HEICPix / HEIC on Windows
Open HEIC photos on Windows
Someone sent you HEIC photos from their iPhone. Windows doesn't open them by default. Here's the fastest fix.
The short answer
Use HEICPix to convert the .heic file to .jpg right in your browser — then Windows Photos opens it normally.
Convert HEIC to JPG now →Why doesn't Windows open HEIC?
HEIC is Apple's photo format. iPhones save photos as
.heic
by default since iOS 11 (2017). Windows 10 and 11 can read HEIC
files if you install Microsoft's HEIF Image Extensions
from the Microsoft Store. But the codec extension costs money
(the codec for video does — image is free but confusing to find),
and even after installing it, sharing the file with another Windows
app or uploading it to a website that doesn't support HEIC is still
a problem.
Converting to JPG once solves the problem forever. The file becomes a universal format every app understands.
Alternative: Microsoft's codec
If you'd rather Windows just read HEIC natively:
- Open Microsoft Store → search "HEIF Image Extensions" → install
- Open Microsoft Store → search "HEVC Video Extensions" (this is the video codec — $0.99 — needed for HEIC variants that include depth or motion data)
- Restart Photos app
That makes Windows Photos open HEIC. But you still can't paste it into apps that don't speak HEIC (most websites, Word, PowerPoint before 365, etc.) — converting to JPG once is more universal.
Why HEICPix vs other converters?
- Nothing uploads. The conversion happens in your browser, so your photos don't get sent to a stranger's server.
- Unlimited. Convert a folder of 200 photos at once. Most online tools cap you at 5 or 25 files.
- No install. Just open the page. No Microsoft Store extensions, no software downloads, no admin rights needed.
- Free forever. No signup, no email capture, no ads.