What happens when you convert HEIC to EPS
- The HEIC is embedded in the EPS losslessly, on a page of one point per pixel, so a 1000 pixel wide image makes artwork about 35 cm wide that scales down cleanly for print.
- The EPS holds the picture as pixels. It does not turn the image into vector shapes, so it will not scale up without softening; for that, convert to SVG, which traces the shapes.
- EPS has no transparency, so transparent areas are filled with white.
- Browsers other than Safari cannot read HEIC, so a decoder of about 1.3 MB is fetched when you press Convert.
How to convert HEIC to EPS online
- Press "Choose HEIC files" and select one or more files, or drag them onto the box. You can add files of any size your device can hold in memory.
- Adjust the settings if you need to. The output is lossless, so there is no quality setting to worry about.
- Press "Convert to EPS". Images convert in a second or two each.
- Save each EPS with its download button. Close the tab and every trace of the files is gone from memory.
Why convert HEIC to EPS?
HEIC files usually come from photos taken on iPhones and iPads since iOS 11. People convert them to EPS because EPS is what many printers, sign makers and older design software still ask for when you send artwork.
In short, HEIC is good at what it was made for, and EPS is the more practical choice when the file has to open, upload or print somewhere else. Safari on Apple devices shows HEIC; Chrome, Edge and Firefox cannot, while EPS does not open in browsers; Illustrator, Inkscape and Affinity Designer open it, and macOS Preview converts it to PDF.
How to convert HEIC to EPS on Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android
On Windows
Open this page in Chrome, Edge or Firefox, drag your HEIC files in from File Explorer, and press Convert. Each EPS is saved to your Downloads folder.
On a Mac
Safari, Chrome and Firefox all work. Drag the HEIC files from Finder onto the drop zone and the EPS files land in Downloads.
On iPhone and iPad
Open the page in Safari and tap Choose HEIC files. You can pick from Photos or from the Files app. The converted EPS appears in Files, in the Downloads folder; to put it in your photo library, open it there, tap Share and choose Save Image. To stop the iPhone creating HEIC files in future, go to Settings, Camera, Formats and choose Most Compatible.
On Android
Open the page in Chrome, tap Choose HEIC files and pick them from Files or your gallery. The EPS is saved to the Download folder, where any file manager can find it.
Best settings for HEIC to EPS
The EPS page is one point per pixel, the usual convention for placed images, so the artwork keeps its pixel dimensions and can be scaled down freely in InDesign, Illustrator or QuarkXPress. Use the Maximum width setting to make it smaller first if a printer has a file size limit.
Because an EPS image has no transparency, transparent areas become white. For a logo that must stay transparent or scale to any size, convert it to SVG instead, which traces it into vector shapes.
HEIC vs EPS: the differences
| HEIC | EPS | |
|---|---|---|
| Full name | High Efficiency Image Container | Encapsulated PostScript |
| Type | image | image |
| Created by | the Moving Picture Experts Group, adopted by Apple | Adobe |
| First released | 2017 | 1987 |
| Compression | Lossy | Lossless |
| Transparency | Yes | No |
| Animation | No | No |
| Vector or raster | Raster | Vector |
| Colour | up to 16-bit colour | vector drawing, which can also hold raster images |
| In a browser | Safari on Apple devices shows it; Chrome, Edge and Firefox cannot | does not open in browsers; Illustrator, Inkscape and Affinity Designer open it, and macOS Preview converts it to PDF |
| Common uses | photos taken on iPhones and iPads since iOS 11 | logos and artwork for print, and stock vector graphics |
| MIME type | image/heic | application/postscript |
About HEIC and EPS files
What is a HEIC file?
iPhones save photos as HEIC because it is roughly half the size of an equivalent JPG. The catch is compatibility: Windows needs an extra codec, and most upload forms and older software reject it.
What is an EPS file?
An EPS is a small PostScript program that draws one page of artwork, with a bounding box so it can be placed inside other documents. Printers and designers still ask for it, but it is gradually being replaced by PDF and SVG.
HEIC to EPS not working? Common problems
- Colours look slightly different. Browsers convert images to the standard sRGB colour space when they decode them, so wide-gamut and CMYK images can shift a little.
- A phone photo comes out upright even though it looked sideways elsewhere. That is correct: the rotation stored in the photo is applied during conversion, so the EPS is always the right way up.
- Transparent areas turned white. EPS cannot store transparency; convert to PNG or WebP instead if you need it.
Convert HEIC to EPS from the command line
If you work in a terminal, ImageMagick converts HEIC to EPS in one line:
magick input.heic output.epsTo convert every HEIC in a folder at once, use magick mogrify -format eps *.heic. Your ImageMagick build needs HEIC support (libheif), which the official installers include. The converter on this page does the same job without installing anything.
HEIC to EPS converter FAQ
Will I lose quality converting HEIC to EPS?
No further quality is lost, because EPS is written losslessly. Detail the HEIC compression already removed does not come back.
Why is the EPS a different size from the HEIC?
The EPS is usually larger, because it stores every pixel without compression losses, while the HEIC was compressed lossily.
Are my HEIC files uploaded anywhere?
No. The conversion runs inside this browser tab using your browser's own image decoder, so your files stay on your device. You can disconnect from the internet after the page has loaded and it still works.
Can I convert several HEIC files to EPS at once?
Yes. Select or drop as many files as you like; they are converted one after another and each gets its own download button.
How do I open an EPS file?
EPS does not open in browsers; Illustrator, Inkscape and Affinity Designer open it, and macOS Preview converts it to PDF. EPS is common for logos and artwork for print, and stock vector graphics.
Is this HEIC to EPS converter free?
Yes. There is no sign-up, no watermark and no limit on how many files you convert. The site is paid for by advertising, and because conversions run on your device there is no server cost per file.
Can I convert HEIC to EPS on my phone?
Yes. The converter works in Safari on iPhone and iPad and in Chrome on Android. Converted files are saved to the Downloads folder.