How to transfer photos from your iPhone to a Mac computer or PC, to save storage space and back up your photos

insider@insider.com (Laura McCamy)
iphone mac combo
You can transfer photos from your iPhone to a Mac or PC without iTunes.

Antonio Villas-Boas/Business Insider

  • You can transfer photos from your iPhone to a computer to help you save space on your phone and backup your photos.

  • Apple phased out iTunes in 2019, so to transfer photos from your iPhone to a computer, you'll now use your computer's Photos app.

  • You can transfer photos from an iPhone to both a Mac and PC.

  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

If you have an iPhone, you also have a professional-quality camera that can catch great pictures wherever you are.

But storage for photos is limited on any device (unless you put everything in the cloud), so you may need to offload those pictures from time to time.

Here's how to transfer photos from an iPhone to your computer.

Check out the products mentioned in this article:

iPhone 11 (From $699.99 at Apple)

Apple Macbook Pro (From $1,299.00 at Apple)

Lenovo IdeaPad 130 (From $469.99 at Walmart)

How to transfer photos from an iPhone to a Mac computer

To prepare for your photo upload, make sure your software is up to date. Currently, you'll need the most recent version of iTunes (or at least version 12.5.1 or beyond). You'll also need a USB cord to connect your iPhone to your Mac.

Note that for Mac users, Apple phased out iTunes with its next Mac software update in the fall last year, so the below process will take place through the Photos app directly, without iTunes as a mediator.

1. Connect your iPhone to your Mac via USB (or a USB-C cord for newer MacBook models).

macbook pro usb-c
Connect your iPhone via cable.

Dave Smith/Business Insider

2. Check your phone. You may be prompted to unlock it with its passcode (your iPhone won't accept Face or Touch ID for this). If a pop-up appears asking if you "trust" the computer, choose "Trust This Computer." Your iPhone is now connected to your Mac computer.

4. The Photos app on your computer should open. If it doesn't, open it manually.

5. If the screen showing your iPhone photos doesn't open automatically, in the sidebar on the left, under "Devices," select your iPhone. You should see an import screen in Photos that shows the photos you have on your iPhone.

6. Choose where you want to store your imported photos. At the top of the import window in the center, you'll find a drop-down menu that lets you add the new photos to one of your albums or create a new album for your import. If you do nothing, the transferred photos will go into your Photos app Library.

how to import photos from iphone to pc 4
Once you open your iPhone, you can pick where the photos will go.

William Antonelli/Business Insider

7. There are two buttons on the upper left of the import window. "Import All New Items" will transfer every photo you have taken since your last import. To upload only certain photos, click on each photo you want to copy onto your computer and click the "Import Selected" button.

Your import is complete! Feel free to disconnect your iPhone.

You can also follow the steps above to import from your iPad, iPod Touch, or your camera's SD card.

How to transfer photos from an iPhone to a PC

Before you upload photos onto a PC, follow the instructions above to connect your iPhone, unlock it, and tell it to trust your computer.

1. On your PC running Windows 10, click the Start button.

2. Choose "Photos" from the menu that pops up — you may need to scroll down. This opens the Photos app on your PC.

3. In Photos, choose "Import – From a USB device" in the top-right corner.

how to import photos from iphone to pc 1
Your iPhone counts as a USB device.

William Antonelli/Business Insider

4. The computer will begin scanning your iPhone for photos and videos. If you have multiple photo-storing devices connected, you'll be able to pick which one you want. If your iPhone isn't detected, make sure that your Apple Mobile Device driver is updated.

how to import photos from iphone to pc 2
If it appears, pick your iPhone from the list of devices.

William Antonelli/Business Insider

5. You'll have the option to choose where you want to put your imported photos. You can also select which photos to import.

how to import photos from iphone to pc 3
Select which photos you want to bring over.

William Antonelli/Business Insider

Once everything is imported, feel free to disconnect your iPhone.

Related coverage from How To Do Everything: Tech:

Read the original article on Business Insider

Advertisement