How to open iPhone HEIC photos on Windows
You copy photos from an iPhone to a PC and Windows shows .heic files it cannot open, or a website refuses them. Here is what HEIC is and the quickest ways to deal with it.
Why the iPhone uses HEIC
Since iOS 11, iPhones save photos in HEIF/HEIC, a format that compresses images with the HEVC video codec. A HEIC photo takes about half the space of a JPG of the same quality, which matters when your phone holds thousands of them.
The catch is compatibility: Windows needs extra extensions to show them, and many websites, print shops and forms still accept only JPG or PNG.
Option 1: convert them to JPG in the browser
Open HEIC to JPG, drop the .heic files (dozens at once) and download the JPGs one by one or in a ZIP. The conversion happens in your browser, so private photos are not uploaded anywhere, and the GPS location stored in the photo is not copied to the JPG.
If what you need is a single document — receipts, ID cards, notes — HEIC to PDF puts them all into one PDF in the order you choose.
Option 2: let the iPhone convert when you share
In Settings → Photos → Transfer to Mac or PC, choose Automatic: when you copy photos with a cable, the iPhone converts them to JPG on the fly. Sending photos by email or most messaging apps also converts them.
Option 3: stop taking HEIC photos
Settings → Camera → Formats → Most Compatible makes new photos JPG. They will take more space, and the photos you already have stay HEIC — convert those as in option 1.