How to Compress Photos to AVIF on iPhone
If you have tried to save an iPhone photo as AVIF, you have probably already hit the wall: there is no "Save as AVIF" option in Photos. No AVIF export in Files. No toggle in Camera. iPhone can open AVIF files but cannot make them on its own.
This guide walks through every real way to turn an iPhone photo into an AVIF and the trade-offs of each.
What is AVIF, in one paragraph
AVIF is a modern image format. At the same visible quality, AVIF photos are typically 20-40% smaller than HEIC and 50-70% smaller than JPG. It also supports HDR, transparency, and animation. If you want the full background, see our explainer: What is AVIF?.
Why iPhone Doesn't Save Photos as AVIF
Apple added the ability to view AVIF photos a few iOS versions back, but never added the ability to create them. That leaves a gap: your iPhone can open the format the rest of the web is moving toward but cannot produce it. Third-party apps fill the gap.
Method 1: HEVCut (Native iPhone App)
HEVCut adds AVIF output to iPhone and runs the whole conversion on-device. No upload, no account, no internet required.
How to use it:
- Open HEVCut and tap the Photos tab.
- Tap the gear icon to open Compression Settings.
- Change Output Format to AVIF.
- Pick a quality level.
- Select photos, or sweep entire albums by year, size, or format.
- Tap Compress.
The AVIF files replace the originals in Photos, iCloud syncs the smaller copies to your other devices, and the originals stay in Recently Deleted for 30 days as a safety net.
HEVCut is the easiest way to convert iPhone photos to AVIF. Try it free.
Try freeTrade-offs
- Pros: Runs on-device, private, batch thousands of photos at once, keeps HDR and metadata.
- Cons: AVIF takes a little longer to produce than HEIC. You queue the work and let it run.
Method 2: Web Converters
A handful of websites accept a photo upload and return an AVIF.
How to use one:
- Open Safari, go to a converter.
- Tap Open Image and pick a photo from your library.
- Pick AVIF, save the result back to Photos or Files.
Trade-offs
- Pros: Free, no install.
- Cons: Uploads your photos to a third-party server. Single-photo workflow (no batching). Most strip the photo's metadata. Painful at library scale.
Fine for a one-off photo you are putting on a website. Not a real workflow for a whole library.
Method 3: Convert on a Mac
If you have a Mac running a recent version of macOS, you can AirDrop photos to the Mac, use macOS Preview or Photos to export them as AVIF, and AirDrop them back.
Trade-offs
- Pros: Free, runs on Apple hardware.
- Cons: Requires a Mac on the same Wi-Fi, manual one-at-a-time exports, and clunky to repeat. Not realistic for a full library.
Which Method Should You Use?
| Use case | Best method |
|---|---|
| Compressing 1 photo for a web upload | Web converter |
| Converting a whole album or library | HEVCut |
| Keeping HDR intact | HEVCut |
| Keeping EXIF and GPS intact | HEVCut |
| One-off, free, no install | Web converter |
| Need it to work offline | HEVCut |
HDR Photos and AVIF
Modern iPhones capture photos with HDR by default. AVIF keeps that HDR intact, so the photo continues to render with the same vivid highlights and shadow detail in Photos. If you are moving photos to platforms that do not support HDR, HEVCut has a switch to flatten it.
Will iCloud Sync Work?
Yes. When HEVCut replaces an iPhone photo with its AVIF version, iCloud Photos syncs the smaller file to all your devices. This is one of the fastest ways to drop down an iCloud storage tier without deleting memories. See our iCloud optimization guide for a fuller workflow.
Common Questions
Will my AVIF photos play in iMessage and WhatsApp?
Modern iMessage handles AVIF directly. WhatsApp accepts AVIF on web and modern mobile clients. If you are sharing with someone on an older phone, keep an original in the Vault as a fallback.
Will Instagram and TikTok accept AVIF uploads?
Yes. Both platforms accept AVIF from the web and mobile.
Is AVIF really worth it over HEIC?
If you never run out of storage and only share inside the Apple ecosystem, no. If you pay for iCloud, share to a mix of platforms, or have a library bigger than your phone, the savings add up fast.
Bottom Line
iPhone reads AVIF but cannot save photos in that format. Web converters work for one-off photos. HEVCut is the easiest way to convert an entire library to AVIF on iPhone, with HDR and metadata preserved.