Deleting photos from your iPhone photo gallery one by one can take time, especially if you have hundreds or thousands of them. Luckily, iOS allows users to delete entire albums with just a few clicks. If you're wondering how to speed up the photo deletion process and free up your device's memory, we've got you covered.
In this guide, we will share instructions on deleting entire albums from your Photos app at once on different iPhone models. Moreover, we will explain how to recover deleted albums or delete them permanently. Read on to learn how to make your image gallery cleaner.
How to Delete Photo Albums on an iPhone X, 11, or 12
Instead of deleting images one by one, you can delete an entire album at once. Here's how to do it on the latest iPhone models:
- From the main iPhone menu, tap the Photos app icon.
- Tap "Albums" at the bottom of your screen.
- Tap "Show All" in the top right corner of your screen to access all of your albums.
- Tap "Edit" in the top right corner of your screen.
- Scroll through your album list to find the albums you want to delete. Tap the red minus icon next to an album.
- Tap "Delete Album" to confirm or "Cancel" if you accidentally tapped the minus icon.
How to Delete Photo Albums on an iPhone 6, 7, or 8
Deleting an entire album on iPhones 6, 7, and 8 updated to the latest iOS version is no different from doing it on newer iPhone models. Follow the steps below:
- From your iPhone menu, open your photo gallery.
- Go to the "Albums" tab at the bottom of your screen.
- Select "View All", located in the upper right corner.
- Tap "Edit" in the top right corner and tap the red minus icons next to the albums you want to remove.
- Tap "Delete album" to confirm. You can also press "Cancel" to return to the selection.
How to Delete Multiple Photo Albums on iPhone at Once
Sometimes you may need to speed up the process and delete multiple albums from your iPhone at once. Unfortunately, this cannot be done directly on your iPhone; albums can only be deleted one at a time.
FAQ
Why can't I delete an iPhone album?
Some albums on iPhone are created by default and cannot be deleted on the device. These albums include camera roll, people and places, and albums synced to your PC through iTunes. You also cannot disable filtering by media type. However, albums synced to your PC can be deleted through iTunes on the PC.
How do I delete an album synced via iTunes?
You can't delete albums synced to your computer from your iPhone, but you can do so through iTunes on your PC. Follow the instructions below:
1. Connect your iPhone to your computer using the Lightning cable.
2. Double-click iTunes on your computer to launch the application.
3. On the left sidebar, select your iPhone's name.
4. Click on “Pictures”.
5. In the 'Sync Photos' menu, click the circle next to 'Selected Albums'.
6. Select all albums you do not want to delete. Be careful not to do the reverse, because the unselected albums will not be synchronized with your iPhone.
7. Click "Apply". Wait for the synchronization to complete and disconnect your iPhone. Albums should now disappear.
How to Recover Deleted Album on iPhone?
Sometimes people accidentally delete iPhone albums or find that they miss the photos afterwards. Fortunately, you have 30 days to change your mind after deleting anything from your iPhone gallery. However, there is no way to recover entire albums. Instead, you will have to recover images one by one or all deleted images at once. Here's how:
1. Open the Photos app on your iPhone.
2. Tap "Albums" at the bottom of your screen.
3. Tap "Recently Deleted".
4. Press "Select".
5. Tap the images you want to recover. Otherwise, tap "Recover All".
6. Tap "Recover" to confirm your selection. You will see the recovered photos appear in their original albums.
Why did an album I didn't create appear in my iPhone's Photos app?
Sometimes iPhone users come across albums they never created and wonder how they got there. This can be annoying because iPhone memory is limited and these albums often contain duplicate content.
iPhone can automatically create new albums for apps that have your permission to save content you post using them. For example, when you post something on Instagram, iPhone saves the content of your post in a dedicated album. It's not the fault of the iPhone but rather that of Instagram. To stop Instagram from saving photos you post to your Photos app, follow the steps below:
1. Launch Instagram and log into your account.
2. Tap your profile picture located in the lower right corner of your screen.
3. From your profile page, tap the upper right corner to access the menu.
4. In the menu, select "Settings", then "Account".
5. Scroll down and tap "Original Photos".
6. Move the switch next to “Save original photos” to the “Off” position (from right to left). If the button is grayed out, the action was successful.
Some iPhone albums may also be created by default. iPhone filters content by media type, so albums such as “Video” are created automatically.
Think twice before deleting
Hope our guide helped you clear your iPhone Photos app of redundant images. Before deleting an entire album, be sure to check if it contains anything interesting. It's especially important to check with the "Recently Deleted" album, because once deleted, you won't be able to restore the contents.
Do you know any smart ways to organize iPhone photos? Or, maybe, do you know an app that allows users to delete multiple albums at once? Share your experiences in the comments section below.
