How to Open and Convert HEIC Files on Android

Android added HEIF support in Android 9 (Pie, 2018) and expanded it in Android 10. By 2025, any phone running Android 10 or later can open HEIC photos in the stock Gallery or Google Photos app. The catch is that not every app that displays images is wired to the system decoder, which means HEIC files sometimes show up as blank thumbnails or broken icons in email clients, messaging apps, and old third-party galleries.

Samsung Galaxy S10 and later models, Google Pixel 4 and later, and most OnePlus and Xiaomi flagships from 2020 onward support HEIC natively. Some even save photos as HEIC by default. Older phones running Android 8 or earlier have no system-level decoder and need a third-party app or a browser tool.

Which Android phones save HEIC by default?

Samsung started defaulting to HEIC on the Galaxy S10 series and has kept it as the default on most Galaxy S and Note models since. You can switch back to JPEG in Camera settings:

1. Open the Camera app.
2. Tap the settings gear.
3. Look for Format and efficiency or HEIF pictures.
4. Toggle it off to save JPEG instead.

Google Pixel phones have supported HEIC since the Pixel 4, but they still default to JPEG in the standard camera mode. You can enable HEIC in Pixel Camera settings under Advanced > HEIC if you want smaller files. Most Chinese manufacturers (Xiaomi, OPPO, vivo) added HEIC as an optional format in 2021 to 2022 but continue to default to JPEG on many mid-range models.

Where HEIC works and where it breaks

On a supported Android phone, the native Gallery app and Google Photos display HEIC correctly. Chrome and Samsung Internet can render HEIC images on websites that serve them. But there are well-known gaps:

• WhatsApp: Automatically converts HEIC to JPEG when sending to chats. The recipient gets a JPEG, but the quality is re-compressed and metadata is stripped.
• Gmail and stock Email: Can attach HEIC files, but some older email apps show a generic file icon instead of a thumbnail.
• Discord, Slack, and older social apps: May reject HEIC uploads or fail to generate previews.
• Printing services and government upload portals:Almost universally require JPEG. HEIC uploads are rejected with an unsupported format error.

The pattern is the same as on every other platform: native viewers are fine, but the long tail of websites, apps, and services still expects JPEG.

Option 1: Google Photos export

If the HEIC file is already in Google Photos, tap it, open the three-dot menu, and choose Download or Save to device. Google Photos sometimes converts to JPEG during the save process, depending on your sync settings and the original upload quality. If you need explicit format control, use the Share menu and export to JPEG from there.

The catch: if the original was uploaded in Storage Saver quality, Google Photos already re-compressed it. Converting that to JPEG introduces a second generation of loss.

Option 2: Samsung Gallery export

On Samsung Galaxy devices, select a photo in Gallery, tap the three-dot menu, and choose Save as > JPEG. This is a direct export from the device with no cloud round trip. If you have multiple files, Samsung supports batch selection and batch export in recent One UI versions.

Option 3: Third-party apps from the Play Store

If you are on an older Android phone without native HEIC support, the Play Store has dozens of HEIC-to-JPEG converters. Search for HEIC to JPG and look for apps with high ratings and no ads. Be cautious: many free converter apps request storage and network permissions that are broader than they need. An app that uploads your photos to a server without disclosure is a privacy risk, especially for personal photos.

Option 4: Convert in the browser, no install

A browser-based converter is often the cleanest option on Android because it avoids the Play Store permission maze entirely. Open the converter in Chrome or Samsung Internet, tap the upload area, and select photos from your gallery. The conversion runs on the phone itself using a WebAssembly build of libheif. The files never leave your device, and nothing is installed.

This works on any Android phone with a modern browser, including devices too old to have native HEIC support. It also works on Chromebooks and tablets. You can convert one file or a batch, then download them individually or as a ZIP.

Frequently asked

Can Android open HEIC files without an app?

On Android 10 and later, yes, in the stock Gallery and Google Photos apps. On Android 9, support is partial and depends on the manufacturer. On Android 8 and earlier, no. You need a third-party app or a browser tool.

Does WhatsApp convert HEIC to JPG automatically?

Yes. When you send a HEIC photo in a WhatsApp chat, the app converts it to JPEG before transmission. The downside is that the JPEG is re-compressed and EXIF metadata is stripped. If you need the original quality, send the file as a document attachment instead of a photo.

Will converting HEIC to JPG reduce quality?

Yes, JPEG is a lossy format. A high-quality conversion (90 percent or above) is visually identical to the original for almost all personal photos. For screenshots, line art, or images with text, PNG is the better target because it is lossless.

Can I stop my Samsung phone from saving HEIC?

Yes. Open Camera, tap the settings gear, and disable HEIF pictures or High efficiency. New photos will be saved as JPEG. Existing HEIC photos in your gallery are not changed.