HEIC vs JPG vs PNG

HEIC, JPG and PNG all store photos, but they are built for different jobs. Choosing the wrong one is why a photo sometimes will not open, or why a file is far larger than it needs to be.

HEIC: small files, limited compatibility

HEIC stores photos in roughly half the space of JPG at similar quality, which is why iPhones use it by default. The trade-off is compatibility: many Windows apps, websites and forms still cannot open it.

JPG: opens everywhere

JPG is the one image format that opens literally everywhere. It is lossy, so it trades a small amount of quality for much smaller files, which makes it the right choice for sharing, uploading and forms.

PNG: lossless, larger files

PNG preserves every pixel, which makes it the right choice for editing, graphics and design work. Files are larger than JPG, and PNG has no quality setting, so shrinking a PNG means resizing it.

Which one to pick

• Sharing or uploading a photo: JPG.
• Editing or design work: PNG.
• Keeping photos on an iPhone: HEIC is fine, until you need to share them elsewhere — then convert to JPG with the HEIC converter.

Convert HEIC photos now — free, no upload

Frequently asked questions