How to Recover Photos You Accidentally Deleted from an iPhone, iPad, or Android

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Don’t lose hope! There's a way to get that picture back
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Did you accidentally delete a photo from your phone and realize it a little too late? If it's been fewer than 30 days (or 60 days if you back up to Google Photos), you can recover deleted photos on your iPhone, iPad, or Android. But what if you also deleted the pictures from Recently Deleted or your Trash? If the photos were deleted permanently, it's harder to get them back, but it still may be possible. This wikiHow guide will teach you how to recover a photo deleted from Recently Deleted on iPhone or iPad, or from the Recycle Bin or Trash on your Android.

Recovering Recently Deleted Photos

You have 30 days to restore deleted photos to your iPhone or iPad–just go to Photos > Recently Deleted and select photos to restore. On an Android, you can recover deleted photos for up to 60 days in Google Photos > Collections > Trash , or on Samsung for 30 days in Gallery > Menu > Recycle Bin .

Section 1 of 5:

Recover Deleted Photos from Recently Deleted (iPhone/iPad)

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  1. 1
    Open the Photos app on your iPhone or iPad. If you deleted a photo within the past 30 days, you can recover it from the Recently Deleted folder in the Photos app. [1]
  2. 2
    Swipe up and tap Recently Deleted . You will see this option under the "Utilities" heading.
    • If the Recently Deleted folder has a padlock icon, you will be prompted to use Face ID or Touch ID to view the album.
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  3. 3
    Select the photo(s) you want to restore. Tap Select at the upper-right corner, then tap the photos you want to restore.
    • If it's been longer than 30 days since you deleted a photo, or if you deleted the photo from Recently Deleted manually, you can't recover it. [2]
  4. 4
    Tap the three-dot menu ••• . It's at the bottom-right. A menu will expand.
  5. 5
    Tap Recover . A confirmation message will appear.
  6. 6
    Tap Recover (x) Photos . The (x) will be the number of photos you selected. This recovers the selected deleted folders to your camera roll.
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Section 2 of 5:

Recover Deleted Photos from Google Photos (Android)

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  1. 1
    Open the Google Photos app on your Android phone or tablet. If you deleted a photo from Google Photos , the deleted photo will remain in the Trash for 60 days if backed up, or 30 days if not backed up. [3]
    • This method will also work if you're using Google Photos on an iPhone or iPad .
  2. 2
    Tap Collections at the bottom. A list of your albums will appear.
  3. 3
    Tap Trash . It's at the top-right corner. All deleted photos and videos that can be recovered will appear here.
    • If you don't see the photo you're looking for, it has been permanently deleted, and you cannot restore it. [4]
  4. 4
    Tap Select and select the photos you want to restore. You will see the total number of photos and videos to be recovered at the top.
  5. 5
    Tap Restore at the bottom-right. You will be asked if you want to restore the selected items.
  6. 6
    Tap Restore to confirm. The selected photos will be returned to your Google Photos stream.
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Section 3 of 5:

Recover Deleted Photos from Samsung Gallery (Android)

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  1. 1
    Open the Gallery app on your Samsung Galaxy phone or tablet. If you recently deleted photos from the Gallery app on your Samsung device, you have 30 days to recover them. After 30 days, the photos will be deleted forever. [5]
    • For this method to work, the Recycle Bin feature must be active in Samsung Gallery. To make sure it's active, tap Menu , select Settings , and then make sure "Recycle bin" is turned on.
  2. 2
    Tap Menu . A list of options will appear.
  3. 3
    Tap Recycle Bin . Recently deleted photos and videos that you can still recover will appear here.
  4. 4
    Select the photo(s) and tap Restore . This recovers the selected pictures to your photo gallery.
    • If you don't see the photos you want to recover, you can check to see if they are also saved to cloud storage. To do this in the Gallery app, tap More , Settings , and then tap Cloud Sync . Follow the on-screen instructions to sync recently deleted photos back to your phone or tablet. [6]
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Section 4 of 5:

