iCloud Photos
Also known as: iCloud Photo Library, photos in iCloud, sync photos iCloud
iCloud Photos keeps your entire photo and video library in sync across your Apple devices and stores it in iCloud. Because it syncs rather than backs up, a photo you delete on one device is removed everywhere, and the originals count against your iCloud storage.
- Syncs one library across all Apple devices
- Originals count against iCloud storage
- Deleting on one device deletes everywhere
Sync, not backup
iCloud Photos mirrors one library across every signed-in device. Add, edit, or delete a photo on your iPhone and the change appears on your iPad and Mac too. This is convenient, but it means deleting to free space removes that photo from all devices, not just one.
You turn it on in Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Photos. Full-resolution originals live in iCloud and count against your iCloud storage, which is why a large library can fill the free 5 GB quickly.
Freeing device space with it
When iCloud Photos is on, you can enable Optimize iPhone Storage so the device keeps smaller, space-saving versions while full originals stay in iCloud. Deleted photos move to Recently Deleted for about 30 days before the space is reclaimed everywhere.