How-to · 4 min read
Two settings on your iPhone decide whether you ever see a HEIC file. Here's exactly where they are, what each one does, and what you trade away by switching.
Updated
On your iPhone, go to Settings → Camera → Formats and tap Most Compatible. Every new photo will be a JPG. Photos you've already taken stay HEIC; for those, use the converter on this page, which runs in Safari and can save the JPGs straight back to your Photos library.
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Your iPhone has two separate HEIC switches, and they solve different problems.
| Setting | Where | What it changes |
|---|---|---|
| Formats | Settings → Camera → Formats | The format your camera saves new photos and videos in |
| Transfer to Mac or PC | Settings → Photos | What format photos are converted to when copied to a computer by cable |
You might only need the second one. Read both before deciding.
This decides what the camera actually saves.
To check it worked, take a photo, open it in Photos and swipe up (or tap the ⓘ button). Recent iOS versions show the format in the info panel.
This one doesn't touch your camera at all. It controls what happens when you plug your iPhone into a computer and import photos.
Automatic is the right choice if you regularly import to a Windows PC. Your phone keeps the space-saving HEIC files, and your PC receives JPGs. It doesn't affect AirDrop, iCloud, or cloud storage apps, which may still deliver HEIC.
Switching to JPG makes life simpler in one way and costs you in others.
This is the big one. A HEIC is typically about half the size of a JPG of the same quality. Switching to JPG means each new photo takes roughly twice the space, and video recorded as H.264 is larger than HEVC too. If your phone or iCloud plan is already nearly full, you'll feel this.
On some iPhone models, certain features are only available with High Efficiency. Depending on your model and iOS version, these may include:
Apple adjusts these with each release, so check your own Camera settings. If an option disappears or greys out after switching, that's the reason. ProRAW, where available, saves DNG files and is a separate setting from HEIC versus JPG.
For normal viewing, you won't see a difference. HEIC is more efficient, but the iPhone's JPGs are saved at good quality.
These generally still work in Most Compatible mode. The extra data is stored in a different way, for example as a separate video file for a Live Photo's motion, but you can keep using both features.
Changing the camera format is not retroactive. Every photo you took before switching is still HEIC. If you need JPG versions of older photos:
Very large photos, such as 48 MP shots, may be scaled to about 16 MP on iPhone because Safari limits how big an image a web page can process. If you need full resolution, convert those on a computer. For a big backlog, the batch HEIC converter on a laptop is quicker.
Best for most people. You keep small files and every camera feature, and cable imports to a PC arrive as JPG. Convert the occasional photo you need to upload or email.
Best if you constantly send photos straight from your phone to places that reject HEIC, and you have storage to spare. Everything just works, at the cost of space and possibly a feature or two.
Best if you're entirely in Apple's world. Macs, iPads and other iPhones read HEIC natively, and iOS converts automatically for many sharing actions.
Apple switched to HEIC in iOS 11 in 2017 mainly to save storage while keeping quality high. Our guide on why iPhone uses HEIC explains the reasoning, and the HEIC vs JPG comparison shows what each format does better.
FAQ
Open Settings, tap Camera, tap Formats and choose Most Compatible. New photos will be saved as JPG and new videos as H.264.
No. The setting only affects photos you take from now on. Existing photos stay HEIC, so convert those separately if you need JPG copies.
Yes. JPG files are typically about twice the size of equivalent HEIC files, and H.264 video is larger than HEVC too. Expect your photo library to grow faster.
With Automatic selected under Settings, Photos, the iPhone converts photos and videos to compatible formats like JPG when you import them to a computer over a cable. Your originals on the phone stay HEIC.
On some models, yes. Features such as 48 MP HEIF Max photos, some high frame rate 4K video modes and certain advanced video features may require High Efficiency. What's affected depends on your iPhone and iOS version.
For everyday viewing you won't notice a difference. HEIC is more efficient, so it reaches the same quality in a smaller file, and it can store extras like depth data more neatly.
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