iPhones have saved photos in HEIC format by default since iOS 11. The format is technically superior to JPG -- smaller files at equivalent quality, support for Live Photos -- but its compatibility outside Apple's ecosystem is patchy. Many Windows applications won't open HEIC natively, most web upload forms don't accept it, and sending a HEIC file to someone without an Apple device often results in them not being able to open it. Converting to JPG solves all of these at once.
Portimg's converter handles HEIC to JPG in the browser without any software installation.
Why HEIC has compatibility problems
HEIC (High Efficiency Image Container) uses HEVC compression, which is a patented codec. Software vendors need to license the codec to support it, which is why support varies. Apple devices support it natively. Windows 10 and 11 added HEIC support, but it requires installing a codec extension from the Microsoft Store, which many users have not done. Most web browsers handle HEIC inconsistently, and many upload forms reject the format entirely.
The practical result: a photo that looks fine on your iPhone may fail to upload to a website, display as an attachment icon rather than a preview in Windows Explorer, or be unusable by anyone you send it to who does not have an Apple device.
Converting with Portimg
Go to portimg.com/raster-to-raster-converter, upload your HEIC file or files, select JPG as the output format, and download. Batch uploads are supported for converting multiple files at once. No account required, files deleted after processing.
The quality of the JPG output depends on the compression setting applied during conversion. HEIC stores more image data than JPG can represent losslessly, so the conversion involves a quality choice. At high quality settings, the output is visually identical to the HEIC original at normal viewing sizes. If the output looks soft or shows artefacts, the quality setting may be too aggressive.
Preventing the problem at the source
If you regularly move photos from an iPhone to Windows or to web platforms, you can configure iOS to capture in JPG instead of HEIC. Go to Settings, Camera, Formats and select Most Compatible. This saves photos as JPG directly, avoiding the conversion step entirely. The tradeoff is slightly larger files on the device, but for most users the compatibility benefit outweighs the storage cost.
An alternative: keep shooting in HEIC and let iOS handle the conversion automatically. When you transfer photos using a USB cable with Windows, iOS can be set to convert to JPG on transfer. Go to Settings, Photos, Transfer to Mac or PC and select Automatic. This converts to JPG during the transfer without changing what is stored on the device.
When to keep HEIC
HEIC is worth keeping when the images stay within the Apple ecosystem. If you are editing on a Mac, storing in iCloud, and sharing with other Apple device users, HEIC is strictly better -- smaller files, no quality difference, Live Photo support. The format only becomes a problem at the boundary between Apple and non-Apple contexts. If your workflow stays within that boundary, there is no reason to convert.