How do I delete photos from iCloud?

Make sure iCloud Photos is on. Then select the photos in the Photos app on your iPhone or Mac, or at icloud.com/photos, and tap or click Delete. They are removed from iCloud and every synced device and moved to Recently Deleted for 30 days. Empty Recently Deleted to remove them for good right away.

If I delete photos from iCloud, will they be deleted from my iPhone?

Yes, if iCloud Photos is on for that iPhone. It is one library, so a delete at iCloud.com or on your Mac also removes the photo from your iPhone. To keep photos on the iPhone, turn off Sync this iPhone and choose Download Photos & Videos first, then delete at iCloud.com.

Does deleting photos free up iCloud storage?

Yes, with iCloud Photos on, once the delete syncs. Apple says items in Recently Deleted do not count toward your iCloud storage. Check Settings → your name → iCloud to see the Photos number drop. With iCloud Photos off, deleting on your phone only makes your next iCloud Backup smaller.

How long do deleted photos stay in iCloud?

They stay in Recently Deleted for 30 days, then they are deleted for good. You can empty Recently Deleted sooner. If you are already over your iCloud storage limit, Apple says deleted photos are removed right away and cannot be recovered.

Can I get back photos I deleted from iCloud?

Yes, within 30 days. Open Recently Deleted on your iPhone, Mac, or at iCloud.com, select the photos, and choose Recover. After 30 days, or after you empty Recently Deleted, you cannot get them back from Photos.

How do I delete all photos from iCloud at once?

Save a copy of anything you want first. Then go to icloud.com/photos, press Command-A on a Mac or Control-A on Windows to select all, and click Delete. Empty Recently Deleted to finish. With iCloud Photos on, this also deletes every photo from your synced iPhone, iPad, and Mac.

Does Pikondo delete photos from iCloud?

Not directly. Pikondo does not sign in to iCloud or touch iCloud.com. It deletes through the Photos library on your iPhone after you confirm. With iCloud Photos on, those deletes sync to iCloud like any Photos delete. It does not empty Recently Deleted or change iCloud settings.

Photo cleanup guide

How to delete photos from iCloud (iPhone, Mac, and iCloud.com)

Delete photos from iCloud on iPhone, Mac, or iCloud.com. What syncs, when iCloud space frees up, and how the 30-day Recently Deleted album works.

By Pikondo team · Updated October 15, 2026

Pikondo review screen where marked photos can be checked before deletion

Short answer: if iCloud Photos is on, delete the photo in the Photos app on your iPhone or Mac, or at iCloud.com. It leaves iCloud and every device that syncs that library. It then sits in Recently Deleted for 30 days, so you can still get it back. Apple says items in Recently Deleted do not count toward your iCloud storage, so iCloud space frees up once the delete syncs. Empty Recently Deleted to make the delete final and free space on your devices. Pikondo does not sign in to iCloud. It helps you clear clutter on your iPhone, and its deletes follow the same iCloud Photos rules as the Photos app.

Short answer: what happens when you delete from iCloud

iCloud Photos on: one delete removes the photo from iCloud, your iPhone, your iPad, your Mac, and iCloud.com.
Recently Deleted: the photo waits there for 30 days. You can recover it until then. After 30 days it is gone for good.
iCloud space: Apple says items in Recently Deleted do not count toward iCloud storage. Space comes back once the delete syncs.
Device space: a deleted photo still uses room on your iPhone or Mac until it leaves Recently Deleted.
iCloud Photos off: deleting on your iPhone does not touch iCloud. Your photos may live in your iCloud Backup instead (see below).

Step 1: Check if iCloud Photos is on

Open Settings and tap your name at the top.
Tap iCloud, then tap Photos.
Look at the switch. On newer iOS it says Sync this iPhone. On older iOS it says iCloud Photos.
If it is on, any delete in Photos is a delete from iCloud too. Use the steps below.
If it is off, skip to "If iCloud Photos is off" further down.

Delete photos from iCloud on iPhone

Open the Photos app and go to your Library.
Tap Select, then tap each photo or video you want gone. You can drag your finger across photos to pick many at once. See /blog/select-all-photos-iphone.
Tap the Delete (trash) button, then tap Delete Photos to confirm.
The photos move to Recently Deleted on all your devices. With iCloud Photos on, they leave your iCloud library after the delete syncs.
Want them gone right now? Empty Recently Deleted (steps below).

