People search “HEIC vs JPEG” and “HEIC vs JPG” as if those were two debates. They are one. JPEG is the format. JPG is the extension. This article exists so each query has a real page, not a doorway, and so the filename question is answered in one place.
The filename
macOS and cameras sometimes write .jpeg. Windows and iPhone exports usually write .jpg. Both start with the same JPEG SOI marker. Mail servers, IIS, and older upload scripts may whitelist only .jpg. This site always writes .jpg so you do not lose a submission to a regex from 2004. If a publisher’s spec says “JPEG,” send the .jpg anyway unless they require the four-letter name; then rename without re-encoding.
What actually differs from HEIC
HEIC is HEVC inside HEIF. JPEG is 8×8 DCT blocks, Huffman or arithmetic coding, optional progressive scans. HEIC typically produces a smaller file at a similar viewing quality on Apple’s default camera settings. JPEG produces a file that Paint, Gmail, and a 2012 laser printer already understand.
Color: both can be sRGB. iPhone HEIC may include wide color (Display P3). A naive JPEG encode through canvas, which is what browsers offer, usually bakes the bitmap into the canvas color space (sRGB). That is the right trade for the web and Windows. It is not a bit-perfect colorimetric export. If you need a color-managed TIFF for print, use Photos or a desktop lab, not a browser tab.
Quality sliders
JPEG quality numbers are not standardized across encoders. “90” in Preview is not the same as 0.90 in canvas.toBlob. This converter defaults to 0.92 in the browser encoder. Treat the slider as relative on this page, not as a promise that matches Photoshop’s 12-point scale. For a form, 0.92 is plenty. For a hero print, stay in HEIC or use a desktop export.
Software matrix (short)
- iPhone Photos, macOS Preview: both HEIC and JPEG.
- Windows without codecs: JPEG yes, HEIC no.
- Windows with HEIF + HEVC extensions: HEIC preview yes; many apps still want JPEG.
- Browsers as
<img src>: JPEG everywhere; HEIC mainly Safari. - Email: JPEG. HEIC attachments fail for a large share of recipients.
The HEIC vs JPG page covers size, Live Photos, and when to keep originals. What is HEIF? covers the container. Convert at Convert HEIC to JPG when you need the portable file; do not convert as a ritual.
Encoders you will actually meet
Apple’s JPEG export, Windows Photos “Save as,” Photoshop “quality 10,” and canvas.toBlob('image/jpeg', 0.92) are four different encoders. They all emit JPEG. They do not emit identical bytes. Chroma subsampling (often 4:2:0) is typical. This site uses whatever your browser shipped. That is enough for a portal that checks the extension. It is not a substitute for a print RIP.
Progressive vs baseline: some email gateways still mishandle progressive JPEG. Browser canvas output is baseline in current Chrome, Firefox, and Safari, which is the boring, compatible choice. If a lab asks for “JPEG, sRGB, no progressive, max 10 MB,” convert here, then check the file size; drop the quality slider if you are over the cap.
Renaming .heic to .jpg does not make a JPEG. The bytes are still HEIF. Uploaders that only look at the extension may accept it and then fail in a thumbnail worker. Convert, do not rename. If a spec sheet says “JPEG, 72 ppi,” ignore the ppi field — JPEG has no required pixels-per-inch; set pixel dimensions instead with the max-edge control if they also gave a max width. Email clients that “compress photos” may re-encode again after you convert; send as an actual attachment, not inline, if you care about the 0.92 you picked.
Last reviewed 2026-09-13.