How Do I Delete Photos on My iPhone or iPad? A Simple Guide

Running out of storage on your iPhone or iPad? Or maybe you just want to declutter your photo library? Deleting photos is a common task for any smartphone user. Whether you’re looking to remove a single snapshot, clear out a bunch of images at once, or understand what happens to your photos after you hit delete, this guide will walk you through everything you need to know about deleting photos on your iPhone or iPad.

Before we dive in, it’s crucial to remember to back up any photos and videos you want to keep. Services like iCloud Photos can sync your library across devices, but deleting a photo on one device will remove it everywhere if you’re using the same Apple ID. Always ensure your precious memories are safely backed up before deleting!

To check your device’s storage and see how much space photos are taking up, navigate to Settings > General > [Device] Storage. This will give you a clear picture of your storage situation and help you decide if deleting photos is the right step.

Removing Photos and Videos: The Basics

When you delete photos and videos from your iPhone or iPad, they aren’t immediately gone forever. Instead, they are moved to the Recently Deleted album for 30 days. This gives you a safety net in case you accidentally delete something you wanted to keep. After 30 days, these items are permanently deleted from your device and iCloud Photos, if you’re using it.

Keep in mind that if you use iCloud Photos and delete images from one device, they will be deleted across all devices logged in with the same Apple ID.

If you’ve added photos to your iPhone or iPad by syncing from your computer, you can’t directly delete them from the Photos app on your device. You’ll need to stop syncing photos from your computer to manage them. If the trash icon appears grayed out when you try to delete, this might be the reason.

Deleting a Single Photo: Step-by-Step

Removing one photo at a time is straightforward and perfect for getting rid of those occasional blurry shots or unwanted screenshots.

1. Open Photos: Launch the Photos app on your iPhone or iPad.
2. Select Your Photo: Find and tap on the individual photo or video you wish to delete to view it in full screen.
3. Tap the Trash Icon: Look for the trash can icon, usually located at the bottom of the screen. Tap it.
4. Confirm Deletion: A prompt will appear asking you to confirm. Tap Delete Photo (or Delete Video) to move the item to the Recently Deleted album.

iPhone showing Delete Photo option

Deleting Multiple Photos: A Quick Way to Declutter

For a faster cleanup, deleting multiple photos at once is the way to go. This is ideal when you have a series of similar or unwanted images to remove.

1. Open Photos: Open the Photos app.
2. Tap Select: In any album view (like Recents or Days), tap the Select button, usually in the top right corner.
3. Choose Multiple Photos: Now you can tap on each photo you want to delete. Alternatively, you can drag your finger across multiple photos to select them quickly. Selected photos will have a checkmark.
4. Tap the Trash Icon: Once you’ve selected all the photos you want to delete, tap the trash can icon.
5. Confirm Bulk Deletion: Confirm your action by tapping Delete [Number] Items to move all selected photos and videos to the Recently Deleted album.

iPhone showing multiple photos selected in the Photos app

Understanding the “Recently Deleted” Album

As mentioned, deleted photos and videos are moved to the Recently Deleted album. This album acts like a recycle bin, giving you a chance to recover items within 30 days. It’s important to understand how this album works, especially if you are sharing your photo library.

In iOS 16.1, iPadOS 16.1, and later, Apple introduced iCloud Shared Photo Library. If you are using a shared library, keep in mind that anyone with access can delete, add, or edit items. If someone else deletes a photo from the shared library, it will disappear for everyone. However, only the person who originally added the photo to the Shared Library can permanently delete it from the Recently Deleted folder or recover it. You still have the 30-day window to recover photos from your Recently Deleted album.

Recovering Deleted Photos: Getting Back Accidentally Removed Images

Made a mistake and deleted a photo you actually wanted to keep? Don’t worry; recovery is usually simple as long as it’s within the 30-day period.

1. Open Photos: Go back to the Photos app.
2. Go to Albums and Find Recently Deleted: Scroll down in the Albums tab to the Utilities section and tap on Recently Deleted.
3. Unlock if Necessary: In iOS 16, iPadOS 16.1, and later, you may need to use Face ID or Touch ID to unlock the Recently Deleted album for privacy. Tap View Album and authenticate.
4. Select Photos to Recover: Tap Select, then choose the photos or videos you want to restore.
5. Tap Recover: Tap the More button (three dots in a circle) at the bottom right. Then, tap Recover. To restore everything in the album, you can choose Recover All.
6. Confirm Recovery: Tap Recover Photo (or Recover Video) to confirm. The recovered items will be moved back to your main Photos Library, typically in the Recents album.

Permanently Deleting Photos: Freeing Up Space

If you want to permanently remove photos and videos and free up storage space immediately, you need to empty the Recently Deleted album. Be absolutely sure you want to do this, as this action is irreversible.

1. Open Photos and Go to Recently Deleted: Follow steps 1-3 from the “Recovering Deleted Photos” section to access the Recently Deleted album.
2. Select Photos for Permanent Deletion: Tap Select, and choose the photos and videos you want to permanently delete. Or, if you want to delete everything in the album, you can skip selection for now.
3. Tap Delete: Tap the More button. Then, tap Delete. To delete all items in the album without selecting individually, you might see a Delete All option directly at the bottom of the screen.
4. Confirm Permanent Deletion: A warning message will appear, emphasizing that this action is permanent and photos cannot be recovered. Tap Delete Photo to confirm and permanently remove the selected items.

Dealing with Duplicate Photos: Saving Space and Keeping Organized

iOS and iPadOS have a built-in feature to detect duplicate photos and videos, helping you save storage space and keep your library tidy.

1. Open Photos and Access Duplicates Album: Open the Photos app. Scroll down to the Utilities section in the Albums tab. Look for and tap on the Duplicates album. (This album appears on iOS 16, iPadOS 16.1, and later, and only when duplicates are detected).
2. Review Duplicates: The Duplicates album will show sets of photos or videos that are identified as duplicates.
3. Merge Duplicates: Tap Merge next to a set of duplicates to combine them.
4. Confirm Merge: Tap Merge [Number] Items to confirm. The system will keep the highest quality version and relevant data, and move the other duplicates to the Recently Deleted album.

The duplicate detection process is automatic and runs in the background, so it may take some time for the Duplicates album to appear after you’ve taken many similar photos.

By following these steps, you can efficiently manage and delete photos on your iPhone or iPad, keeping your photo library organized and freeing up valuable storage space. Remember to regularly back up your important photos and videos and be cautious when permanently deleting items from the Recently Deleted album.