I can't open heic images on Windows 10. Should I convert heic to jpg for editing?

A command line HEIC to JPEG converter called libheif can do this flawlessly. One of the best choices if you were familiar with command.

This is an open-source library designed to handle HEIF files, including HEIC files. HEIF is a modern image format used primarily by Apple devices for storing photos and videos, offering higher compression rates than traditional formats like JPEG without sacrificing image quality.

Step 1: Download the Windows binary (e.g., libheif-<version>-win64.zip). Extract the contents of the ZIP file to a folder on your computer.

Step 2: Add the folder containing heif-convert to your system's PATH environment variable, so you can run the tool from any directory in the command prompt.

Step 3: Open a Command Prompt window. Use the following command to convert a single HEIC file to JPG:

heif-convert input.heic output.jpg

If you have multiple HEIC files to convert, you can batch convert .heic to .jpg using a simple loop:

for %i in (*.heic) do heif-convert "%i" "%~ni.jpg"

This command processes all .heic files to jpg and creates corresponding .jpg files with the same base name.

In addition, you can also specify the output quality when converting HEIC to JPG on Windows 11/10 PC:

heif-convert input.heic output.jpg -q 90

The -q flag allows you to control the quality of the JPG output, with a range from 0 (lowest quality) to 100 (highest quality).

On your iPhone, go to Settings -> Camera -> Format. And change it to JPG. All the photos will be converted from HEIC to JPG automatically.

Downloading pictures from iCloud.com will give you a zipped folder containing a .JPEG and .MOV file. No conversion, extensions, MS Store needed.

To convert HEIC to JPG for editing? Microsoft provides a free HEIC codec via the Microsoft Store that enables Windows Photos and other apps to display HEIC images:

Steps：

• Open the Microsoft Store.
• Search for "HEIF Image Extensions".
• Install the app.
• After installation, your Photos app will automatically open HEIC files

This might not support all HEIC images perfectly, but it often works for viewing and basic editing.

Then Convert HEIC to JPG for Editing/Sharing

• Once you can view HEIC files, convert them to JPG:
• Open HEIC file in Photos app
• Click "..." → "Save as" → Choose JPEG
• Or use File → Save a copy → Select JPEG

You can also change your iPhone settings to shoot in JPEG instead of HEIC, but HEIC is actually better quality at smaller file sizes, so I'd recommend keeping it and using the solutions above.

The HEIC image format is not natively supported in Windows 10, there is a HEIC Extension avaialble on the Microsoft Store for around $1 that will add support for HEIC images to Windows 10.

If you intend sharing your images with other people, then it would be best to convert them to jpg images.

Also on an iPhone there is a setting avaialble to switch the image format from HEIC to JPG by default when you take photos with that phone.