)
This works on any Windows PC, including a work laptop where you cannot install software. Your photos are decoded by your own browser and never uploaded.
- Copy the HEIC files to your PC however you normally do (cable, iCloud for Windows, a USB stick).
- Open HEIC to JPG and drop in the photos. You can add up to 100 at once.
- Keep JPG selected. The default quality of 92 keeps photos looking the same as the originals.
- Optional: turn on Shrink large images if the photos are for email or the web rather than printing.
- Click Convert, watch the progress bar, then download photos one by one or click Download all (ZIP).
Say you have 40 birthday photos, about 2 MB each as HEIC, so 80 MB in total. Decoding HEIC is heavy work: expect roughly 1 to 3 seconds per photo on a typical computer, so the batch finishes in one to two minutes.
The JPGs come out larger than the HEIC files, often around one and a half to two times the size, because JPG compresses less efficiently. For a slideshow on the TV that does not matter. If you need to email them, run them through Compress Image afterwards, which usually takes phone photos down by more than half.
IMG_4471.HEIC, blank thumbnail, opens in nothing on this PC, rejected by the school's photo upload form.
IMG_4471.jpg, opens in Photos, PowerPoint, any browser and every upload form, looks the same on screen.
One thing to know: the converted JPGs do not keep the original metadata. GPS location and camera details are gone, which is good for privacy when sharing. The catch is that the "date taken" goes too, so some photo apps sort the files by file date instead.
Method 2: Teach Windows to open HEIC
If iPhone photos land on your PC every week, it is worth adding support to Windows itself.
- Open the Microsoft Store, search for HEIF Image Extensions and install it (free).
- If photos still will not open, also install HEVC Video Extensions. Microsoft charges $0.99 for it in the US, and some PCs already have it from the manufacturer.
- Now HEIC files open in Photos and Paint. To make a JPG, open the photo in Paint and choose File > Save as > JPEG picture.
That is fine for a few photos, but saving forty pictures one by one in Paint gets old fast. For batches, Method 1 or the Batch Image Converter is quicker.
Method 3: Make the iPhone hand over JPGs
Convert automatically when you plug in
On the iPhone, go to Settings > Photos, scroll to Transfer to Mac or PC and choose Automatic. Photos imported over a USB cable are then converted to JPG as they transfer. Your library on the phone stays in HEIC, so you keep the storage savings.
Shoot JPG from now on
Go to Settings > Camera > Formats and choose Most Compatible. New photos are saved as JPG. They take more space on the phone, and some high-resolution and ProRAW modes rely on the High Efficiency setting.
Neither setting changes photos you have already taken, or the originals kept in iCloud Photos.
The "Automatic" transfer setting is the best of both worlds for most families: small HEIC files on the phone, ready-to-use JPGs on the PC. It only applies to cable imports, though, so photos synced through iCloud still arrive as HEIC.
Which method fits you?
| Your situation | Best option |
|---|---|
| A batch of photos, needed today | Browser converter |
| Work PC where you cannot install apps | Browser converter |
| You want Windows to preview HEIC files | HEIF (and HEVC) extensions |
| You import by USB cable regularly | iPhone transfer setting: Automatic |
| You never want to see HEIC again | iPhone camera format: Most Compatible |
Other free routes worth knowing
- iCloud.com: downloading from iCloud Photos in a browser offers a "Most Compatible" option in recent versions, which gives you JPGs.
- Google Photos: if your iPhone backs up there, downloading from the web version on Windows usually gives you a file Windows can open.
- iPhone Shortcuts: the Convert Image action can turn selected photos into JPEG before you send them.
Quick answers
Does converting HEIC to JPG lose quality?
Technically a little, because JPG is lossy. At quality 92 you will not see the difference in normal viewing or printing. Just avoid converting the same photo back and forth.
Is HEIF the same as HEIC?
HEIF is the container; HEIC is HEIF with HEVC compression, which is what iPhones produce. Both open the same way.
What about Live Photos?
A Live Photo is a still image plus a short video. Converting gives you the still only.
Should I choose PNG instead?
Only if you need lossless files for editing. For sharing and uploading, JPG files are much smaller.