Delete photos from iCloud on a Mac

Open the Photos app on your Mac. Make sure iCloud Photos is on in Photos → Settings → iCloud.
Click Library in the sidebar, then select the photos. Hold Command to pick more than one, or press Command-A to select all.
Press the Delete key, then click Delete.
Careful: inside an album, the Delete key only removes photos from that album. They stay in your library and in iCloud. Press Command-Delete in an album, or delete from Library instead.
Deleted items show up in Recently Deleted under Utilities in the sidebar.

Delete photos at iCloud.com (any computer, including a PC)

Go to icloud.com/photos and sign in with your Apple Account.
Select the photos or videos. On a Mac, hold Command to pick several. On Windows, hold Control. To select all, press Command-A on a Mac or Control-A on Windows. On a phone or tablet browser, tap Select, or Select All.
Click the Delete (trash) button, then click Delete.
The items move to the Recently Deleted album in the sidebar. They are deleted from every device with iCloud Photos on, too.

Empty Recently Deleted (make it final)

On iPhone: open Photos, go to Albums (Collections on newer iOS), scroll to Utilities, and open Recently Deleted. Unlock it with Face ID, Touch ID, or your passcode.
Tap Select and pick the items. Tap the More button (•••), then tap Delete, or Delete All to clear the album. Confirm with Delete from All Devices.
On a Mac: click Recently Deleted under Utilities in the sidebar. Select items and click Delete, or click Delete All.
On iCloud.com: open Recently Deleted in the sidebar, select the items, then select Delete.
This cannot be undone. Recover anything you still want first. See /blog/recover-deleted-photos-iphone and /blog/empty-recently-deleted-photos-iphone.

When iCloud space actually frees up

Apple says items in Recently Deleted do not count toward your iCloud storage. So you do not have to empty the album to get iCloud space back. You do have to let the delete sync. Stay on Wi-Fi and give it some time.

To check, open Settings → your name → iCloud and look at the storage bar, or tap Manage Account Storage (or Storage). The Photos number should drop after sync.

One catch: if you are already over your iCloud limit, Apple says your device removes deleted photos right away. They skip Recently Deleted and you cannot recover them. Back up first if you are not sure.

Shared Library and shared albums follow different rules. Photos in an iCloud Shared Photo Library count toward the storage of the person who made it. A photo deleted from a shared album is deleted right away. If the Photos number is still high, see /blog/free-up-icloud-storage for backups, Messages, and other big users of iCloud space.

If iCloud Photos is off

With iCloud Photos off, deleting a photo on your iPhone does not change anything in iCloud Photos. If you turned it off at some point, older photos may still sit at iCloud.com. Delete those at iCloud.com.

Your photos may also be in your iCloud Backup. Open Settings → your name → iCloud → Manage Account Storage (or Storage) → Backups, tap this iPhone, and look at Photo Library. Deleting photos on the phone makes the next backup smaller. You can also turn off Photos in that backup list, but only after your photos are saved somewhere else.

Optimize iPhone Storage: read this before you delete

With Optimize iPhone Storage on, your iPhone keeps small copies. The full-size originals live in iCloud. Deleting the small copy on your phone deletes the original in iCloud too. There is no separate "phone only" version.

If you want space on your phone but want to keep photos in iCloud, do not delete them. Let Optimize do its job instead. See /blog/optimize-iphone-storage and /blog/delete-photos-from-iphone-not-icloud.

Want the reverse, to delete from iCloud but keep photos on your iPhone? First turn off Sync this iPhone and choose Download Photos & Videos so the phone keeps full copies. That needs enough free space on the iPhone. Check the copies, then delete at iCloud.com. New photos will no longer upload to iCloud from that iPhone.

Save a copy before a big delete

iCloud Photos is sync, not a backup. A delete removes the photo everywhere.
Before you clear a lot, copy keepers to a computer or a drive. See /blog/back-up-iphone-photos.
On a Mac, use File → Export → Export Unmodified Original. Full steps: /blog/transfer-photos-iphone-to-mac.
On a PC, download from iCloud.com or copy over a cable. See /blog/transfer-photos-iphone-to-pc.
Open a few copies to make sure they work before you delete the originals.

Delete clutter, not keepers

Most wasted iCloud space is clutter: screenshots, near-duplicate bursts, blurry shots, and long videos you never watch. Clearing those is safer than a mass delete.

