Convert ICO to HEIC on Mac
Select the ICO files in Finder, press ⌥ F, choose HEIC and press Return. FileFlip saves each HEIC next to its original and works without an internet connection.
How to convert ICO to HEIC with FileFlip
Select the ICO files
In Finder or on the Desktop. One file, or a whole folder with ⌘ A.
Press ⌥ F
FileFlip opens next to the selection and lists the formats it can make from ICO. Type “HEIC” to jump to it.
Choose HEIC and press Return
The HEIC files appear next to the originals. To make them smaller first, press ⇥ and lower the quality or size.
ICO and HEIC
The icon format of Windows, also used for website favicons. One ICO file can hold several sizes, up to 256 × 256 pixels. HEIC keeps photos small on Apple devices, which helps when storage is tight.
What changes when you convert
- HEIC is lossy: the file gets much smaller and some fine detail is discarded. At high quality settings the difference is hard to notice.
- HEIC opens on Apple devices, but not everywhere else. Check before you send it to someone on Windows.
| Property | ICO | HEIC |
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Windows icon | High Efficiency Image File Format |
| Made by | Microsoft | MPEG (Moving Picture Experts Group) |
| Compression | Bitmap or PNG inside | Lossy (HEVC) |
| Transparency | Yes | Yes |
| Best for | Windows icons and website favicons | Storing photos on Apple devices |
| Opens in | Windows, web browsers and most image editors | Apple devices; Windows needs the HEIF and HEVC extensions; many websites don’t accept it |
| File extension | .ico | .heic, .heif |
| In FileFlip | Opens and saves | Opens and saves |
Other ways on a Mac
For one file now and then you may not need FileFlip. These work with what’s already on your Mac.
Preview
Open the ICO in Preview, choose File → Export, pick HEIC from the Format menu and click Save. For several files, open them together, select all thumbnails in the sidebar and choose File → Export Selected Images.
Good for a few files now and then.
Terminal
The sips command converts images in place or into a new file.
sips -s format heic favicon.ico \
--out favicon.heicBuilt into macOS and good for scripts. Run sips --formats to see what your macOS version can read and write.
Questions about ICO and HEIC
Does converting ICO to HEIC lose quality?
HEIC is lossy: the file gets much smaller and some fine detail is discarded. At high quality settings the difference is hard to notice.
Can I convert many ICO files at once?
Yes. Select them all in Finder, press ⌥ F and choose HEIC. Progress moves to the menu bar, so you can close the panel and keep working.
Where is the HEIC file saved?
Next to the original, with the same name and the .heic extension. The ICO file isn’t changed. In Settings you can choose a different folder instead.
Can I convert HEIC back to ICO?
Yes, FileFlip converts HEIC to ICO as well.
Are my files uploaded anywhere?
No. FileFlip converts files on your Mac and works with the internet turned off.
Convert a whole folder of images at once
FileFlip also handles video, audio, PDFs, documents and data files. Requires macOS 14 Sonoma or later.
Coming soon for Mac