How to write HEIC image files in Java (Tutorial)

In this article, I will cover how to write out images as Heic files in Java. We also have a related article covering how to read HEIC files in Java.

ImageIO does not write HEIC file types so you will need to use an external library or plugin. We believe that JDeli is the only pure, complete Java implementation available so we will document that.

If you are looking for a free solution, we recommend the Nokia library on GitHub (which includes Java wrappers).

How to write an image as a Heic file with JDeli

1. Add JDeli to your class or module path. (download the trial jar).
2. Create a File (or OutputStream) object
3. Pass image, Heic type, and File (or OutputStream) object into write method

and the Java code to write Heic with JDeli…

File file = new File("/path/to/outputFile.heic"));

JDeli.write(bufferedImage, "heic", file);


//In JDeli you can also use a typesafe version

JDeli.write(bufferedImage, OutputFormat.HEIC, file);


//or pass in a object for more control over Heic image output

HeicEncoderOptions options = new HeicEncoderOptions();

JDeli.write(bufferedImage, options, file);

// Read an image
BufferedImage bufferedImage = JDeli.read(dicomImageFile);

// Read an image
BufferedImage bufferedImage = JDeli.read(heicImageFile);

// Write an image
JDeli.write(bufferedImage, "heic", outputStreamOrFile);

// Read an image
BufferedImage bufferedImage = JDeli.read(jpegImageFile);

// Write an image
JDeli.write(bufferedImage, "jpeg", outputStreamOrFile);

// Read an image
BufferedImage bufferedImage = JDeli.read(jpeg2000ImageFile);

// Write an image
JDeli.write(bufferedImage, "jpx", outputStreamOrFile);

// Write an image
JDeli.write(bufferedImage, "pdf", outputStreamOrFile);

// Read an image
BufferedImage bufferedImage = JDeli.read(pngImageFile);

// Write an image
JDeli.write(bufferedImage, "png", outputStreamOrFile);

// Read an image
BufferedImage bufferedImage = JDeli.read(tiffImageFile);

// Write an image
JDeli.write(bufferedImage, "tiff", outputStreamOrFile);

// Read an image
BufferedImage bufferedImage = JDeli.read(webpImageFile);

// Write an image
JDeli.write(bufferedImage, "webp", outputStreamOrFile);