Crop HEIF

How to Crop HEIF Images Online

1. Choose Your HEIF Files: Drag and drop HEIF images onto the page or click "Choose HEIF files" — up to 50 at once. The first photo opens in the editor and the rest line up as thumbnails below it; with two or more photos open, "Add more" adds files to the same batch.
2. Set the Crop: In Crop, pick an "Aspect ratio" ("Free", "Original", 1:1, 4:3, 16:9 and more) or a platform size, then drag the box on the photo or type its width and height under "Crop area". "Shape" switches between "Rectangle" and "Circle (avatar)". The crop applies to every photo in the batch.
3. Pick the Output Format (Optional): "Save as" keeps "Same as original" or saves as JPG, PNG, WebP or another format. For JPG, WebP and AVIF output, the "Quality" slider (40–100) trades file size against detail. Resize, Crop, Rotate and Flip all work in the same session, and "Undo" steps back.
4. Download: Click the Download button, which names the output format (for example "Download PNG"), for one photo, or "Download all (.zip)" for a batch — "Download one by one" saves the files separately. The editor opens HEIF files right in your browser whenever your browser can decode them, so those files are not uploaded. A file it can't decode is either processed on our servers and deleted automatically afterward — the editor says so before you download — or skipped with a note. No sign-up, no watermark.

Why Crop HEIF Instead of Converting First?

HEIF (High Efficiency Image File Format, ISO/IEC 23008-12, MPEG-H Part 12) is a container standard introduced in 2015 that stores still images, image sequences, and metadata inside the ISO Base Media File Format. The default codec is HEVC (H.265), which is what Apple ships as .heic on iPhone since iOS 11 (2017) and macOS High Sierra; Samsung Galaxy and several Android OEMs use the same codec under the .heif extension. A 12 MP HEIF is typically about half the size of an equivalent-quality JPEG. This editor opens the HEIF directly, so there is no separate convert step before you crop; browsers can't write HEIF, so the cropped photo is saved as JPG, with its EXIF kept.

• Social-media reframing straight from the phone file — Instagram's recommended feed sizes are 4:5 (1080×1350) for portrait, 1:1 (1080×1080) for square, and 9:16 (1080×1920) for Reels and Stories. A 48 MP HEIF cropped to 1080×1350 comes back as an upload-ready JPG, a format every platform accepts.
• AirDrop, iCloud, and Apple Photos round-trips — The cropped photo comes back as a JPG, which the Photos app, iCloud Photos, AirDrop and every other device open, and its EXIF capture date and location are kept so it still sorts correctly in your library.
• Removing distractions and bystanders — Trim out edges, signs, or strangers before you share the photo. Only the pixels that are kept go into the new file.
• Document and whiteboard captures — iPhone "Scan Documents" output and quick whiteboard photos crop cleanly to the page or board area, often shaving 60-80% off file size before sharing.
• 48 MP and HEIF Max crops — When shooting at the iPhone Pro's high-resolution HEIF Max setting, a tight crop still leaves enough pixels for a 4K-class image, so the full 48 MP frame does not need to live in the camera roll.
• Print-aspect cropping — Snap to 3:2 for a 4×6 print (for 5×7 or 8×10, pick Free and type the size under "Crop area") before sending to a photo lab, instead of letting the lab auto-crop unpredictably.

HEIF vs HEIC vs JPEG vs WebP — Format Comparison

HEIF vs HEIC — Are They the Same File?

The two terms are often used interchangeably and the codecs underneath usually match, but they are not identical labels. HEIF is the container standard; the underlying image data can be HEVC, AV1 (sometimes called AVIF when packaged with the AV1-only constraints), or other supported codecs. HEIC is Apple's convention for HEIF files that specifically wrap HEVC-coded images, and it is the extension iOS, iPadOS, and macOS write by default. In practice almost every consumer .heif from a phone is HEVC-coded, so cropping a .heif and a .heic produces an indistinguishable result with this tool: both are saved as JPG.

Crop Aspect Ratio Quick Guide

Frequently Asked Questions

Will the cropped output stay as HEIF, or does it silently convert to JPEG?

