Quick Answers
If you have lost or deleted photos from your iCloud storage and do not have a backup, there are a few options for trying to recover them:
- Use iCloud’s Recently Deleted folder – Photos deleted within the last 30 days may be recoverable from here
- Use a third party iCloud recovery tool – Software like iMyFone iBypasser can extract photos from iCloud without backup
- Contact Apple Support – In some cases, Apple may be able to recover deleted photos for you
- Check your iCloud email attachments – Photos sent as attachments can sometimes be recovered from iCloud email
- Restore from local iPhone/iPad backups – If you have a backup on your device, you can restore photos even if iCloud backup is unavailable
What Happens When You Delete Photos from iCloud
When you delete photos or images that are stored in iCloud Photos, they are not immediately erased. iCloud keeps deleted photos and videos in its Recently Deleted folder for up to 30 days before permanently deleting them.
So if you accidentally deleted photos from iCloud, or made changes on one device that synced across iCloud and deleted photos you wanted to keep, you have a 30 day window to recover the deleted photos from iCloud’s Recently Deleted folder.
To do this:
- Open the Photos app on your iPhone, iPad or Mac
- Go to the Albums tab
- Scroll down and tap on Recently Deleted to view your deleted photos
- Select the photos you want to recover
- Tap Recover to move the photos back into your iCloud Photos library
This Recently Deleted folder makes it easy to recover deleted photos, as long as you notice they are missing and recover them within 30 days. But what if you don’t notice for longer than that, or accidentally erased photos more than a month ago that you now need back?
How To Recover Photos From iCloud Without Backup
If the 30 day iCloud Recently Deleted window has passed, things get more tricky for recovering deleted photos from iCloud. But there are still some options you can try:
Use a Third Party iCloud Recovery Tool
One of the most effective ways to extract deleted files from iCloud without a backup is to use third party software that is designed to bypass iCloud security and pull data from the cloud servers.
Tools like iMyFone iBypasser can scan your iCloud account and recover deleted photos, messages, notes, contacts and more – even without backups.
The process involves downloading the software on your computer, entering your iCloud credentials, then scanning your account. The software looks for any recoverable data, and allows you to select photos and files to extract and download to your computer.
This method works even months or years after photos were deleted from iCloud. However, its effectiveness depends on whether the unique data for those photos still exists on Apple’s servers. The sooner you scan with recovery software, the better chance you have.
Contact Apple Support
In some cases, contacting Apple Support may help you recover deleted iCloud photos without backup.
Apple has more access to iCloud data than users do. Their engineers may be able to locate photos that you can no longer see in Recently Deleted, and restore them for you.
To do this, you’ll need to contact Apple Support by phone or chat. Explain exactly when and how you deleted your photos, and politely ask if there is any way for Apple to restore them from their systems.
This method is not guaranteed to work – Apple will not be able to recover data that has been permanently deleted from their servers. But it’s worth contacting them to see if they can find anything, before assuming it’s gone forever.
Check iCloud Email Attachments
When you attach photos to emails sent via iCloud Mail, a copy of that photo is stored in your iCloud account. So even if you’ve deleted the originals, you may have sent them to someone in an email attachment.
Go to iCloud.com and open iCloud Mail. Search your inbox for any emails you may have sent with photo attachments. If you find some, you can download and save the attached photos to recover them.
Restore Deleted Photos from Local Device Backups
If you recently deleted photos from iCloud, but still have a cached backup of your iPhone, iPad or Mac saved locally, you may be able to recover deleted photos from that backup.
For iOS devices, connect your iPhone or iPad to your computer. Open iTunes and go to Preferences > Devices. Select your device and click Restore Backup. This will overwrite your device data with the local backup – including any photos that used to be in iCloud.
For Mac, you can restore from Time Machine backups. Go to System Preferences > Time Machine and enter Time Machine. Browse through backups until you find one with the deleted photos, then restore the files.
This method works as long as you have a relatively recent local backup that includes the photos before you deleted them from iCloud. The backup allows you to essentially “turn back time” and recover the photos even if they are no longer in the cloud.
Preventing Data Loss From iCloud
To avoid being in this situation again, there are some best practices you can follow to ensure you don’t experience data loss on iCloud:
- Enable iCloud Backup – This provides redundancy if photos are deleted
- Create regular local backups – Such as in iTunes or Time Machine
- Don’t delete photos right away – Keep them in Recently Deleted for a few weeks before permanent deletion
- Double check before deleting – Confirm you really want to delete important photos
- Download photos to store locally – Don’t rely solely on keeping them in the cloud
Turn On iCloud Backup
The best way to protect your iCloud photos is enable iCloud backups. This automatically saves copies of your photos and data from all devices.
So even if you delete photos from one device, the backup keeps another copy safe in iCloud that you can restore.
To enable iCloud Backup:
On iPhone/iPad: Settings > Your Name > iCloud > iCloud Backup > Turn on iCloud Backup
On Mac: System Preferences > Apple ID > iCloud > Check box for iCloud Drive Backup
Create Local Backups
Don’t rely solely on iCloud to backup your photos. Also maintain regular local backups.
For iOS, connect your device to iTunes and enable automatic backups to your computer. Or use an app like iMazing for encrypted local backups.
For Mac, use Time Machine to create hourly backups to an external hard drive. Having local redundant copies of your photos can prevent disaster if they are lost online.
Leave Photos in Recently Deleted
When you delete photos from iCloud, resist the urge to immediately clear out your Recently Deleted folder.
Leave photos in there for at least a few weeks before permanently deleting. That way if you change your mind, the photos will still be in the recovery bin.
Confirm Before Permanently Deleting
When you go to permanently delete photos from Recently Deleted, double and triple check that you want them gone forever. Accidents happen, so get in the habit of verifying before deletion.
Download Photos To Store Locally
Don’t keep your only copy of photos in iCloud. Routinely download them to store local copies on your devices and backup drives.
This provides another layer of redundancy in case your iCloud account is compromised or photos are deleted by mistake.
Conclusion
Recovering lost iCloud photos without a backup can be difficult and not always possible. But in some cases, you may be able to rescue deleted photos using iCloud’s Recently Deleted folder, recovery software, Apple Support, or data from local device backups.
To avoid being in that predicament, be vigilant about backing up your photos both locally and with iCloud Backup. Don’t delete photos from iCloud right away, and think twice before permanent deletion. Following best practices for protecting your data will save you from panic if photos ever disappear.
