HEIC vs JPG: File Size, Quality and Compatibility

HEIC vs JPG comes down to one trade-off: HEIC stores the same photo in less space, while JPG opens almost everywhere. Keep HEIC for photos that stay on your Apple devices; convert to JPG when you need to send, upload, or edit a photo somewhere that does not read HEIC. Below is what each format is, what the size difference looked like on real phone photos, and how to convert when you need to.

HEIC vs JPG at a glance

	HEIC	JPG
What it is	A HEIF file whose images are compressed with HEVC	The JPEG format, the long-standing default for photos
Standard	HEIF, ISO/IEC 23008-12	ISO/IEC 10918-1 | ITU-T T.81, created in 1992
File size	Smaller for the same visual quality, according to Apple	Larger; in our test, a quality-90 JPG was 1.4–1.7 times the HEIC
What a file can hold	One or many images, burst photos, alpha and depth maps, up to 16 bits per sample	Usually a single photo
Opens in web browsers	Safari 17 and later only	All of them
Opens on Windows	Needs Microsoft’s HEIF and HEVC extensions	Built in

Sources: Apple Support, the HEIF technical summary from Nokia, which maintains a HEIF reference implementation, JPEG.org, and Can I use browser data, all checked on 4 October 2026.

What HEIC is

HEIC is the name iPhones use for HEIF files that contain HEVC-compressed images. Apple added HEIF and HEVC capture in iOS 11 and macOS High Sierra, and says the formats “offer better compression than JPEG and H.264, so they use less storage space on your devices and iCloud Photos, while preserving the same visual quality.”

HEIF is a container, not just an image codec. According to its technical summary, one file can store several images, burst photos, transparency (alpha) and depth maps, and samples from the 8 bits typical of consumer devices up to 16 bits.

HEIC is not limited to iPhones: the two Samsung phones in the test below also saved their photos as HEIC.

File size: what we measured

We converted four real phone photos (about 12 megapixels each) with heicly in desktop Chrome and compared the file sizes. The JPG is a new encoding made from the HEIC, so it is not the same file the camera would have saved in JPG mode.

Phone (from the photo’s Exif)	HEIC	JPG, quality 90 (default)	JPG, quality 75
iPhone 7	0.88 MB	1.49 MB (1.70×)	0.81 MB (0.92×)
iPhone 12 Pro	1.72 MB	2.55 MB (1.48×)	1.52 MB (0.88×)
Samsung SM-A326B	1.22 MB	1.70 MB (1.40×)	0.91 MB (0.74×)

1 MB = 1,000,000 bytes. The JPGs include the photo’s capture date and camera details.

What this shows:

• At the default quality of 90, the JPG was 40–70% larger than the HEIC.
• Lowering quality to 75 brought the JPG to about the size of the HEIC or smaller, with more compression loss.
• A fourth photo, from a Samsung SM-S906U, was a motion photo: its 3.68 MB HEIC included a short video of about 3.2 MB. The JPG keeps only the still image, so it came out at 1.30 MB, smaller than the HEIC. If a HEIC looks unusually large, it may contain more than one picture.

Results depend on the photo, so treat these as examples rather than fixed ratios.

Image quality

Both formats use lossy compression, so neither keeps every pixel exactly. Converting HEIC to JPG decodes the photo and compresses it again, which adds a second round of loss:

• A higher JPG quality setting keeps more detail and makes a larger file.
• Convert straight from the HEIC original. Re-saving a JPG as JPG again adds more loss each time.
• Keep the HEIC original if you need an archive copy.

HEIF can also store more than 8 bits per sample. The JPGs heicly creates are 8 bits per channel.

Compatibility

This is where JPG wins.

• Web browsers: according to Can I use, Safari 17 and later on macOS and iOS can show HEIC images. Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Samsung Internet cannot.
• Windows: the Photos app needs the HEIF Image Extension and the HEVC Video Extensions from the Microsoft Store. Our Windows 11 guide lists what they cost and how to convert without them.
• Websites and apps: if an upload form or an app rejects your photo, a JPG copy usually solves it.

When to keep HEIC and when to use JPG

Keep HEIC when:

• The photos stay in Apple Photos or iCloud Photos on your own devices.
• Storage space matters more than compatibility.
• You want to keep the original exactly as the camera saved it.

Use JPG when:

• You send photos to someone on Windows or Android, or you do not know what device they use.
• A website, form, or app accepts only JPG or PNG.
• You edit or print photos with software that does not open HEIC.

Avoid HEIC on iPhone, or convert the photos you already have

Apple offers settings that avoid HEIC for new photos and transfers:

• Settings > Camera > Formats > Most Compatible: new photos and videos are saved as JPEG and H.264. Photos you have already taken stay HEIC.
• Settings > Apps > Photos > Keep Originals: with this turned off, photos you import to Photos, Image Capture or a PC may be converted to JPEG.
• Sharing: when you share with AirDrop, Messages or email and the receiving device does not support HEIF, Apple says the photo “might” be sent as JPEG. It is not guaranteed.

For HEIC files that are already on your computer, convert them in your browser. The converter below runs on this page, and your photos are not uploaded.

1. Drag your HEIC files into the box, or click “Choose Files”.
2. For a single photo, adjust the quality slider if you want a smaller file. It starts at 90.
3. Download the JPG, or download a batch as one ZIP.

By default, the JPG keeps the capture date and camera details. Location is added only if you turn it on. Images larger than 16,777,216 pixels are resized proportionally, and the page tells you when that happens.

Summary

• HEIC is smaller; in our test a quality-90 JPG was 1.4–1.7 times the size of the HEIC.
• JPG opens in every browser and on Windows without extra installs; HEIC does not.
• Keep the HEIC original, and make JPG copies when you need to share, upload or edit.

Converting many photos? Use the batch HEIC to JPG page. Need a copy without further compression loss? heicly can also convert HEIC to PNG.