Short answer: connect the iPhone with a cable, tap Trust, and import with the Photos app (Mac or Windows) or Image Capture on Mac. Check the copies open on the computer, then delete them from the iPhone and empty Recently Deleted. If iCloud Photos is on, deleting from the iPhone deletes from iCloud and all your devices too, so make sure the computer has the full-size originals first.
Steps
- Check iCloud Photos first: Settings › Apps › Photos. If Optimize iPhone Storage is on, some originals are only in iCloud and a cable import won't get them all (see below).
- Set Settings › Apps › Photos › Transfer to Mac or PC to Keep Originals for HEIC files at full quality, or Automatic for JPEG copies.
- Connect the iPhone with a USB cable, unlock it and tap Trust on the iPhone.
- Mac: open Photos › File › Import, or Image Capture to save files to a folder you choose. Windows: open the Photos app and choose Import › From a connected device, or open File Explorer › Apple iPhone › Internal Storage › DCIM.
- Import, then open a few photos and videos on the computer to check they play and have the right dates.
- Back up the computer folder (an external drive or cloud backup). A single copy on one laptop isn't a backup.
- Delete the transferred photos on the iPhone, then empty Photos › Collections › Utilities › Recently Deleted (on iOS 18, scroll down to Utilities).
If iCloud Photos is on
| Your setting | What to do before deleting from the iPhone |
|---|---|
| iCloud Photos off | Cable import gets everything on the iPhone; deleting affects only the iPhone |
| iCloud Photos on, Download and Keep Originals | Cable import gets the originals; deleting removes them from iCloud and every device |
| iCloud Photos on, Optimize iPhone Storage | Download originals on a Mac (Photos › Settings › iCloud › Download Originals) or from iCloud.com first; deleting removes them everywhere |
If you want photos off the iPhone but still in iCloud, don't delete them: turn on Optimize iPhone Storage instead (how it works). If you want them off both, export first, then delete.
Wireless options
- AirDrop to a Mac: select photos, tap Share › AirDrop. Fine for a few hundred, slow for a whole library.
- iCloud Photos on the computer: Photos for Mac with Download Originals, or iCloud for Windows, keeps a full copy on the computer automatically.
- Google Photos, OneDrive and Dropbox apps can upload your library too. Check each service's own storage limits and settings.
Free up space without moving everything
Often you don't need to move the whole library. Duplicates, near-identical retakes, bursts and old screenshots can simply go, and long videos can be compressed. Spaceclear finds all of them in one scan, keeps the best shot of each set and shows your biggest videos first. Its iCloud Space view marks the items that exist only in iCloud, so you know what a cable import would miss. See find the biggest videos.
FAQ
Will deleting photos from my iPhone delete them from my computer?
No. Once photos are copied to a folder on the computer, they're independent files. The exception is the Photos app on a Mac signed in with iCloud Photos on: its library syncs, so deletions on the iPhone also remove them there.
Why doesn't my PC show all my iPhone photos?
Usually because Optimize iPhone Storage is on and the originals are in iCloud, not on the iPhone. Download them from iCloud.com or with iCloud for Windows. Also make sure the iPhone is unlocked and you tapped Trust.
How do I transfer photos from iPhone to PC without iCloud?
Use a USB cable and the Windows Photos app or File Explorer (DCIM folder). Set Transfer to Mac or PC to Automatic if the PC can't open HEIC files.
Updated 2026-11-13