Start with screenshots (/blog/delete-iphone-screenshots), duplicates (/blog/delete-duplicate-photos-iphone), and blurry shots (/blog/delete-blurry-photos-iphone). Then check big videos (/blog/iphone-videos-taking-up-storage).

How Pikondo fits (and where it stops)

Pikondo is an on-device photo cleaner for iPhone. It helps you review screenshots, duplicates and similar shots, and blurry photos. Swipe to keep or mark, check the marked list, then confirm. Your library stays on the iPhone during review.

Pikondo does not sign in to iCloud.com, reach into iCloud servers, empty Recently Deleted, or change iCloud settings. It deletes through the Photos library on your iPhone. With iCloud Photos on, those deletes sync to iCloud like any delete in the Photos app. With iCloud Photos off, they stay on the phone. Use Pikondo to cut the clutter you do not want anywhere, so there is less taking up room in iCloud.

Related guides

For more on iCloud and photo cleanup, see freeing iCloud storage at /blog/free-up-icloud-storage, deleting photos from iPhone but not iCloud at /blog/delete-photos-from-iphone-not-icloud, emptying Recently Deleted at /blog/empty-recently-deleted-photos-iphone, recovering deleted photos at /blog/recover-deleted-photos-iphone, iCloud Photos not syncing at /blog/icloud-photos-not-syncing, backing up iPhone photos at /blog/back-up-iphone-photos, selecting all photos at /blog/select-all-photos-iphone, deleting photos on iPhone at /blog/how-to-delete-photos-iphone, optimizing iPhone Storage at /blog/optimize-iphone-storage, transferring photos to a Mac at /blog/transfer-photos-iphone-to-mac, and iPhone storage full after deleting photos at /blog/iphone-storage-full-after-deleting-photos.

The key point

To delete photos from iCloud, delete them in Photos on your iPhone or Mac, or at iCloud.com, with iCloud Photos on. The delete reaches every synced device. Photos wait in Recently Deleted for 30 days, and Apple says they do not count toward iCloud storage while they wait. Empty that album to make it final and free device space. Back up keepers first. Pikondo helps you clear clutter on your iPhone; it does not log in to iCloud.

Frequently asked questions

How do I delete photos from iCloud?: Make sure iCloud Photos is on. Then select the photos in the Photos app on your iPhone or Mac, or at icloud.com/photos, and tap or click Delete. They are removed from iCloud and every synced device and moved to Recently Deleted for 30 days. Empty Recently Deleted to remove them for good right away.
If I delete photos from iCloud, will they be deleted from my iPhone?: Yes, if iCloud Photos is on for that iPhone. It is one library, so a delete at iCloud.com or on your Mac also removes the photo from your iPhone. To keep photos on the iPhone, turn off Sync this iPhone and choose Download Photos & Videos first, then delete at iCloud.com.
Does deleting photos free up iCloud storage?: Yes, with iCloud Photos on, once the delete syncs. Apple says items in Recently Deleted do not count toward your iCloud storage. Check Settings → your name → iCloud to see the Photos number drop. With iCloud Photos off, deleting on your phone only makes your next iCloud Backup smaller.
How long do deleted photos stay in iCloud?: They stay in Recently Deleted for 30 days, then they are deleted for good. You can empty Recently Deleted sooner. If you are already over your iCloud storage limit, Apple says deleted photos are removed right away and cannot be recovered.
Can I get back photos I deleted from iCloud?: Yes, within 30 days. Open Recently Deleted on your iPhone, Mac, or at iCloud.com, select the photos, and choose Recover. After 30 days, or after you empty Recently Deleted, you cannot get them back from Photos.
How do I delete all photos from iCloud at once?: Save a copy of anything you want first. Then go to icloud.com/photos, press Command-A on a Mac or Control-A on Windows to select all, and click Delete. Empty Recently Deleted to finish. With iCloud Photos on, this also deletes every photo from your synced iPhone, iPad, and Mac.
Does Pikondo delete photos from iCloud?: Not directly. Pikondo does not sign in to iCloud or touch iCloud.com. It deletes through the Photos library on your iPhone after you confirm. With iCloud Photos on, those deletes sync to iCloud like any Photos delete. It does not empty Recently Deleted or change iCloud settings.