FormatDrop
How-To Guide

How to Convert HEIC to PNG (Lossless Quality, Transparency Preserved)

Most people convert HEIC to JPG — it's smaller, universally supported, and fine for sharing photos. But sometimes you need PNG. Maybe you're editing the photo and need to preserve quality through multiple save cycles. Maybe the image has transparency you want to keep. Maybe you're a graphic designer who needs lossless output for compositing. This guide covers HEIC to PNG conversion specifically — what it gives you over HEIC to JPG, and when the larger file size is worth it.

Open HEIC to PNG Converter

Step-by-step instructions

  1. 1

    Open the FormatDrop HEIC to PNG converter

    Navigate to formatdrop.com/heic-to-png. The converter uses libheif — the same HEIC decoding library used in macOS — running in your browser via WebAssembly. Your HEIC photos are decoded and re-encoded to PNG entirely on your device.

    Go to converter
  2. 2

    Upload your HEIC file

    Drag a HEIC file from your iPhone, or click to browse for it. If you transferred files from iPhone to Windows via USB, you should see .heic files in your Pictures folder — they're your camera photos. If transferred via email or AirDrop to Windows, iPhone may have already auto-converted to JPG (iOS does this automatically in some transfer modes — go to iPhone Settings → Photos → Transfer to Mac or PC → 'Keep Originals' if you want the actual HEIC files).

  3. 3

    Select PNG as the output format

    The converter defaults to PNG output. PNG is lossless — every pixel from the HEIC original is preserved without any compression artifacts. Note that HEIC stores images in 10-bit or 12-bit colour depth; PNG standard is 8-bit per channel. The conversion preserves the colour detail as accurately as 8-bit PNG allows.

  4. 4

    Download your PNG

    After conversion, download the PNG file. Expect the output to be significantly larger than the HEIC source — a 3 MB HEIC photo may become a 10–20 MB PNG. This is normal and expected: PNG is lossless, HEIC is very efficiently compressed. The PNG will look identical to the HEIC on screen.

Why convert HEIC to PNG?

HEIC to PNG is a less common conversion than HEIC to JPG, but it's the right choice in specific workflows. The main reasons to choose PNG over JPG when converting HEIC: (1) Repeated editing — if you'll open, edit, and re-save the image multiple times in Photoshop or similar, PNG preserves quality on every save. JPG degrades slightly each re-save (generation loss). (2) Compositing — if the image will be used as a layer in Photoshop, Affinity Photo, or a video editor, PNG's lossless quality means the compositing math works on perfect pixel data. (3) Screenshots and graphics — if the HEIC actually contains a screenshot, diagram, or graphic (not a photo), PNG is dramatically better quality than JPG for these types of content. (4) Archival — for long-term storage where you want bit-perfect preservation of the original quality, PNG is preferred over JPG.

Your files never leave your device

FormatDrop runs the conversion engine entirely inside your browser using WebAssembly. No file upload. No server. Nothing stored. You can verify this by opening DevTools → Network tab and watching: zero upload requests.

Frequently asked questions

HEIC to PNG vs HEIC to JPG — which should I choose?
Choose PNG when: you'll re-edit the image multiple times, you need pixel-perfect quality for compositing, the image contains sharp graphics or text (screenshots), or you're archiving originals. Choose JPG when: you're sharing via email or social media, uploading to websites, or need smaller file sizes. For most photo sharing, JPG is better. For editing workflows, PNG is better.
Does HEIC to PNG lose any quality?
Technically, there's a minor quality conversion: HEIC internally uses 10-bit or 12-bit colour depth, while standard PNG is 8-bit (PNG-16 exists but isn't universally supported). When converting HEIC to 8-bit PNG, the 10-bit colour information is mapped to 8-bit — this is essentially imperceptible to human eyes but is a mathematical difference from the original. In practice, HEIC-to-PNG conversion is considered visually lossless.
Can I batch convert HEIC to PNG?
Yes — FormatDrop supports batch HEIC uploads. Select multiple HEIC files when you open the file picker. All files are processed locally in your browser. For large batches (50+ files), give the browser enough time and keep the tab active. On Mac, Preview.app can batch-export HEIC files to PNG: select all HEIC files in Finder → open with Preview → File → Export as PNG.
Convert HEIC to PNG Now — Free

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Related guides

How to Convert HEIC to JPGHow to Convert PNG to PDFHow to Convert MOV to MP4How to Convert WebP to JPG