The short answer
Preview for a handful. A whole shoot needs more.
Preview converts a batch for free: open the RAW files in one window, select them in the sidebar, choose File › Export Selected Images, and pick JPEG. Apple Photos does it too, after it imports the files into your library. Both convert what you give them: nothing is set aside, and nothing is finished unless you edit it. Graycard reads the folder where it is, sets aside the misses, finishes the color of each photo, and exports them all as new JPEGs in one pass.
01Preview, free
Preview is on every Mac and converts several files at once.
- Select the RAW files in Finder and open them together in Preview, so they share one window.
- In the sidebar, select all the images.
- Choose File › Export Selected Images, then choose JPEG in the Format menu and set the quality.
- Pick a folder and save.
Apple's guide puts it this way: "To convert more than one image file at a time, open the files in one window, select them in that window's sidebar, then follow the steps above." Preview doesn't cull or finish the color; each JPEG is the RAW as macOS renders it.
02Apple Photos, free
Photos converts as it exports, with more control over size and color.
- Import the RAW files into Photos.
- Select them, then choose File › Export › Export [number] Photos.
- Choose JPEG as the photo kind, then the quality, the size, and the color profile.
- Click Export and pick a folder.
Two things to know. Photos keeps a RAW and JPEG pair as one photo and uses the JPEG as the original, unless you choose Image › Use RAW as Original. And the files become part of your Photos library, and of iCloud Photos if you use it.
03Graycard
Graycard is built for a whole folder at once.
- Open the card or folder with ⌘O. Nothing is imported or copied, and a RAW and its JPEG count as one photo.
- Run Auto-cull (⇧⌘K). Blurry, eyes-closed, badly exposed, and burst photos are set aside for your review.
- Export (⇧⌘E) and pick a preset: For sharing, Full size, or Print. Graycard Auto finishes each photo as it is written.
Every JPEG is tagged sRGB or Display P3, the shot date and camera are kept, and the camera files stay as they are. The first 80 photos are free to export.
04Side by side
| Feature | Preview | Apple Photos | Graycard |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free | Free | Free to download; first 80 photos free |
| Converts many at once | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Imports into a library | No | Yes | No |
| Sets aside blurry and eyes-closed photos | No | No | Yes, for your review |
| Finishes color on each photo | No | You edit them | Auto, on every photo |
| Chooses size and color profile | Format and quality | Size, quality, and profile | Presets, sRGB or Display P3 |
05Which to use
- A handful of RAW files you just need as JPEGs: Preview.
- Photos you want in your library anyway: Apple Photos.
- A whole shoot you want culled, finished, and ready to share: Graycard.
Graycard reads RAW from Sony, Canon, Nikon, Fujifilm, OM System, Panasonic, Pentax, Samsung, Leica, Hasselblad, and Phase One, plus DNG, JPEG, and HEIF. It runs on your Mac, and nothing is uploaded.
06Sources
Each source was opened and checked on October 8, 2026. Quotes are exact.
- Apple Support, "Convert image file types using Preview on Mac". support.apple.com. Converting one file or several from the sidebar; JPEG quality.
- Apple Support, "Export photos, videos, slideshows, and memories on Mac". support.apple.com. Export options in Photos.
- Apple Support, "Use a RAW file as the original in Photos on Mac". support.apple.com. RAW and JPEG pairs.