HEIF, HEIC and HEVC: what is what?
HEIF is the container, a file format that can hold one or many images. HEIC is HEIF with the images compressed using HEVC (H.265), which is what Apple uses. Some cameras and Android phones save HEIF files with other codecs, such as AV1 (called AVIF) or JPEG. This converter reads HEIF files that use HEVC, which covers nearly all the .heif and .heic files you will meet.
How to convert HEIF to JPG
- Drop the .heif or .hif files on the box.
- Choose the JPG quality. 90 suits most uses.
- Download the JPG files one by one or as a ZIP.
HEIF files from Android and cameras
- Samsung and Google Pixel: photos are HEIC only if you switch on High efficiency pictures in the camera settings. Otherwise they are JPG.
- Canon, Sony and Fujifilm cameras: these save .hif files when you choose HEIF instead of JPG. They often use 10-bit color, which is reduced to 8-bit in a JPG.
- Windows: exports from the Photos app can also produce .heif files.
An AVIF file will not convert?
AVIF is a different format that also uses the .avif extension, although it sits in the same HEIF container family. If your file does not open, check the extension. For AVIF and WebP files, open them in a browser and use a tool made for that format.
Related tools
For iPhone files use HEIC to JPG, and for the .jpeg extension HEIC to JPEG. A lossless result is available with HEIC to PNG. Read what the format is in the HEIC format guide.