HEIC, explained in two minutes

If you’ve ever emailed an iPhone photo and heard “I can’t open this,” you’ve met HEIC. Here’s the two-minute version of what it is and why it trips people up.

What HEIC actually is

HEIC is a container built on the HEVC video codec. It stores a still image with the same efficient compression used for 4K video, so a photo takes roughly half the space of the equivalent JPG.

Apple made it the iPhone default in 2017 to save storage without sacrificing quality.

Why it won’t open everywhere

HEVC is patent-encumbered and relatively new, so plenty of software outside the Apple ecosystem never added support. Old Windows builds, web forms, and some editors simply don’t recognise the format.

The photo isn’t broken — the receiving software just doesn’t speak HEIC.

The fix

Convert a copy to JPG when you need to share widely, and keep the HEIC original for yourself. You lose nothing and stay compatible.