How to find and delete duplicate photos and videos on iPhone

See your duplicate photos

1. Open Photos and scroll down to Utilities. If your Photos app has a Collections tab, tap Collections first; on iOS 17, it is Albums → Utilities.
2. Tap Duplicates to see every set of copies Photos has found, photos and videos together.
3. If there is no Duplicates collection, Photos hasn't found any duplicates in your library.

Merge them

1. In Duplicates, tap Merge beside a set, then tap Merge [number] Items to confirm. Photos keeps the highest-quality copy, combines their details, and moves the rest to Recently Deleted.
2. To do them all at once, tap Select, then Select All, then Merge.

Or delete the copies yourself

1. In Duplicates, or anywhere in your library, tap Select and tap the copies you want to remove.
2. Tap the bin and confirm. One at a time, open the photo and tap the bin.
3. Deleted photos and videos stay in Recently Deleted for 30 days. To get the space back now, open Recently Deleted under Utilities, unlock it, tap Select, choose them and tap Delete.

With iCloud Photos on, a photo you delete on your iPhone is deleted on all your devices signed in to the same Apple Account.

Duplicate videos

The same Duplicates collection lists duplicate videos as well as photos, and Merge works on them the same way. Check them first: a duplicate video usually takes far more space than a duplicate photo.

What the Duplicates collection doesn't find

• Edited copies: the same photo cropped, brightened or resized for sending.
• Bursts and shots taken seconds apart that are almost, but not quite, the same.
• Copies in the Files app, outside your photo library.

On a Mac (iPhoto)

iPhoto has been replaced by the Photos app on the Mac. If your Mac and iPhone share iCloud Photos, duplicates you merge or delete on your iPhone go from the Mac as well. For a Mac library or folders outside iCloud Photos, Caddora's Folio Refresh for Mac finds duplicates, including copies that were resized, cropped or edited (caddora.ie/folio).

Questions

How do I view duplicate photos on my iPhone?

Open the Photos app, go to Utilities and tap Duplicates. Every set of copies Photos has found is there, photos and videos together. If there is no Duplicates collection, Photos hasn't found any.

How do I delete the same photo saved twice?

Merge the set in Photos → Utilities → Duplicates, which keeps the best copy and moves the rest to Recently Deleted, or tap Select, choose the extra copy and tap the bin.

How do I delete duplicate videos on iPhone?

The Duplicates collection in Photos lists duplicate videos with the photos. Tap Merge beside a set to keep one copy.

Does merging duplicates delete photos?

It keeps one copy, the highest quality, with the details of all of them, and moves the others to Recently Deleted, where you can recover them for 30 days.