HEIC to JPG on Mac
Finder's Convert Image quick action already writes JPEG from a HEIC, with four fixed size options and a keep-metadata switch, and Preview's Export dialog writes JPEG as well. For one photo, use them. Press is for the folder: drop 300 HEIC files, set the JPEG quality as a percentage and a max pixel size once, and every file comes out beside its source.
- Drop a HEIC, or a folder of them, onto Press.
- Under Image, choose JPEG. Set Quality (85 percent by default) and, if you want smaller files, type a Max size in pixels.
- Click Convert. Each photo is written as name (Press).jpg next to the original.
What you get
- Container
- A .jpg beside the HEIC. The HEIC stays where it was.
- Codec
- JPEG, encoded by ImageIO at the quality you set.
- Quality
- 85 percent by default, adjustable from 10 to 100. HEIC is itself lossy, so the JPEG is a second lossy pass. Keep the slider at 85 or above if you plan to edit the JPEG later.
- Metadata
- EXIF data such as the capture date and location is not copied into the JPEG. The orientation tag is applied to the pixels first, so the photo displays upright everywhere.
What we measured
One 12-megapixel iPhone photo at three settings. At full size the JPEG is larger than the HEIC it came from, because HEIC stores the same picture in fewer bytes. Max size is how you get a small file.
| Source | Setting | Output | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 MP iPhone HEIC, 2.8 MB | JPEG, 85 percent | 4.5 MB .jpg, 4032x3024 | 0.2 s |
| 12 MP iPhone HEIC, 2.8 MB | JPEG, 100 percent | 12.4 MB .jpg, 4032x3024 | 0.2 s |
| 12 MP iPhone HEIC, 2.8 MB | JPEG, 85 percent, Max size 2048 (Pro) | 1.5 MB .jpg, 2048x1536 | 0.1 s |
Measured on 2026-10-08 with Press 1.0 on a MacBook Air (M5, 24 GB) running macOS 27.0.1. The video source is a 60-second 4K HEVC .mov at 30 fps with AAC audio: a slow pan across a photograph, with grain added. The H.264 source is the same clip encoded to 1080p. The photo is a 12-megapixel iPhone HEIC. Sizes are decimal megabytes, as Finder shows them. Times are for one file.
Will the photo come out sideways?
No. Phone photos store rotation as a tag, and some viewers ignore it. Press applies that tag to the pixels before encoding, so the JPEG is upright without depending on the viewer.
Does it keep the location data?
No. Press writes pixels only; EXIF fields including GPS are left behind. That helps when you are uploading the photo somewhere and hurts when you are archiving. Keep the HEIC originals, which Press never modifies.
Is HEIC to JPG free?
One file at a time, yes. Press Pro adds batch conversion and the Max size downscale.
Press converts video and images on your Mac. The download is free, and Press Pro is a one-time $14.99 unlock for batch conversion, size presets, and WebP.