When you delete photos from your iPhone or iPad, they may remain stored in your iCloud Photos library. Whether or not deleted photos stay in iCloud depends on how you’ve configured iCloud Photos.
Quick Answers
Deleted photos will stay in iCloud if:
- You have iCloud Photos enabled
- You don’t have iCloud Photos configured to optimize your iPhone/iPad storage
Deleted photos will be removed from iCloud if:
- You don’t use iCloud Photos
- You have iCloud Photos enabled with Optimize iPhone/iPad Storage turned on
How iCloud Photos Works
iCloud Photos provides cloud-based storage for your photos and videos. It works by storing your entire photo library in iCloud and syncing it with any Apple devices you have signed in to iCloud.
There are three main iCloud Photos settings:
- iCloud Photos disabled – Your photos remain stored locally on your device and are not stored in iCloud
- iCloud Photos enabled – Your full photo library is stored in iCloud and synced across devices
- iCloud Photos with Optimize [Device] Storage – Full library is stored in iCloud but limited photos/videos saved locally based on storage space
iCloud Photos Disabled
If you have iCloud Photos disabled, your photos will be saved directly on your iPhone, iPad, or other device’s local storage. They will not be backed up to iCloud.
When you delete photos with iCloud Photos turned off, the photos are only deleted locally from your device – they will NOT remain stored in an iCloud Photos library.
iCloud Photos Enabled
Enabling iCloud Photos syncs your entire photo library between your devices and stores a copy in iCloud. Photos you take on your iPhone, for example, will automatically sync up to iCloud, allowing you to access them on your iPad or Mac.
With iCloud Photos enabled, when you delete photos, they will be deleted from your local device storage BUT remain stored in your iCloud Photos library online.
This means any photos you delete on one device will disappear from that device, but will still be viewable and accessible from your other Apple devices that have iCloud Photos enabled.
Optimizing Device Storage
The Optimize [Device] Storage setting for iCloud Photos will manage the photos stored locally on your device. When enabled, iCloud will automatically offload full resolution photos and videos you don’t access frequently to online-only storage, while retaining smaller thumbnail versions on your device. This frees up storage space while still giving you access to your entire library from iCloud.
If you delete photos when Optimize Storage is on, iCloud will delete them both from your local device storage as well as fully from your iCloud Photos library online.
Check Current iCloud Photos Settings
To determine your current iCloud Photos settings and how they will handle deleted photos:
- Go to Settings on your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch
- Tap on your Apple ID banner at the top of Settings
- Tap on iCloud
- Tap on Photos
This will display your current iCloud Photos settings. Make sure Photos is toggled on, then check if Optimizing iPhone/iPad Storage is enabled or not.
Change iCloud Photos Settings
You can update your iCloud Photos settings at any time to change how deleted photos are handled:
- Store all photos in iCloud – Turn on iCloud Photos and disable Optimize iPhone/iPad Storage. Deleted photos will remain in iCloud.
- Remove photos from iCloud when deleted – Turn on iCloud Photos and enable Optimize iPhone/iPad Storage. Deleted photos will be purged from both device storage and iCloud.
- Don’t use iCloud Photos – Turn off iCloud Photos entirely. Deleted photos will only be removed from local device storage.
Follow these steps:
- Go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Photos
- Toggle the iCloud Photos switch ON or OFF as desired
- Toggle the Optimize iPhone/iPad Storage switch ON or OFF as desired
It may take some time for changes to sync across all devices once you update these settings.
Check Photo Status in Recently Deleted Album
On your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, you can check the Recently Deleted album to view photos you’ve recently deleted. This can give you a sense of whether they have been removed fully from device storage and/or iCloud.
To view Recently Deleted:
- Open the Photos app
- Scroll down on the Albums tab and tap Recently Deleted
- Photos stored here are still recoverable if you need them back
If photos appear here after deletion, they still exist in some location, whether it’s local device storage or your iCloud Photos library online. Check back periodically – photos will be purged from Recently Deleted after 30 days.
Recover Deleted Photos from iCloud
If you’ve deleted photos that are still stored in your iCloud Photos library, you can retrieve them on your iPhone, iPad or other device that has iCloud Photos enabled:
- Go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Photos and make sure iCloud Photos is ON
- Open the Photos app and tap Albums
- Scroll down and tap Recents
- Tap Recover Next to the iCloud Photos header
- Select photos to recover, then tap Recover in the upper right
This will download the deleted photos from iCloud back onto your local device storage.
Permanently Removing Photos from iCloud
To fully purge deleted photos from both your iCloud Photos library and local device storage, you have a few options:
- Disable iCloud Photos – This will stop syncing your library to iCloud and remove online backups.
- Enable Optimize Storage – Optimize will delete photos from both iCloud and devices when removing locally.
- Delete photos from icloud.com – Sign in to icloud.com and manually delete photos there.
If you just want to remove photos from a single device, you can also:
- Log out of iCloud on that device – This disconnects it from your iCloud Photo Library.
- Erase the device – Resetting it erases content and removes local photo storage.
Other iCloud Photos Questions
Below are some other common questions about managing photos with iCloud:
Do deleted photos count against your iCloud storage?
Yes, any photos stored in your iCloud Photos library, including deleted ones, count against your total iCloud storage. To see your current usage, go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Manage Storage.
Can you tell if a photo is only stored on iCloud?
Yes! When viewing all photos on your device, those only stored on iCloud will have a small cloud icon in the bottom left corner. If there’s no cloud icon, the full photo is also saved locally.
How long do permanently deleted photos stay in Recently Deleted?
Deleted photos remain recoverable in Recently Deleted for 30 days before being permanently removed. You cannot adjust this time period.
Can you recover deleted photos without iCloud?
Unfortunately no – if you have iCloud Photos disabled, deleted photos are unrecoverable. That’s why it’s important to back up your photos through iCloud or manually to an external hard drive.
| iCloud Photos Setting | Deleted Photos Remain in iCloud? |
|---|---|
| Disabled | No |
| Enabled | Yes |
| Optimized Storage | No |
Conclusion
To summarize, deleted photos will continue taking up space in your iCloud Photos library as long as you have iCloud Photos enabled without Optimized Storage turned on. To permanently remove deleted photos from both iCloud and your devices, Optimize Storage is your best option.
Hopefully this clears up how iCloud manages and stores your photos. Be sure to configure iCloud Photos based on whether you want to recover deleted photos later or free up storage space immediately after deletion.
