"iPhone Storage Almost Full." If you've seen that message, you're not alone. Most of us have thousands of photos on our phones: the kids, the dog, the vacation, and roughly 400 screenshots we meant to delete.
Here's how to get them backed up properly, and free up space on your phone while you're at it.
Which one to use
- Your family uses iPhones: use iCloud Photos. It's built in and works without you thinking about it.
- Your family uses Android, or a mix: use Google Photos. It works on both and has the best search ("show me photos of the beach in 2019").
- You pay for Amazon Prime: turn on Amazon Photos too. It's included with Prime and makes a great second copy (more on that below).
Then, whichever you pick, keep one extra copy somewhere else. That's the part almost everyone skips.
The options, side by side
| Service | Free space | If you need more | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| iCloud Photos | 5 GB | About $1/month for 50 GB, up to 2 TB for about $10/month | iPhone, iPad and Mac households |
| Google Photos | 15 GB, shared with your Gmail | About $2/month for 100 GB, up to 2 TB for about $10/month | Android, or a mix of devices |
| Amazon Photos | Unlimited photos with Prime (videos limited to 5 GB) | Extra plans for videos | A free second copy for Prime members |
| OneDrive | 5 GB | 1 TB per person with a Microsoft 365 plan | Families who already pay for Microsoft 365 |
| External hard drive | Nothing monthly | About $60–100 once, for 1–2 TB | A backup copy you keep at home |
Prices are U.S. prices and change from time to time, so check before you buy. Both iCloud and Google let you share one paid plan with your family, which is usually a much better deal than everyone paying separately.
Turn it on
iCloud Photos on iPhone:
Settings › [your name] › iCloud › Photos
Turn on Sync this iPhone (on older versions, iCloud Photos).
Google Photos: install the Google Photos app, sign in with your Google account, and turn on Backup when it asks. It works on iPhone too.
Leave your phone plugged in and on Wi-Fi overnight. The first upload can take a while if you have a lot of photos.
Syncing isn't the same as a backup
This one surprises people. iCloud Photos and Google Photos sync your photos, which means every device shows the same thing. That's great until you delete something: delete a photo on your phone, and it disappears from the cloud and your other devices too.
There's a safety net. Deleted photos sit in the Recently Deleted album (iPhone) or Trash (Google Photos) for 30 days or more, so check there first if something goes missing. But after that, it's gone for good.
That's why you want a second copy that doesn't sync. Pick one:
- A second cloud. If you have Amazon Prime, install Amazon Photos and turn on automatic backup. Now your photos live in two companies' clouds. This is the easiest option by far.
- An external hard drive. Once or twice a year (New Year's Day and the Fourth of July are easy to remember), copy all your photos onto a drive from your computer. Keep it somewhere other than next to the computer, like a drawer at work or a relative's house.
"Storage Almost Full"? Quick fixes
Once your photos are safely in the cloud, your phone doesn't need to keep full-size copies of all of them.
- On iPhone, turn on Optimize iPhone Storage. Your phone keeps small versions of older photos and downloads the full one when you open it.
Settings › Apps › Photos › Optimize iPhone Storage - In Google Photos, tap your picture, then "Free up space". It removes photos from your phone that are already backed up.
- Merge duplicates. On iPhone, open Photos, scroll down to Utilities, and tap Duplicates. It finds them for you, and one tap merges them.
- Delete old screenshots and videos. Search Photos for "screenshots," and sort through old videos: one long video can take up as much space as hundreds of photos.
What about the shoeboxes of old prints?
Those deserve a home too. Two ways to do it:
- Do it yourself, a few at a time: Google's free PhotoScan app scans prints with your phone camera and removes the glare. Perfect for a rainy afternoon.
- Send them out: mail-in scanning services will scan whole boxes of photos, slides and old videotapes and send them back with digital copies. It costs more, but it's the way to go if you have hundreds.
Either way, the scans go into your photo library with everything else, so they're backed up too.
Don't forget who gets them someday
If something happens to you, your photos are locked inside your account. Make sure someone you trust can get to them:
- Apple: add a Legacy Contact. Here's how in 6 iPhone Settings Everyone Should Change.
- Google: set up Inactive Account Manager in your Google account settings. It lets you choose who gets access to your photos if your account goes unused for a while.
Checklist
- Pick a home: iCloud Photos or Google Photos.
- Turn on backup and leave your phone charging overnight.
- Set up a second copy: Amazon Photos or an external drive.
- Turn on Optimize iPhone Storage, or use "Free up space" in Google Photos.
- Merge your duplicates.
- Add a Legacy Contact or set up Inactive Account Manager.