Other Ways to Recover Deleted Photos

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  1. 1
    (iPhone/iPad) Try reenabling iCloud Photos. If you took a photo with your iPhone or iPad with iCloud Photos enabled, later disabled iCloud Photos, and then deleted the photo from your iPhone, you may be able to restore it by reenabling iCloud Photos and syncing your photos again. [7] However, this will not work if iCloud Photos is already turned on–in that situation, once you permanently delete a photo from your iPhone, it's permanently deleted from iCloud and all connected devices. To give it a try:
    • Open your iPhone or iPad's Settings .
    • Tap your name and select iCloud .
    • Tap Photos .
    • Turn on "Sync this device." [8]
    • Connect to Wi-Fi if you aren't already, then wait a few moments for missing photos to sync back to your device. [9]
  2. 2
    Try restoring from an older backup. If you backed up your device before deleting the photo, you may be able to recover the deleted photos by restoring from backup. While inconvenient, it may be worth a try if the photos are super important.
    • We have simple guides for restoring from backups on iPhone, iPad , and Android .
    • If you backed up your Samsung Galaxy to a computer with Smart Switch, you can open Smart Switch on your computer and follow the on-screen prompts to restore from backup. [10]
  3. 3
    (iPhone/iPad) Check your synced devices. This is kind of a long shot, but it might work: If you use iCloud Photos to sync your photos to the cloud and your other Apple devices (such as your Mac or iPad), it's possible the photos you're looking for are on those devices. However, this would only be true if those devices have not synced to iCloud after you deleted the photo from your iPhone or iPad. And to check, you will need to make sure your Mac (or other device) does not sync to iCloud first.
  4. 4
    Check your social media apps. If you deleted a photo that you've already uploaded to Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, Snapchat, or other social media apps, you may have a second copy of the photo in one of those apps.
  5. 5
    Check Google Photos. If you already deleted the photos from Google Photos, this won't help you. But if you have the Google Photos app on your iPhone, iPad, or Samsung Gallery phone or tablet and have set up your device to back up photos to it automatically, your deleted photos may be there waiting for you. You can look for the deleted photos in the Google Photos app or by logging in with a web browser at photos.google.com .
  6. 6
    Try a data recovery service. If it's crucial you get your deleted photos back, but they aren't stored anywhere else, the last option is to use a data recovery service. Many of the data recovery options you'll find by searching the web are scams, so it's best to contact a professional instead of downloading random software.
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Section 5 of 5:

Troubleshooting & FAQ

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  1. 1
    Why can't I find Recently Deleted in the iPhone Photos app? If you don't see this folder under "Utilities," try tapping Utilities to see if it's just further down the list. You can then rearrange the options by tapping Edit at the top-right.
  2. 2
    Why aren't my photos in Recently Deleted or Trash? There are a few reasons why you may not find the photos you're looking for:
    • The photo was automatically deleted. If you deleted the photo more than 30 days ago (iPhone/iPad, Samsung Gallery, and non-backed-up Google Photos) or 60 days ago (backed-up Google Photos), it was permanently deleted. [11]
    • You permanently deleted the photo. If you manually opted to delete the photos permanently from Recently Deleted, Trash, or Recycle Bin, such as when freeing up space on your device, you cannot restore them.
    • The Recycle Bin is disabled (Samsung). If you disabled the Recycle Bin in Gallery > Menu > Settings , photos you delete will be permanently deleted immediately instead of being sent to the Recycle Bin.
  3. 3
    Are photos permanently deleted on iPhone after "Recently Deleted? " Yes. Once the pictures you've deleted are automatically or manually deleted from Recently Deleted, they are gone forever. To get them back, you will need to restore from a backup or check your other apps and devices for another copy.
  4. 4
    Where do photos go when they are permanently deleted from an iPhone? Once photos are permanently deleted from your iPhone, they are gone unless you have already shared or backed them up to another location.
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      References

      1. ↑ https://support.apple.com/en-us/104967
      2. ↑ https://support.apple.com/en-us/104967
      3. ↑ https://support.google.com/photos/answer/9343482?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform=Android
      4. ↑ https://support.google.com/photos/answer/9343482?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform=Android
      5. ↑ https://www.samsung.com/uk/support/mobile-devices/how-can-i-recover-deleted-photo/
      6. ↑ https://www.samsung.com/ph/support/mobile-devices/how-can-i-recover-deleted-photo/
      7. ↑ https://support.apple.com/en-us/118558
      8. ↑ https://support.apple.com/en-us/108782
      9. ↑ https://support.apple.com/en-us/118558
      1. ↑ https://www.samsung.com/uk/support/mobile-devices/how-do-i-backup-my-smartphone-to-my-pc-or-mac/
      2. ↑ https://support.google.com/photos/answer/9343482?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform=Android

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