Using HEIF or HEVC media on Apple devices

Upgrade to iOS 11 or later or macOS High Sierra or later to view, edit or duplicate HEIF or HEVC media captured with an iPhone or iPad.

iOS 11 and macOS High Sierra introduced support for these new, industry-standard media formats:

• HEIF (High Efficiency Image File Format) for photos

• HEVC (High Efficiency Video Coding), also known as H.265, for videos

HEIF and HEVC offer better compression than JPEG and H.264, so they use less storage space on your devices and iCloud Photos, while preserving the same visual quality.

Capturing this media

When using iOS 11 or later, or iPadOS, the following devices can capture media in HEIF or HEVC format. Other devices can view, edit or duplicate this media with limitations if using iOS 11 or later, iPadOS, or macOS High Sierra or later.

• iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus or later

• iPad (6th generation) or later

• iPad Air (3rd generation) or later

• iPad mini (5th generation) or later

• iPad Pro (10.5-inch), iPad Pro (11-inch) and iPad Pro (12.9-inch) (2nd generation) or later

Although capturing in HEIF and HEVC format is recommended, you can set these devices to capture media using older formats, which are more broadly compatible with other devices and operating systems:

1. Go to Settings > Camera.

2. Tap Formats.

3. Tap Most Compatible. This setting is only available on devices that can capture media in HEIF or HEVC format, and only when using iOS 11 or later, or iPadOS.

4. All new photos and videos will now be in JPEG or H.264 format. To return to using the space-saving HEIF and HEVC formats, choose High Efficiency.

Working with this media

Support for HEIF and HEVC is built into iOS 11 and later, iPadOS, and macOS High Sierra and later, letting you view, edit or duplicate this media in a variety of apps, including Photos, iMovie and QuickTime Player.

On some older devices, support for HEVC is affected by the resolution and frame rate (fps) of the video. Resolutions of 1080p or lower and frame rates of 60 fps or lower are more broadly compatible with older devices. To reduce the resolution and frame rate that your capture device uses for recording video, go to Settings > Camera > Record Video, as well as Settings > Camera > Record Slo-mo.

If you’re using iCloud Photos with iOS 10 or macOS Sierra, you may see a warning icon in the top right-hand corner of the photo or video, or you may see an alert message. To fully view, edit or duplicate HEIF and HEVC media on your device, upgrade to iOS 11 or later or macOS High Sierra or later.

Sharing and converting this media

If you're sharing this media through iCloud Photos, the media will be preserved with its original format, resolution and frame rate. If your device can't fully view, edit or duplicate HEIF or HEVC media in iCloud Photos, or it's displaying it at a lower resolution, upgrade to iOS 11 or later or macOS High Sierra or later.

If you’re sharing this media using other methods, such as AirDrop, Messages or email, the media may automatically be shared in a more compatible format such as JPEG or H.264, depending on whether the receiving device supports the newer media format.

To convert HEIF and HEVC media manually, export it to a different format from an Apple or third-party app. For example:

• If you open an HEIF image in Photos or Preview on your Mac, choose File > Export, then choose a format such as JPEG or PNG before saving.

• If you open an HEVC video in QuickTime Player on your Mac, choose File > Export As. In the dialogue that opens, use the pop-up menu to change from Smaller File Size (HEVC) to Greater Compatibility (H.264) before you click Save. If you see an HEVC tickbox instead of a pop-up menu, just deselect the tickbox before saving.

Importing this media via USB

When you import HEIF or HEVC media from an attached iPhone or iPad into Photos, Image Capture or a PC, the media may be converted to JPEG or H.264. If you don’t want it to be converted, go to Settings > Photos on your device, then scroll down and tap Keep Originals.