How to Open a HEIC File

What is a HEIC file?

HEIC (High Efficiency Image Container) is Apple's implementation of the HEIF standard, and has been the default photo format on iPhone since iOS 11 (2017). Like JPG, it stores a compressed photo, but it uses much newer compression technology — the same HEVC (H.265) video codec used for 4K video — which typically produces files about half the size of an equivalent-quality JPG. That's the entire reason Apple switched: smaller photos, same quality, more room on your phone and in iCloud.

Structurally, a HEIC file is built on the same underlying container format as MP4 video (ISO Base Media File Format) — a series of nested "boxes" describing the image's properties, one or more embedded images, and metadata like EXIF and GPS location. That structure is exactly what the tool on this page reads directly, without needing to decode the actual compressed picture data to report dimensions, camera info or location.

Why can't I open a HEIC file on Windows or Android?

The compression technology inside HEIC (HEVC/H.265) is patent-licensed, so it isn't built into every operating system, app or browser by default the way older, royalty-free formats like JPG are. Apple licenses and ships the decoder on Mac and iPhone. Windows can decode it too, but only after installing a separate (free) extension. Most Android phones and virtually all desktop browsers — Chrome and Firefox included, on every platform — simply don't include an HEIC decoder at all, which is why a HEIC photo sent to a non-Apple device or uploaded to an older website often just fails to display.

How to open a HEIC file on Mac & iPhone

1. Mac: Double-click the file — it opens in Preview automatically. Photos.app also imports and displays HEIC natively.
2. iPhone/iPad: Tap the file in Photos, Messages or Files — it displays instantly, since HEIC is the device's native format.
3. To convert on Mac, open the file in Preview and choose File > Export, then pick JPEG or PNG as the format.

How to open a HEIC file on Windows

1. Open the Microsoft Store and install the free "HEIF Image Extensions" app.
2. Also install "HEVC Video Extensions" (preinstalled on some PCs as the free “from Device Manufacturer” edition; otherwise a small paid Store listing) — HEIC needs both to fully decode.
3. After installing, HEIC thumbnails appear in File Explorer and the file opens directly in the Photos app.
4. Without installing anything, use the online tool on this page — though full preview still depends on your browser's own HEIC support, which Chrome and Firefox on Windows generally lack even after installing the Microsoft Store extensions (those only add OS-level, not browser-level, support).

HEIF vs HEVC extensions: why Windows still won't open your HEIC

Windows splits HEIC support into two separate Microsoft Store packages, and you need both. HEIF Image Extensions teaches Windows to read the HEIC container (the "boxes" that hold dimensions, metadata and thumbnails). HEVC Video Extensions supplies the actual H.265 decoder that turns the compressed picture data into pixels. With only the first one installed, you typically get a file Photos recognizes but can't draw — a blank or gray image, or a prompt pointing you to the Store.

1. Open Settings > Apps > Installed apps and search for "HEIF" and "HEVC" to see which ones you already have. Many new PCs ship with a manufacturer-licensed variant called "HEVC Video Extensions from Device Manufacturer", which works the same way.
2. If HEVC is missing, open the Microsoft Store and search HEVC Video Extensions. The standard listing from Microsoft is paid (a small one-time price, about $0.99 in the US); HEIF Image Extensions is free.
3. Close and reopen Photos. HEIC files should now open there, and in other apps that use Windows' built-in image codecs — including Paint, which can then also re-save the photo as JPG or PNG via File > Save as.
4. If File Explorer still shows generic icons instead of thumbnails, check that the folder isn't set to "Always show icons, never thumbnails" (File Explorer … > Options > View), then sign out and back in so Explorer reloads its thumbnail handlers.

How to open a HEIC file on Android, Samsung & Google Photos

Android has had a built-in HEIF decoder since Android 9 (Pie), so on most phones from the last several years a HEIC photo opens in the stock gallery without any extra app. When it doesn't, the cause is usually an older phone or a third-party gallery app that doesn't use the system decoder.

