CR2 to JPG Converter

Q: Can I convert CR2 to PNG instead?

Yes, [CR2 to PNG](/cr2-to-png) writes a lossless 8-bit file for editing or layout work. For sharing and printing, JPG at quality 90 is the better trade between size and detail.

CR2 is the raw format of a whole generation of Canon EOS cameras, from 2004 until CR3 replaced it. If you have a folder of them and no editor that opens them, this page turns them into JPGs with the camera data still attached.

or drop JPG, JPEG, JPE … files here ·

Max 95 MB per file· Up to 20 files· Deleted after 30 minutes

Output

Convert to

Files are processed on our servers and deleted after 30 minutes.

How to use this tool

1
Drop in the CR2 files
Up to 20 per batch, each under 95 MB, which covers every CR2 camera Canon made.
2
Keep the defaults
Quality 90 and camera EXIF kept: exposure, lens and date stay in the JPG. Tick Strip metadata under Advanced settings before posting publicly.
3
Press Convert to JPG
Download the batch as a ZIP and repeat with the next 20 files.

Canon CR2 files: where they come from and why they stopped opening

Canon Raw 2 replaced the older CRW format in 2004 and was used in EOS DSLRs for fourteen years. Inside, it follows a TIFF-like layout: the raw sensor values, the camera settings, and preview images, including in most models a full-size JPG preview. From the EOS-1D Mark III and 40D in 2007, Canon recorded 14 bits per photosite instead of 12.

Those files outlived the software bought with the camera. An old Lightroom license, a laptop replaced since, a phone that cannot read raw: years later the folder of CR2s opens nowhere. Converting gives you a format that will still open decades from now.

Batch convert CR2 to JPG from a full memory card

CR2 files per batch: 20
Per file, above any CR2 size: 95 MB
Until uploads are deleted: 30 min
Both Canon raw generations: CR2 · CR3

CR2

Canon Raw 2

Canon Raw 2 (CR2) is the raw image format written by Canon cameras. It was used by Canon DSLRs from around 2004 until it was replaced by CR3 in 2018, and it is based on the TIFF structure. A raw file stores the sensor data before the camera applies white balance, sharpening and compression, which leaves far more room to recover highlights, shadows and colour when editing. Files are large and cannot be shared directly on websites, social networks or most phones. Lightroom, Capture One, darktable and the manufacturer's own software open them, but plain image viewers often show only a small embedded preview or nothing at all.

Compression: Lossless
Transparency: No
Animation: No
Introduced: 2004 · Canon

CR2 converter

JPG

JPEG image

JPEG (or JPG) is the most widely used photo format, standardised by the Joint Photographic Experts Group in 1992. It uses lossy compression that discards fine detail the eye is unlikely to notice, which keeps photos small enough for the web, email and phone storage. It handles smooth gradients and natural scenes well, but sharp text, line art and flat colours pick up visible blocky or fuzzy artefacts. JPEG has no transparency and no animation, and every re-save loses a little more quality. Every browser, phone, camera and image editor can open it.

Compression: Lossy
Transparency: No
Animation: No
Introduced: 1992 · Joint Photographic Experts Group

JPG converter

Owners of older Canon DSLRs convert CR2 to JPG to share or print shoots from a hard drive full of raw files, often years later, on a computer whose software no longer opens them.

The JPG preview hidden inside a CR2

The preview is compressed more heavily than a JPG you export, and it cannot be re-developed. A proper conversion starts from the raw values: colors are interpolated from the sensor's Bayer mosaic, white balance is applied, and tones are mapped to 8 bits. That is also where the choice between a raw editor and a direct conversion matters. Lightroom, Capture One or Canon's free Digital Photo Professional let you adjust every frame; a converter like this one gives consistent, neutral JPGs for a whole folder in minutes.

Raw shoots convert to large JPGs, typically several megabytes for a full-resolution frame. For an upload form with a limit, the guide on how to reduce image size in KB explains which setting to change first.

CR2 to JPG FAQ

Which Canon cameras save CR2 and which save CR3?

CR2 arrived with the EOS-1D Mark II in 2004 and stayed in DSLRs such as the 5D series, the 80D and the Rebel line for years. Canon switched to CR3 starting with the EOS M50 in 2018. For the newer files use CR3 to JPG.

Is my Canon Picture Style applied to the JPG?

No. The Picture Style you chose in the camera is stored as a note in the CR2, and only Canon's Digital Photo Professional applies it exactly. Other raw engines, including this one, render the image neutrally, so it may look a little softer in contrast than the camera's own JPG.

What are sRAW and mRAW files, and can they be converted?

They are smaller raw sizes that many Canon bodies from 2007 onward offered, still saved with the .cr2 extension. They convert the same way and give a JPG at the reduced pixel dimensions they were shot at.

Is the camera's EXIF data kept?

Yes, on this page metadata is kept by default, so shutter speed, aperture, ISO, lens and capture time remain readable in the JPG. Location data from a paired phone is kept as well unless you strip it.

Should I keep the CR2 files after converting?

Yes, if the pictures matter. The CR2 holds 14-bit data in most bodies from 2007 on, with room to recover highlights and change white balance that the 8-bit JPG no longer has.

Can I convert CR2 to PNG instead?

Yes, CR2 to PNG writes a lossless 8-bit file for editing or layout work. For sharing and printing, JPG at quality 90 is the better trade between size and detail.