Backup with Google Photos (Android and iOS)

Google Photos is a photo service from internet giant Google. With Photos, you can easily edit and search images. The service can be used via a website, but there is also an app for mobile devices. That app makes backing up photos and videos child’s play: it can be done completely automatically. In this article, we’ll explain how to install the app on mobile devices and then set it up properly.

A Google account is required to use Google Photos. Don’t have that yet? Read how to create a free account in the article ‘Create a Google account’. With a free account, you get 15 GB of storage in the cloud from Google.

Download Google Photos from the Play Store (Android) or the App store (iOS). Need help downloading? Then read the article ‘Download an app from the Play Store (Android)’ or ‘Download an app from the App Store’.

If you’re using Google Photos for the first time, go through the following steps:

• Open the app.
• Allow Photos to access the images on the device. Tap on To allow or OK.
• You may be asked to allow Photos to show notifications on the device. Choose Allow or Not allowed.
• Photos asks if you want to back up all photos and videos on the device. A Google account is automatically filled in.
  • Do you choose Backup as [naam] or Enable backup, the images will be saved online. You can access it on all your devices and edit and search images on any device.
  • Do you choose Do not backup, you can still use the Photos app to edit and search images, but nothing is saved online. If you choose this option, you do not have to go through the following steps.
• Tap on High Quality. This backs up all photos and videos, but at a lower quality than the original images. The advantage of this is that you save space and the 15 GB storage space is less full. Do you choose Original then you will keep the original quality of the images, but the storage space will probably be full quickly.
• Tap on Confirm.

The photo overview of the app opens. Read more about how Google Photos works in the app on tablet and smartphone or via the website.

Have you previously chosen not to have automatic backups, but still want to? Change the setting as follows:

• Open the app photos.
• Tap the circle in the top right corner containing the initial letter(s) of your name or your profile picture.
• Tap on Enable backup.
• Choose High Quality > Confirm.

Photos will immediately start backing up.

Has the situation been reversed and is the automatic backup no longer desired? Turn it off like this:

• Open the app photos.
• Tap the circle in the top right corner containing the initial letter(s) of your name or your profile picture.
• Tap on Account Storage.
• Tap the slider behind ‘Backup and sync’. If it turns grey, the function is turned off.

Photos from previous backups will remain, but new images will no longer be automatically backed up.

For years, Google Photos has allowed users to store unlimited photos and videos in a smaller size than the original for free. Payment must be made for this after June 1, 2021. Anything that the user then stores outside of the standard 15 GB will cost money. Files that have already been saved outside the standard storage space before that time will remain for free.

It is also possible to back up images stored on the computer in Google Photos. How to do that is explained in the tip Save photos in Google Photos.