• Google Photos (Android, iPhone or photos.google.com in any browser) displays HEIC files after you upload or back them up — this is the easiest way to view an iPhone photo on a Windows PC or Chromebook without installing anything. Downloading the photo back usually gives you the original HEIC file, not a JPG.
• Samsung Galaxy phones can both open and create HEIC: the camera has a "High efficiency pictures" option under its format settings. Samsung's Gallery app can also convert HEIF photos to JPG automatically when sharing them, which avoids sending a file the recipient can't open.
• Files by Google and most file managers will show a HEIC file but hand it to the gallery app to display it; if nothing happens on tap, try opening it from Google Photos instead.
• On an old Android version with no HEIC support, open this page in the phone's browser to read the photo's metadata, then convert the file on the device it came from.

Get iPhone photos onto a PC as JPG (not HEIC)

Your iPhone can keep shooting in space-saving HEIC and still hand out JPGs whenever a photo leaves the phone. Which one you get depends on how you move the photo:

1. USB cable to Windows or Mac: open Settings > Photos, scroll to Transfer to Mac or PC, and choose Automatic. The iPhone then converts photos to JPG as they're copied (via File Explorer, the Windows Photos import, or Image Capture). "Keep Originals" copies the HEIC files unchanged.
2. iCloud Photos in a browser (icloud.com): when downloading, choose the Most Compatible option instead of "Unmodified Original" to get JPGs.
3. Mail and most share-sheet destinations: iOS usually converts to JPG automatically when it sends a photo to an app or recipient that may not support HEIC. AirDrop to a Mac keeps HEIC, since the Mac can open it.
4. One-off conversion on the iPhone: the built-in Shortcuts app has a Convert Image action that can turn selected photos into JPEG or PNG and save them to Files.

Stop your iPhone from creating HEIC files

If you're frequently running into compatibility problems, the most permanent fix is changing what format your iPhone's camera saves in going forward:

1. Open Settings > Camera > Formats.
2. Choose "Most Compatible" instead of "High Efficiency".
3. New photos will now save directly as JPG — openable everywhere, with no conversion step ever needed again. (This only affects new photos; existing HEIC files stay as they are.)

Convert many HEIC files to JPG at once

Converting photos one at a time gets old fast if you've copied a whole camera roll. Every desktop platform has a free batch option:

Mac: Finder Quick Action (no app needed)

1. Select all the .heic files in Finder.
2. Right-click and choose Quick Actions > Convert Image (macOS Monterey or later).
3. Pick JPEG as the format, choose an image size, and decide whether to keep metadata (untick it to drop the GPS location). JPG copies are saved next to the originals.

Mac, Linux or Windows: command line

macOS includes sips, which can convert a whole folder in one line. On Linux, the heif-convert tool from the libheif package (often packaged as libheif-examples) does the same job, and ImageMagick's magick works anywhere it was built with HEIF support.

Windows

Once the HEIF and HEVC extensions are installed, Photos can open and re-save photos individually. For a whole folder, a free third-party tool such as CopyTrans HEIC (right-click > Convert to JPEG) or ImageMagick is quicker. For a handful of photos, the HEIC to JPG converter on this site works if your browser can decode HEIC.

Common HEIC file problems and how to fix them

Photo shows as a gray box or broken-image icon in a browser or app

The app or browser you're using simply doesn't have an HEIC decoder. Convert the file to JPG first (using the tool on this page if your browser can preview it, or on the device that took the photo) and it will display everywhere.

"This file format is not supported" when uploading to a website

Many websites, especially older ones, only accept JPG or PNG uploads. Convert the file first, then upload the converted copy.

Photo looks correctly oriented on iPhone but sideways elsewhere

Similar to JPG, HEIC stores rotation as a metadata flag rather than physically rotating the pixels, and not every viewer respects it. Converting through an app that honors the orientation tag (like Preview on Mac) usually fixes this permanently in the output file.

Related file extensions

Technical references

HEIC files use the HEIF container, standardized internationally as ISO/IEC 23008-12; Nokia — one of the format's original developers — hosts a detailed public technical overview.

• ISO/IEC 23008-12 — High efficiency image file format (HEIF) — The formal international standard defining the HEIF container format that .heic files use.
• High Efficiency Image File Format — Nokia Technologies — A detailed public technical explainer on HEIF's structure from one of the format's original co-developers.

Frequently asked questions