It is saved as JPG, and the editor tells you so. Browsers can't write HEIF, so "Same as original" saves a HEIF as JPG ("HEIC can't be written in the browser, so this was saved as JPG") and the button reads "Download JPG"; there is no HEIF or HEIC output. The JPG keeps the photo's EXIF (camera, date taken, GPS) and opens everywhere; pick PNG under "Save as" for a lossless copy. Keep the source file if you need the HEIF original. If you only want a JPG of the whole photo without cropping, HEIF to JPG does that.

What is the practical difference between HEIF and HEIC for a cropping workflow?

For the cropping operation itself, none — the file is opened, pixels outside the crop are discarded, and the kept region is saved as a JPG either way. The two extensions just reflect which device wrote the file: iPhone, iPad, and Mac write .heic; Samsung, Huawei, and several Android OEMs write .heif; the bytes underneath are interchangeable.

Does cropping itself reduce image quality?

The crop operation discards pixels outside the box but does not blur or resample the pixels that are kept. Quality only changes when the file is re-encoded, and the default "Quality" of 85 is visually lossless for almost every photo; a browser cannot write HEIF, so the Download button names the format you get before you save. Lower "Quality" only when you need a smaller file for messaging or web; save as PNG with "Save as" for a lossless copy if you are doing further edits later.

What happens to EXIF metadata, GPS, and capture date?

Saved as JPG (what a HEIF becomes here), the photo keeps its EXIF — camera model, lens, ISO, shutter, aperture, capture date, GPS. Other "Save as" formats drop EXIF. One subtlety specific to HEIF: orientation is stored in two places (the QuickTime Rotation atom inherited from ISO Base Media File Format, and the EXIF Orientation tag). When the two disagree, Apple's apps prefer the QuickTime value, which is the source of "rotated wrong" reports across various third-party HEIF tools. The editor turns the pixels upright and resets the Orientation tag to normal, so the cropped JPG displays the same on iOS, Android, macOS, and Windows Photos.

Why does Windows say it cannot open my .heif file?

The cropped file this editor saves is a JPG, which Windows opens without extras; it is the original .heif that needs them. Windows 10 (build 1803+) and Windows 11 can open HEIF, but only after the HEVC Video Extension and HEIF Image Extension are installed from the Microsoft Store — Microsoft charges a small one-time fee for the HEVC component because of patent licensing on H.265. If an uncropped HEIF is going to a recipient who has not installed those, convert with HEIF to JPG or HEIF to PNG before sharing. iOS, Android, macOS, ChromeOS, and modern Linux distributions handle HEIF natively or with a freely available codec.

How do I crop to an exact pixel size like 1080×1350 for Instagram?

Pick 4:5 under "Aspect ratio" (or the Instagram portrait platform size) and drag the box over the part you want; then open Resize and set the "Width" to 1080 — with "Keep aspect ratio" on, the height follows to 1350. For a pure resize without cropping, use Resize HEIC instead.

Can I crop Live Photos, bursts, or HEIF image sequences?

A Live Photo on iOS is two files — a HEIC still and a paired .mov — sitting next to each other rather than fused into one HEIF. Cropping the HEIC keeps the still image but the motion .mov stays untouched and will no longer match the cropped frame, so most workflows drop it. For HEIF image sequences and bursts that are stored as a single multi-image HEIF, the editor opens the primary (first) image only, and the crop saves that one still.

What about 10-bit and Display P3 wide-gamut HEIF from newer iPhones?

iPhone 12 and later capture in the Display P3 colour space, and Pro models support 10-bit HDR HEIF (HLG-tagged on iPhone 12 Pro and newer). Neither is kept on crop: the editor works in 8-bit sRGB, so a Display P3 photo is converted to sRGB and a 10-bit HEIF is saved as 8-bit. Colours still look right on any screen, but the wider gamut and HDR range are gone; keep the original HEIF if you need them. SDR HEIFs from older phones and from Samsung handsets are saved in sRGB as well.

When should I use crop vs resize vs compress, and is HEIC handled separately?

Crop changes the framing by removing pixels from the edges. Resize changes the pixel dimensions without changing what is in the frame. Compress keeps both framing and dimensions but lowers quality to shrink the file. For same-framing, smaller file: Compress HEIF. For different dimensions, same content: Resize HEIF. For Apple-extension files there is a dedicated Crop HEIC page that mirrors this tool — both save the cropped photo as JPG.