How to delete lots of photos on iPhone quickly

Before you start

• iCloud Photos deletes everywhere. If iCloud Photos is on, deleting a photo on one device deletes it on every device that uses iCloud Photos.
• You have 30 days to change your mind. Deleted items go to Recently Deleted for 30 days. If you're over your iCloud storage limit, though, Apple removes them immediately with no way to recover them.

1. Select many photos with one swipe

1. Open Photos and go to your library.
2. Tap Select.
3. Tap photos one by one, or, as Apple puts it, “slide your finger across multiple photos to select more than one.”
4. Tap the Trash button, then confirm.

2. Use Select All inside an album

Select All is available inside albums and in Duplicates, and on iOS 27 inside memories too. It is not available for the whole library.

1. In Photos, tap Collections, then Albums, and open an album.
2. Tap Select, then Select All.
3. Deselect anything you want to keep, then tap the Trash button and confirm.

Deleting an album itself does not delete its photos. They stay in your library, so select and delete the photos if that is what you want.

3. Work through one day at a time

1. In Photos, tap Collections, then Recent Days, then Show All.
2. Open a day, tap Select, and slide across the photos you don't need.
3. Tap the Trash button and confirm.

If you browse by Years or Months instead, note that those views hide “similar photos, screenshots, whiteboards, and receipts.” Tap All to see everything.

4. Merge duplicates

Duplicate detection is available on iOS 16 and later.

1. In Photos, tap Collections, then Utilities, then Duplicates.
2. Tap Merge to merge one set, or tap Select, then Select All, then Merge.

Merging keeps the copy with “the highest image quality and relevant data” and sends the others to Recently Deleted. If you don't see Duplicates, Photos hasn't found any. Apple notes that detection “may take some time.”

5. Clear out screenshots

1. In Photos, tap Collections, then Media Types, then Screenshots. Screenshots is also pinned by default.
2. Tap Select and slide across the screenshots you no longer need.
3. Tap the Trash button and confirm.

On iOS 27 you can also filter the library to show only screenshots with the Media Types filter. Hiding screenshots through the library's view options keeps them out of sight but does not delete them.

6. Trim bursts and Live Photos

• Bursts: open the burst, tap Select, choose the shots you want to keep, then tap Done. Or delete the whole burst.
• Live Photos: to keep only the still image, open the photo, tap Edit and turn off Live.

7. Recover photos you deleted by mistake

1. In Photos, tap Collections, then Recently Deleted, listed under Utilities.
2. Tap View Album and unlock it with Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode.
3. Tap Select, choose the photos, then tap Recover.

You have 30 days to do this. Also check the Recovered collection in Utilities. Anything you delete from Recently Deleted is gone for good.

Why the Trash button is gray

Photos synced to your iPhone from a computer can't be deleted on the iPhone. If the Trash button is gray, stop syncing those photos from your computer to remove them.

Where SwipeLeft helps

Bulk selection works when you already know what to delete: a set of duplicates, a folder of screenshots, a day you don't need. The rest of a library is photos that each need a quick look before you decide, and Apple's documentation describes no mode for reviewing photos one at a time.

SwipeLeft does that one job. It shows one photo at a time with its file size and date. Swipe left to trash, swipe right to keep, and undo if you swipe the wrong way. Photos reach Recently Deleted only when you empty SwipeLeft's trash, and they never leave your device. It is free for 50 swipes a day.

Get SwipeLeft on the App Store

Short on space as well? Read how to free up space when iPhone storage is full.