Converting Multiple HEIC to JPG on Mac

High-Efficiency Image Format (HEIC) is a relatively new image format developed by the MPEG group. While it offers superior compression without compromising image quality, it might not be universally supported by all devices and platforms. If you need to share images or work with applications that don’t support HEIC, converting them to the more widely compatible JPEG format is necessary. Here’s how you can easily convert multiple HEIC files to JPG on a Mac.

Using Preview:

Preview, the default image viewer and editor on macOS, can handle various image formats, including HEIC and JPEG. However, it doesn’t provide batch conversion functionality out of the box. Still, you can use Preview to convert multiple HEIC files to JPG sequentially:

  1. Open HEIC Files in Preview:
  • Select all the HEIC files you want to convert.
  • Right-click on one of the selected files and choose “Open With” > “Preview”.
  1. Convert to JPEG:
  • With the images opened in Preview, click on the first image to make it active.
  • Go to the “File” menu and choose “Export Selected Images…”.
  • In the export dialog, choose JPEG as the format and adjust other settings as needed.
  • Click “Save” to convert the current image to JPEG.
  • Repeat these steps for each HEIC file you want to convert.

While this method works, it can be time-consuming if you have many files to convert. For batch conversion, you can use the command-line interface (Terminal) or third-party applications.

Using Terminal:

macOS includes powerful command-line tools that allow you to perform various tasks efficiently. You can use the sips command to convert HEIC files to JPEG format in bulk.

  1. Open Terminal:
  • Open Spotlight Search (Cmd + Space) and type “Terminal”.
  • Hit Enter to launch the Terminal application.
  1. Navigate to the Directory Containing HEIC Files:
  • Use the cd command followed by the path to the directory containing your HEIC files.
  • For example:
    cd /path/to/your/heic/files
  1. Convert HEIC to JPG:
  • Run the following command to convert all HEIC files in the current directory to JPG:
    sips -s format jpeg *.HEIC --out ./
  • This command uses the sips (Scriptable Image Processing System) tool to convert HEIC files to JPEG format.
  1. Check Converted Files:
  • Once the command completes, you’ll find the converted JPG files in the same directory.

Using Third-Party Applications:

Several third-party applications offer user-friendly interfaces and advanced features for batch converting HEIC to JPG on macOS. Some popular options include Adobe Photoshop, GraphicConverter, and XnConvert. These applications allow you to convert multiple files simultaneously, customize output settings, and streamline your workflow.

Regardless of the method you choose, converting HEIC files to JPG on a Mac is a straightforward process that ensures compatibility and ease of sharing across various platforms and devices.