How to delete multiple photos on iPhone

Having an iPhone makes it so easy to take beautiful pictures. So, as you go about your daily life, of course, you’d tend to take pictures of everything around, capturing stunning sunsets, moments with loved ones, and random objects that catch your eye.

However, this habit of taking pictures can quickly lead to a cluttered iPhone gallery. The more pictures you take, the more storage space they consume, and eventually, you may have to delete some to free up space.

The process of deleting pictures one by one can be tedious and time-consuming, but there are ways to delete multiple photos simultaneously. In this article, I will provide you with a comprehensive guide on how to quickly delete multiple photos on iPhone.

Why do I need to delete multiple photos on iPhone?

One of the most common reasons why people want to delete multiple pics from their iPhone is because they want to clear storage space. I’m sure that as you take more and more photos, you’re noticing just how quickly your iPhone library can become cluttered. Eventually, you’ll run out of space, and your device will start slowing down. It may even continuously crash. But by mass deleting photos, you can quickly free up space and get your phone running faster and smoother in no time.

Although freeing up space on your iPhone isn’t the only benefit to doing this. If you’re anything like me, over time, you’ll realize you’ve accumulated thousands of photos. So, when you go to look for a specific picture, it can feel nearly impossible. By deleting unwanted photos, you can keep your photo library clutter-free and easy to navigate.

I’d also be remiss if I didn’t mention how deleting multiple photos can help protect your privacy. It’s like they say, a picture is worth a thousand words. And I don’t necessarily mean just sensitive photos. But the reality is anyone can extract a ton of information from various elements that are in a picture. Maybe even do a reverse image search on the internet to find places you’ve been to or people you’ve been with.

The last point seems like a bit of a no-brainer. But if you’re able to keep your photo library organized and clean, then you’re more likely to use it. You’ll want to go back and reminisce about old pictures if you like the ones you see.

How to mass delete photos from iPhone

If you’re tired of scrolling through hundreds or even thousands of photos on your iPhone, it’s time to learn how to delete them en masse. Mass deleting photos is an easy and efficient way to clean up storage space and keep your gallery organized.

Here are a few fast ways to delete photos on iPhone:

Method 1: Using Gemini Photos

Gemini Photos is a powerful third-party app that offers an efficient and comprehensive way to delete multiple pictures from your phone. It’s a highly-rated app that provides excellent photo management tools, making it easier to remove duplicates, blurred shots, and unwanted pics from your phone.

Using Gemini Photos to delete multiple pictures on your iPhone is a straightforward process. Here’s how you would do it:

1. Download and install Gemini Photos from the App Store.
2. Open the app.
3. Grant it access to your photos.
4. Let Gemini Photos scan your iPhone and display all the photos it finds. The app will group them based on date, location, and similarity.
5. Select the pictures you want to delete by tapping on them or swiping left or right to select multiple photos.
6. After selecting all the photos, tap the Delete button at the bottom.
7. Confirm to delete the photos.

If you accidentally delete a picture with Gemini Photos, don’t worry. It’s not gone forever. In fact, any photo you remove with the app is still in your Recently Deleted album for 30 days.

On the other hand, to go ahead and immediately get rid of those pictures to free up space on your device, open the Photos app and tap Albums > Recently Deleted > Select > Select All > Delete.

Method 2: Using the Photos app

Thankfully, Apple had the forethought to know that we’d want to delete multiple photos at a time. That’s why the iOS native app, Photos, has this feature built in. It’s an incredibly straightforward process that anyone can do in just a few simple steps. All you have to do is follow these instructions:

1. Open Photos.
2. Tap Select in the upper right corner of the screen.
3. Then, tap on each photo that you want to delete.
4. After you’ve selected the photos, tap the Trash button at the bottom of the screen.
5. Confirm to delete the photos.

Although, like if you were using Gemini Photos, this doesn’t actually remove them from your phone. The pictures you just trashed are still in your Recently Deleted album for the next 30 days, which is great if you accidentally deleted something. But if you need to free up that storage space right now, then in Photos, you’ll want to tap Albums > Recently Deleted > Select > Select All > Delete.

The bright side is that since Photos is a native app, that means there’s nothing else you need to download or install on your iPhone. Plus, it’s a relatively quick process that can be concluded in a few minutes, depending on how many pictures you want to delete.

However, one big limitation of Photos is that it doesn’t have advanced photo management tools like third-party apps. For example, it doesn’t have a feature to automatically detect and delete duplicate photos or blurred shots. Therefore, to get rid of these types of photos, you will have to manually select each photo, reviewing them one at a time.

Method 3: Using iCloud Photo Library

If you’re using iCloud Photo Library, it can help you quickly delete multiple pictures from your iPhone. Although it’s syncing with your iPhone, it might be easier for you to do it with iCloud.com on your Mac by following these steps:

If you have iCloud Photo Library enabled, you can also delete multiple pics from your device using your Mace with the Photos app or iCloud.com. Here’s how:

1. Open iCloud.com and log in to your account.
2. Select the pictures you want to delete. 
   Tip: you can hold down the Shift key on your keyboard to select multiple pictures.
3. Once you’ve selected all the photos to delete, hit the Delete key on your keyboard.
4. Confirm to delete the pictures.

Then, the next time your iPhone syncs with your iCloud Photo Library, those pictures will be removed from your phone.

Tips for deleting multiple photos on iPhone

Here are some additional tips to help you delete multiple photos on iPhone efficiently:

• Delete photos in batches: Instead of trying to delete all your photos at one time, it’s better to delete them in smaller batches. It’s best to do no more than 20 at a time.
• Use Recently Deleted album: Whenever you delete pictures from your device, they will stay on your phone for 30 days before being permanently deleted. You can always go back to this album and restore photos that you may have deleted accidentally.
• Back up your photos: Before deleting any images from your device, make sure to back them up. You can do this either using iCloud or connecting it to your Mac and using iTunes or the Finder, depending on the operating system you’re running.
• Use third-party apps: There are several third-party apps available on the App Store that help you manage your photos and delete unwanted ones quickly. One of the most popular is Gemini Photos, which you’ve already read above. Another option is Photo Cleaner, which allows you to sort and delete photos by date, size, and location.
• Use Siri to delete photos: If you have an iPhone with Siri, you can use voice commands to delete multiple photos quickly. Simply activate Siri and say Delete [number] photos. Siri will then ask you to confirm the deletion, and the photos will be removed from your phone.
• Turn on iCloud Photos: Enable the Optimize iPhone Storage option to save space on your device if you have iCloud turned on. This automatically removes full-resolution images from your phone and keeps only optimized versions. You can always download the full-resolution versions of your photos from iCloud if needed.
• Use the Select All option: If you’re hoping to delete all the photos in a particular album or date range, you can use the Select All option. Simply tap on Select and then tap on Select All. You can then tap on the Trash icon to delete all the selected photos.

If you’re trying to organize your photo library on your iPhone, it can feel like a massively daunting task. But the good news is that it doesn’t have to be one. If you follow the tips and methods I talked about in this article, you’ll be able to quickly and easily get rid of unwanted photos and free up storage space.

Regardless of whether you decide to use a third-party app like Gemini Photos or something native like Photos, make sure you have a good backup of your pictures before deleting them. After all, these are your memories, and recreating them is impossible. Hopefully, these tips have helped you see the light for managing your photos more efficiently and inspired you to keep your iPhone photo library clutter-free.