iCloud Photos is an optional backup feature on Apple devices that securely stores your photos and videos online in the cloud. It’s helpful because it means that even if you were to lose your device, you won't lose your photographs.
Keep reading to find out how to check if iCloud Photo Library is enabled on your device, plus how to turn it off – and what happens if you do.
How do I know if iCloud Photo Library is enabled?
Not sure if iCloud Photo Library is enabled on your device? Here’s how to check.
1. On your device, open Settings.
2. Tap your name.
3. Tap iCloud.
4. Tap Photos.
5. Here you can see if the toggle for iCloud Photos is set to On or Off.
What happens when you turn off iCloud Photo Library on your iPhone?
If you turn off the iCloud Photo Library, it will remove photos from your iPhone that weren’t taken on that device. If you want to learn how to turn off iCloud photos without deleting everything, here’s how to ensure current iCloud images aren’t removed during the process.
How to turn off iCloud Photo Library
Turning off the iCloud Photo Library is a simple process. However, before you turn it off, make sure you’ve backed up your device to ensure you don’t accidentally lose your images. Once that’s done, here’s how to turn off iCloud Photo Library on your device.
1. Within the Settings app, tap your name.
2. Tap iCloud.
3. Tap Photos.
4. Toggle iCloud Photos to the Off position.
5. Tap Remove from iPhone to remove images taken on your other Apple devices from your iPhone’s Camera Roll.
How to turn off iCloud Photo Library without deleting photos on your iPhone
If you turn off the iCloud Photo Library, it will remove photos from your iPhone that weren’t taken on that device. If you want to turn off iCloud Photo Library but keep your Camera Roll as it is, here’s how to ensure current iCloud images aren’t removed during the process.
1. Within the Settings app, tap your name.
2. Tap iCloud.
3. Tap Photos.
4. Toggle iCloud Photos to the Off position.
5. Tap Download Photos & Videos. This will download all images from the iCloud Photo Library onto your device before disabling the synchronization going forward.
Turn off iCloud Photo Library without deleting photos on your Mac
If you’re using a Mac, the process for turning off iCloud Photo Library is slightly different. Here’s how.
1. On your Mac, open Photos.
2. Tap Preferences.
3. Tap the iCloud tab.
4. Ensure iCloud Photo Library and Download Originals are selected. This will download and keep all images on your Mac.
5. Alternatively, if you have Optimize Mac Storage selected, simply select Download Originals instead and wait for the download to complete. You can then turn off iCloud Photo Library without losing any of your images.
How to disable iCloud Photo Library on only one device
If you’re looking to turn off iCloud Photos on just one of your devices, the process changes slightly depending on what device you’re using.
Here’s how to turn off iCloud Photos on your iPhone or iPad.
1. On your device, open Settings.
2. Tap your name.
3. Tap iCloud.
4. Tap Photos.
5. Toggle iCloud Photos to the Off position.
Here’s how to turn off iCloud Photos on your Mac.
1. On your Mac, open System Preferences.
2. Click iCloud.
3. Next to Photos, click Options.
4. Deselect iCloud Photos.
What does iCloud Photo Library do for my iPhone Photo Library?
This optional feature from Apple lets you automatically backup and sync photos and videos from your iPhone Photo Library into one easy-to-access place – the cloud. This means you can access your Photo Library from any device, wherever you are, as long as you have iCloud photos enabled across all devices.
What’s more, edits are saved across devices, so you can begin retouching your latest selfie on your iPhone, then finish editing the same snap on your iPad.
What do I lose by turning off iCloud Photos?
If you have an iPhone and iPad with iCloud sharing enabled on both, all photos and videos will be shared across both devices. However, if you turn iCloud photos off on your phone, your iPhone’s Camera Roll will lose any images that weren’t created on that device (if you haven’t downloaded them already, that is). Images taken on your iPad, for example, will no longer show in your iPhone’s Camera Roll and vice versa.
If you sign out of iCloud accidentally, Apple holds your images in the cloud for 30 days, meaning you can simply reconnect to your iCloud Photo Library to restore your images if needed.
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