How to Convert AVIF to JPG (5 Free Methods)

You received an image in AVIF format and your software cannot open it. Or you downloaded a photo from a modern website and realized it saved as .avif instead of the JPEG you expected. AVIF is the newest image format on the web — better compression than both JPEG and WebP — but tool support outside browsers is still catching up.

Converting AVIF to JPG takes seconds. Here are five free methods, from browser-based instant conversion to command-line batch processing.

Method 1: Convert AVIF to JPG in Your Browser

Pixotter's format converter handles AVIF natively. The conversion runs entirely in your browser — nothing is uploaded to any server.

1. Open pixotter.com/convert and select JPG as the output format.
2. Drop your AVIF file(s) onto the page. Batch conversion is supported.
3. Adjust the quality slider if needed (85% is a good default for photos).
4. Click Convert and download.

The conversion uses libvips compiled to WebAssembly. It decodes the AVIF using the AV1 codec and re-encodes as JPEG — all locally on your device, in milliseconds for typical images.

Why this is the easiest method: No software to install, no account to create, works on any operating system with a modern browser (Windows, Mac, Linux, Chromebook).

Method 2: ImageMagick (Command Line)

ImageMagick 7.1.1-29+ (Apache 2.0 license) supports AVIF when compiled with libheif and libaom.

# Single file
magick input.avif output.jpg

# With quality control
magick input.avif -quality 90 output.jpg

# Batch convert all AVIF files in current directory
for f in *.avif; do
    magick "$f" -quality 85 "${f%.avif}.jpg"
done

Check AVIF support: Run magick identify -list format | grep AVIF. If AVIF appears in the output, your ImageMagick build supports it. If not, you need to rebuild or install a package with AVIF support enabled.

Install with AVIF support:

# Ubuntu 24.04+ (AVIF support included)
sudo apt install imagemagick

# macOS (Homebrew — AVIF support included by default)
brew install imagemagick

# Windows
winget install ImageMagick.ImageMagick

Method 3: FFmpeg (Video and Image Swiss Knife)

FFmpeg 7.0 (LGPL/GPL) decodes AVIF via its AV1 decoder:

# Single file
ffmpeg -i input.avif output.jpg

# With quality control (-q:v 2 = high quality, range 1-31)
ffmpeg -i input.avif -q:v 2 output.jpg

# Batch convert
for f in *.avif; do
    ffmpeg -i "$f" -q:v 2 "${f%.avif}.jpg"
done

FFmpeg is a good choice if you already have it installed for video work. For image-only tasks, ImageMagick has a simpler syntax.

Method 4: libavif Tools (Dedicated AVIF Toolkit)

libavif 1.0.4 (BSD-2-Clause) is the reference AVIF library. It includes avifdec, a dedicated AVIF decoder.

# Install (Ubuntu/Debian)
sudo apt install libavif-bin

# macOS
brew install libavif

# Decode AVIF to PNG (avifdec outputs PNG by default)
avifdec input.avif output.png

# Then convert PNG to JPG with ImageMagick or sips
magick output.png -quality 85 output.jpg

avifdec does not output JPG directly — it decodes to PNG or Y4M. For a direct AVIF-to-JPG pipeline, ImageMagick or Pixotter is simpler.

Method 5: macOS Preview

macOS Ventura (13.0) and later support AVIF natively:

1. Double-click the AVIF file to open it in Preview.
2. File → Export.
3. Change format to JPEG and adjust quality.
4. Save.

For batch conversion: select multiple AVIF files in Finder → right-click → Open With → Preview → Edit → Select All → File → Export Selected Images → choose JPEG.

Note: macOS versions before Ventura do not support AVIF. If Preview cannot open your AVIF file, use Pixotter's browser-based converter instead.

AVIF vs JPG Comparison

AVIF is the technically superior format — smaller files, wider color gamut, HDR support. But JPG remains the universal compatibility choice. If you need to share an image and cannot guarantee the recipient has AVIF support, JPG is the safe option.

For a detailed look at how AVIF compares to other modern formats, see What is AVIF? and WebP vs AVIF.

Why AVIF Files Exist (and Why You Are Seeing More of Them)

AVIF (AV1 Image File Format) uses the AV1 video codec for still image compression. It was standardized in 2019 by the Alliance for Open Media — the same consortium behind the AV1 video codec, which includes Google, Apple, Microsoft, Netflix, Mozilla, and Amazon.

AVIF adoption is accelerating because:

• Browser support is now universal. Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge all support AVIF as of 2024.
• CDNs auto-convert to AVIF. Services like Cloudflare, Fastly, and Akamai can automatically serve AVIF to supported browsers. Users download AVIF without knowing it.
• CMS platforms support it. WordPress 6.5+, Shopify, and most modern platforms accept AVIF uploads.

The result: more websites serve AVIF images, more browsers download AVIF files, and more users encounter .avif files they need to convert for non-browser contexts. See Best Image Format for Web for where AVIF fits in the broader format landscape.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does converting AVIF to JPG reduce quality?

Yes, marginally. AVIF and JPG both use lossy compression. Converting between them introduces a small generation loss — the image is decoded from AVIF and re-encoded as JPG. At JPEG quality 85-90, the loss is typically imperceptible for photos. The bigger impact is the format difference: JPG cannot represent AVIF's 10-bit color depth or HDR — these are reduced to 8-bit sRGB during conversion.

Can I batch convert AVIF files to JPG?

Yes. Pixotter supports batch conversion in the browser. ImageMagick and FFmpeg both handle batch processing via shell loops. See the code examples above.

Why is AVIF better than JPG?

AVIF compresses 30-50% more efficiently — the same photo at the same perceptual quality is significantly smaller as AVIF. AVIF also supports transparency, animation, HDR, and color depths up to 12-bit. The tradeoff is slower encoding and less universal tool support. For web delivery, AVIF is increasingly the best choice. For sharing and compatibility, JPG remains the standard.

Can I convert AVIF to PNG instead of JPG?

Yes. If you need lossless output or transparency preservation, convert to PNG instead of JPG. Use the same tools — Pixotter, ImageMagick, or FFmpeg — and specify PNG as the output format. PNG files will be larger than JPG but preserve every pixel exactly. For more on when PNG makes sense, see What is PNG?.

My software cannot open AVIF files. What should I do?

Convert the AVIF to JPG or PNG using any method in this guide. The fastest option is Pixotter's browser converter — no install required. For a broader look at opening modern image formats, see How to Open WebP Files (the same principles apply to AVIF).

Is AVIF the same as HEIC?

No. Both use modern video codecs for image compression, but they use different codecs: AVIF uses AV1, HEIC uses HEVC (H.265). AVIF is open and royalty-free; HEIC has licensing fees. Both are stored in the HEIF container format, but they are not interchangeable. See What is HEIC? for more on the HEIC format.