Key takeaways
- Settings, Camera, Formats, Most Compatible makes new iPhone photos JPEG and new videos H.264; photos already in your library stay HEIC.
- Transfer to Mac or PC set to Automatic keeps HEIC on the phone but lets USB imports to a computer arrive as JPEG.
- Most Compatible costs storage on the phone and in iCloud, and on the newest models stops you editing Photographic Styles later.
- AirDrop, Messages and email may already convert to JPEG when the receiving device cannot read HEIC, so test before changing settings.
To stop your iPhone saving photos as HEIC, open Settings, tap Camera, tap Formats and choose Most Compatible. New photos are then saved as JPEG and new videos as H.264. Photos you have already taken stay in HEIC, and the new files take more storage.
If you only need JPGs when photos leave the phone, there is a second setting that converts on the way out and leaves the camera alone. This guide covers both settings, what each one costs you, and how to choose between them.
For what HEIC is and why other devices struggle with it, see our explainer on why iPhone photos won't open anywhere else.
Setting 1: Camera format (changes what the camera saves)
This is the setting that actually stops HEIC at the source.
- Open Settings.
- Tap Camera, then Formats.
- Under Camera Capture, choose Most Compatible.
Apple's support page says that after this change, all new photos and videos use JPEG or H.264. To go back, choose High Efficiency. The option only appears on iPhones that can capture HEIF in the first place, which Apple lists as iPhone 7 and later.
What it does not do:
- It does not convert old photos. Everything already in your library stays HEIC.
- It does not only affect photos. Video switches from HEVC to H.264 as well, so your clips get bigger too.
Setting 2: Transfer to Mac or PC (changes what leaves the phone)
This setting leaves the camera on HEIC and controls what happens when you copy photos to a computer over a USB cable.
- Open Settings, tap Apps, then Photos. On older iOS versions, Photos is listed directly in Settings.
- Scroll down to Transfer to Mac or PC.
- Choose Automatic to let the phone convert to a compatible format during transfer, or Keep Originals to send HEIC unchanged.
Apple says that when you import from an attached iPhone into Photos, Image Capture or a PC, the media might be converted to JPEG or H.264, and that Keep Originals is how you prevent that. Apple's own wording is "might," so check a few files after the first import.
What each choice costs you
| High Efficiency + Keep Originals | High Efficiency + Automatic | Most Compatible | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Format on the phone | HEIC | HEIC | JPG |
| Format on a PC after a cable import | HEIC | Usually JPG | JPG |
| Storage on the phone and in iCloud | Smallest | Smallest | Larger |
| Video format | HEVC | HEVC, may convert on import | H.264 |
| Editing Photographic Styles later (newest models) | Yes | Yes | No |
| Old photos | Unchanged | Unchanged | Unchanged |
Three trade-offs deserve a closer look.
Storage. Apple says HEIF and HEVC use less storage space on your devices and in iCloud Photos than JPEG and H.264, while keeping the same visual quality. Switching to Most Compatible means every new photo and video takes more room. If your iCloud plan or phone is nearly full, that adds up quickly.
Photographic Styles. Apple's iPhone User Guide notes that on models with the latest generation of Photographic Styles, the camera must capture in High Efficiency for you to edit the style later in the Photos app. If you use Styles, Most Compatible removes that option for new photos.
Video. Because Most Compatible also changes video to H.264, a phone that records a lot of video fills up faster than the photo change alone would suggest.
How sharing behaves without any setting change
You may not need either setting. Apple says that when you share by AirDrop, Messages or email and the receiving device does not support the newer formats, the media might automatically be sent in a more compatible format such as JPEG. Sharing through iCloud Photos keeps the original format.
The gap is everything else: uploading to a website from a Windows PC, dragging files from iCloud to a work laptop, or attaching photos to a government or job portal that only accepts JPG and PNG. Those are the cases where HEIC still causes rejections.
Which setting to pick
- You mostly share with other Apple users. Keep High Efficiency. Sharing already converts when the other device needs it.
- You copy photos to a Windows PC by cable. Keep High Efficiency and set Transfer to Automatic. You get JPGs on the PC and small files on the phone.
- You upload straight from the phone to forms and websites that reject HEIC. Most Compatible is the simplest fix, as long as you accept the extra storage.
- You use Photographic Styles on a recent iPhone. Stay on High Efficiency and convert individual photos when you need to.
Converting the HEIC photos you already have
Neither setting touches your existing library. For the occasional photo, our HEIC to JPG converter works in the browser on any computer. It converts one file at a time, saves the JPG at 92% quality and does not upload the photo. It also drops the EXIF data, including GPS location, which is handy before posting online.
On a Mac you have a built-in option too. Apple's support page says you can open a HEIF image in Photos or Preview, choose File, then Export, and pick JPEG or PNG before saving. That is handy when you already work on a Mac.
If a form also caps file size, compress the JPG with the Image Compressor, which can aim for a target size in KB. Need a lossless copy for editing instead? Use HEIC to PNG.
Before you change anything, try a test. Take one photo, share it the way you normally would, and see what format arrives. That tells you whether you need a setting change at all.
Frequently asked questions
Open Settings, tap Camera, tap Formats and choose Most Compatible. From then on the camera saves new photos as JPEG and new videos as H.264. Photos you took before the change stay in HEIC, so convert those separately if you need them as JPG. To switch back, choose High Efficiency in the same menu.
Apple says HEIF keeps the same visual quality as JPEG at a smaller file size, so the main cost of Most Compatible is storage rather than visible quality. On the newest iPhones you also lose the ability to edit Photographic Styles later, because that needs photos captured in High Efficiency.
It lets the iPhone convert photos and videos to a more compatible format, such as JPEG or H.264, when you import them to a computer over a USB cable. The photos on the phone stay in HEIC. Choose Keep Originals instead if you want the computer to receive the original HEIC files unchanged.
No. Both the camera format and the transfer setting only affect new photos or new transfers. Your existing library stays in HEIC on the phone and in iCloud Photos. To get JPG copies of older photos, convert them with a HEIC to JPG tool or export them from Photos or Preview on a Mac.
Often not. Apple says that when you share by AirDrop, Messages or email and the receiving device does not support HEIF, the photo might be sent in a more compatible format such as JPEG. Test with one photo first. Uploads to websites and forms are where HEIC still tends to cause problems.