How to Convert HEIC to JPG on Windows 11 and 10

iPhones save photos as HEIC by default. It's a great format for saving space, but Windows often can't open it: you double-click a photo from your iPhone and get an error, or a blank thumbnail. The fix is to convert the photos to JPG, which every program understands.

Here are three ways to do it, from quickest to most built-in.

Method 1: Convert online (fastest, no install)

This works on any Windows PC, and on Mac, Chromebook and phones too.

1. Open the HEIC to JPG converter.
2. Drag your .heic files onto the page, or click to choose them. You can add up to 30 at once.
3. Click Convert.
4. Download each JPG, or all of them as a single ZIP file.

Your photos are deleted from the server within an hour, or immediately if you click "Delete from server now".

Method 2: Use the Windows Photos app

Windows can open HEIC once two extensions are installed.

1. Open the Microsoft Store and install HEIF Image Extensions (free).
2. Install HEVC Video Extensions. On many PCs this is a small paid download.
3. Open the photo in the Photos app.
4. Click the … menu, choose Save as, and pick JPG as the file type.

This is fine for a few photos, but slow for a whole folder: each one has to be opened and saved separately.

Method 3: Use Paint

Once the extensions from Method 2 are installed, Paint can convert too:

1. Right-click the HEIC file and choose Open with → Paint.
2. Click File → Save as → JPEG picture.
3. Choose a name and click Save.

Converting a whole folder

For dozens or hundreds of photos, Method 1 is by far the quickest: select every file in the folder (Ctrl + A), drag them onto the converter in batches of 30, and download each batch as a ZIP.

Stop the problem at the source

If you regularly move photos from an iPhone to a PC, you can make the iPhone save JPGs instead. See how to stop your iPhone saving HEIC. Keep in mind that JPGs take about twice the space on your phone.

HEIC or PNG?

If you plan to edit the photos heavily, convert HEIC to PNG instead: PNG is lossless, so the image won't lose quality each time you save it. For sharing and everyday use, JPG is the better choice because the files are much smaller.