iPhone Photo Formats Explained

iPhone Photo Formats Explained: High Efficiency vs Compatible.

Learn how to choose between High Efficiency (HEIF) and Compatible (JPEG) photo formats on your iPhone. The setting you pick affects photo quality, how much storage space you use, and if your photos will open on other devices.

I’ll show you where to find the format settings and explain the differences between these options. I’m using iOS 26 Beta on an iPhone 16 Pro Max, but these steps work on iPhone 7 and newer models running iOS 11 or later.

What Are These Formats?

High Efficiency (HEIF/HEIC)
This is Apple’s newer format. It creates smaller file sizes while keeping the same or better quality than JPEG. Photos taken in this format end with .heic.

Compatible (JPEG)
This is the older, more universal format. Almost every device and website can open JPEG files. They end with .jpg or .jpeg. The files are larger than HEIF for the same quality.

The Main Difference in Plain Terms

• High Efficiency = smaller files, same good quality, but some older devices can’t open them
• Compatible/JPEG = larger files, works everywhere

How to Change the Photo Format on Your iPhone

1. Open Settings
2. Scroll down and tap Camera
3. Tap Formats
4. Choose between:

• High Efficiency (HEIF)
• Most Compatible (JPEG)

That’s it. New photos you take will use the format you selected. Existing photos stay in whatever format they were already saved in.

File Size Comparison

Here’s how the different formats compare for similar quality photos:

• HEIF (12MP) – around 1 to 2 MB
• JPEG (12MP) – around 3 to 4 MB
• RAW (12MP) – around 15 to 18 MB

HEIF files are roughly half the size of JPEGs. That means you can store about twice as many photos on your iPhone if you use High Efficiency.

Which Format Should You Use?

Choose High Efficiency if:

• You want to save storage space on your iPhone
• You mostly share photos with other iPhone or recent Android users
• You don’t often transfer photos to older computers or devices

Choose Most Compatible (JPEG) if:

• You share photos with people using older devices
• You upload photos to websites that don’t support HEIF
• You often transfer photos to a Windows computer that doesn’t have HEIF support installed

What About RAW and ProRAW?

If you have a Pro iPhone model (like the iPhone 16 Pro, 15 Pro, or older Pro models), you also have RAW options:

• ProRAW – Captures all the image data from the camera sensor. Gives you the most editing flexibility but creates very large files (15-18 MB per photo)
• JPEG XL Lossless – A newer format that compresses without losing quality. Not widely supported yet

For most people, High Efficiency is the best everyday choice. Use RAW only if you edit photos professionally and need maximum quality.

Will HEIF Photos Work on Other Devices?

Here’s what to expect:

• iPhone and Mac – works perfectly
• Recent Android phones – most support HEIF now
• Windows computers – need the HEIF extension from the Microsoft Store (free)
• Older computers – may not open HEIF files at all
• Most websites – some convert HEIF to JPEG automatically, some don’t accept HEIF

If you run into compatibility issues, you can always share a JPEG version instead. When you share a photo from your iPhone, it sometimes converts it automatically depending on how you share it.

A Note About Live Photos

Live Photos work with both formats. When you take a Live Photo, your iPhone records a short video (1.5 seconds) along with the still image. If you copy Live Photos off your iPhone, you’ll get two separate files – a photo and video with the same name.

Step-by-Step Summary

1. Go to Settings > Camera > Formats
2. Pick High Efficiency for smaller files
3. Pick Most Compatible for JPEG files
4. New photos use your chosen format

Final Tips

• HEIF saves about half the storage space of JPEG
• Quality is the same or better with HEIF
• Switch to JPEG only if you have compatibility problems
• RAW is for professionals who need maximum editing flexibility
• You can change this setting anytime – it only affects future photos

If you have questions about which format is right for your specific situation, let me know in the comments. Thanks for reading.