Having a “recently deleted” album can be very useful on an iPhone to help recover photos and videos that may have been accidentally deleted. However, this album doesn’t exist by default on iPhones. There are a few reasons why there is no dedicated recently deleted album on iPhones.
How iPhone photo storage works
When you take a photo or video on your iPhone, it gets saved to the Camera Roll album. The Camera Roll contains all the photos and videos you have taken on that device. It also includes any media you have saved from apps, messages, emails, etc.
The Camera Roll gets synced across all your Apple devices signed in to the same iCloud account. So the photos you take on your iPhone will also show up in the Camera Roll on your iPad and Mac (if you have iCloud Photo Library enabled).
When you delete a photo or video from the Camera Roll on your iPhone, it gets moved to the Recently Deleted album. But this album is hidden by default.
The Hidden Recently Deleted album
Even though you can’t see it, there is a Recently Deleted album on your iPhone. It stores any photos or videos you have deleted from the Camera Roll for up to 30 days. After 30 days, the deleted content gets permanently removed from the device.
So in a way, the Recently Deleted album acts as a trash folder. It gives you a 30 day window to recover anything you may have accidentally deleted from the Camera Roll.
Recovering deleted photos
If you need to recover a deleted photo or video within the 30 day period, here’s what you can do:
- Open the Photos app
- Tap on the Albums tab at the bottom
- Scroll down and tap on Recently Deleted
- Find the photo/video you want to recover
- Tap on the Recover button to move it back to the Camera Roll
This will restore the deleted item from the Recently Deleted album to your Camera Roll, so you can access it again.
Why there is no visible Recently Deleted album
Even though the Recently Deleted feature exists on iPhones, Apple has kept the album hidden by default. There are a few reasons for this:
Minimal interface
Keeping rarely used albums like Recently Deleted hidden aligns with Apple’s minimalist design approach for iOS. The Photos app interface only shows the albums you actually need to access on a daily basis.
Avoid accidental permanent deletion
Having a visible Recently Deleted album increases the risk of users permanently deleting photos by mistake. Since the items in there get removed after 30 days, the album is hidden to avoid accidental permanent data loss.
Encourage use of iCloud Photo Library
The Recently Deleted album only exists on a per-device basis. So photos deleted on one device will be deleted from all other devices. Having a visible Recent Deleted could confuse users into thinking deleted photos are still saved somewhere. Apple wants to encourage users to enable iCloud Photo Library for true backup of all their images across devices.
When the Recently Deleted album is visible
There are some cases when the Recently Deleted album will become visible in the Photos app on your iPhone:
- When you delete a photo or video from the Camera Roll, the Recently Deleted album will pop up briefly with a preview of the deleted item. This serves as a quick confirmation that the delete action worked.
- If you try to delete an item that’s already in Recently Deleted, the album will appear again with an alert that the photo/video will be permanently deleted.
- The Recently Deleted album also becomes accessible in the Photos app on Mac computers. So you can recover deleted iPhone photos if needed using the Mac.
But outside of these scenarios, the Recently Deleted album remains hidden from everyday use.
Should Apple make Recently Deleted visible?
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| – Lets users access and recover deleted photos/videos more easily | – Increases risk of accidental permanent deletion |
| – Serves as an obvious trash folder for photos | – Adds clutter to Photos app interface |
| – Makes Recently Deleted consistent across iOS and Mac | – Encourages poor backup practices by users |
There are good arguments on both sides for making the Recently Deleted album more visible. While it would improve recoverability of deleted media, it also has downsides for the average user.
Conclusion
Ultimately, Apple has chosen to keep Recently Deleted hidden by default as a design compromise. But the feature is still there if you need it. Knowing how it works and how to access it allows you to recover deleted photos when required.
For most users, enabling iCloud Photo Library is a better overall solution. It provides a backup of all your images across devices, not just those recently deleted. So you have multiple recovery options for any photos that may get accidentally erased.