Convert HEIC to PNG
Free online converter for HEIC files. Lossless raster format with alpha transparency. Nothing to install, no watermark, and every file is deleted automatically.
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Upload a HEIC file to convert it to PNG. Up to 3 files at once, 100 MB each.
Free · up to 3 files · 100 MB each · files deleted automatically after 1 hour.
About HEIC and PNG
HEIC .heic
Apple's default photo format since iOS 11, storing HEVC-compressed images in a HEIF container. It is roughly half the size of an equivalent JPEG.
Good for
- About half the size of JPEG at similar quality
- Keeps transparency, depth maps and image sequences
- 10-bit colour, so smoother gradients than JPEG
Trade-offs
- Poor support outside Apple platforms — this is the usual reason to convert
- Patent-encumbered, which is why support is uneven
- Lossy, so quality does not come back
image/heic
PNG .png
A lossless image format built for graphics rather than photographs. Every pixel it stores comes back exactly as it went in, and it carries a full alpha channel for transparency.
Good for
- Lossless — no generation loss no matter how often you re-save
- Full 8-bit alpha, so edges blend cleanly over any background
- Sharp on text, screenshots, logos and line art
Trade-offs
- Much larger than JPEG for photographs
- No animation in the baseline format
- Large photographic PNGs are slow to transfer
image/png
HEIC and PNG side by side
| HEIC | PNG | |
|---|---|---|
| Compression | Lossy (HEVC) | Lossless |
| Transparency | Yes | Yes — 8-bit alpha |
| Animation | Yes — Live Photos and bursts | No |
| Typically used for | iPhone and iPad camera output | Screenshots, logos, UI assets, anything with transparency |
What changes when you convert HEIC to PNG
Only the first frame survives
Most HEIC files are still images and convert straightforwardly. HEIC can also hold an animation, though, and PNG cannot: if yours is animated, what you get back is its first frame and nothing else. Convert to a video format, or to another animating image format, if the motion matters.
Why this conversion exists
HEIC is what an iPhone saves by default, and almost nothing outside Apple's ecosystem opens it — which is why most people arrive here. PNG trades HEIC's efficiency for the ability to open the file anywhere. Depth maps, Live Photo motion and any other auxiliary data in the HEIC are not carried across; what you get is the photograph itself.
Camera data is removed by default
A HEIC straight from a phone or camera carries EXIF metadata — model, settings, timestamp and, quite often, the GPS coordinates of where the photo was taken. The converted PNG is written without it, so a file you are about to share does not quietly carry your location. The orientation flag is read and applied to the pixels first, so the image will not come out sideways once the tag holding it is gone. If you need the metadata kept, there is a setting for it.
How the PNG is written
Our default is maximum compression with adaptive filtering, and fully lossless — lowering the quality dial is what switches PNG to a 256-colour palette, and it is at 100 unless you move it. The quality control on the converter moves this if you need to — the default aims to be indistinguishable from the source at a sensible file size, rather than to win a compression benchmark.
Quality cannot come back
HEIC already discarded detail permanently, and PNG stores exactly what it is given. The result will be considerably larger while sounding identical to the HEIC you started from — lossless preserves, it does not restore. That is still the right move if you are about to edit, because further saves will not degrade it again.
Other HEIC conversions
Other ways to get PNG
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