How To Sync Photos App On Mac

Transferring iPhone photos and videos to your Mac can save precious space on your mobile device. Plus, it’s easier to edit and retouch when you’ve got a larger screen with a higher resolution, not to mention that native Mac tools allow you to convert, resize, and organize your images in no time. In this article, we’ll cover the four quickest ways to transfer your images over.

Transfer photos from your iPhone. You can move photos and videos from your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to your Mac or PC. And with iCloud Photos, your photos are available on all your devices. Then, whenever you open the Photos app on your Mac, it will access this drive and show you your photos (as long as it's plugged in, of course!) If you want to back up the photos on your iPhone we.

The best ways to transfer photos from an iPhone to a Mac

Because iPhone and Mac are parts of the Apple ecosystem, there are multiple ways to connect them and move content around. Some involve using a USB cable, others work wirelessly. These methods have proven the handiest in our experience:

  1. Sync photos to your Mac using Finder (macOS Catalina or later)
  2. Move photos and other content with AnyTrans
  3. Import pictures to the Photos app
  4. Upload photos using ImageCapture
  5. AirDrop photos from iPhone to a Mac
  6. Transfer photos using iCloud

Let's talk about all these in more detail.

Before you transfer your iPhone pictures to the Mac

Although Macs have more storage than iPhones, that storage is not infinite, so you might want to avoid dumping thousands of unneeded pics onto your Mac. We’re talking blurry party selfies, multiple shots of the same sunset, taken just seconds apart, long-forgotten screenshots of long-forgotten conversations — those can add up to a few gigabytes.

So before you start the transfer, scan your iPhone pics with Gemini Photos: Gallery Cleaner. This app will find all the clutter you’ve accumulated over the years, such as similar shots and blurry photos, and help you delete them in no time.

Now that you’ve done that, here are our top ways to transfer photos and videos.

How to import photos from an iPhone or iPad to a Mac with a USB cable

The most common ways to transfer pictures from your iPhone to your Mac involve connecting your devices with a USB cable. But even then, you have options depending on which application you want to use. Below you’ll read about four different apps that will help you sync your photos.

Move photos from iPhone to Mac using Finder

Starting with macOS Catalina (10.15) or later, you can sync your iPhone with a Mac using Finder. Follow these steps to sync photos from your iPhone to your Mac:

  1. Connect your iPhone to your Mac with a USB cable.
  2. On the Mac, open a new Finder window.
  3. In the sidebar, under your Devices, click on your iPhone.
  4. At the top of the window, click Photos.
  5. Check the “Sync Photos” box.
  6. Choose the app or folder that you want to sync from.
  7. Choose to sync all photos and albums or just selected albums.
  8. Click Apply.

Sync Photos To Storage App

Copy photos from iPhone to Mac with AnyTrans

iCloud and Photos are obvious choices for image transferring, but they're not without flaws. If you want to transfer all content from your iPhone without having to wait forever, and back it up at the same time, a third-party utility like AnyTrans for iOS makes much more sense.

A combination of a backup tool and media downloader, AnyTrans helps you migrate content. Here’s how you use it to move photos and everything else from your iPhone:

  1. Launch AnyTrans and ensure both your devices are connected to the same network.
  2. Connect iPhone to your Mac’s USB port.
  3. Allow AnyTrans access to your photo library.
  4. Go to Device Manager > Export iPhone content to computer.

Your content will travel instantly. What’s more, it will sync to iCloud — so there’s no need to worry your photos don’t have a backup.

Import photos from an iPhone or iPad to a Mac using Photos

One of the quickest methods is to plug the Lightning-to-USB cable you use to charge the iPhone into one of your Mac’s USB ports. When an iPhone is connected, the macOS Photos app automatically opens and suggests importing your photos. Here’s the import process, step by step.

  1. Connect your iPhone to the Mac using a Lightning-to-USB cable
  2. If needed, unlock your iPhone and confirm it trusts the device
  3. The Photos app should load and show you the images from your iPhone in the main window. If that doesn't happen, select your iPhone from the left-hand menu in the Photos app. Now you’ll see all of the images and videos stored in your iPhone’s Camera Roll.
  4. Click Import All New Items in the top right-hand corner, or go through the photos, select the ones you want to import, and click Import Selected

Once the import is complete, you can ask Photos to automatically delete the pics on your iPhone, giving you space to start again and take even more pictures.

Upload photos from iPhone to Mac using Image Capture

Another method for transferring your pictures from iPhone to Mac is with the Image Capture app, which comes by default with macOS. Follow these steps to import pics from your iPhone:

  1. Connect your iPhone to your Mac with a USB cable.
  2. On your Mac, open Image Capture.
  3. In the sidebar, select your iPhone under the Devices category.
  4. At the bottom of the window, click the Import To menu to choose where to save your pictures.
  5. Select the pictures you want to import and click the Import button or click Import All.

How to transfer photos from an iPhone or iPad to a Mac wirelessly

If you don’t have a USB cable nearby, don’t worry. You can still send pics from your phone wirelessly. And even if you have a cable close, you might want to try one of these methods to save you the hassle of plugging your iPhone into your computer.

Send photos from iPhone to Mac using AirDrop

If you need to move just a few of your images over to your Mac, the quickest way to do that is by using AirDrop.

Start by switching AirDrop on your iPhone.

  1. Go to Settings
  2. Tap General
  3. Scroll to AirDrop
  4. Set this to Everyone to send data via AirDrop to any device

Now switch it on on your Mac:

  1. Open Finder
  2. Click Go in the menu bar and select AirDrop
  3. A Finder window will open, with the AirDrop icon at the bottom. It looks like an old-fashioned set of blue radio waves
  4. Below this icon is a dropdown. Click on it and select Everyone.

Give both devices a few moments to find one another.

Now, here’s how you transfer photos from your iPhone to your Mac with AirDrop:

  1. Open Photos on your iPhone
  2. Select the pics you want to transfer
  3. Tap the sharing button in the bottom left-hand corner
  4. Wait till AirDrop finds your Mac and tap on it
  5. On your Mac you’ll see a pop-up window asking you to accept the photos. Click Accept.

Depending on your Mac’s settings, you may be asked where you want to save the photos. Once you’re done transferring, you can switch off AirDrop on your Mac and iPhone.

Sync photos from an iPhone or iPad to a Mac using iCloud

Another way to move photos from an iPhone to a Mac is with iCloud. iCloud Photo Library, a.k.a. iCloud Photos, can do all the heavy lifting. However, if you’ve got over 5GB of photos and videos, you’ll need to upgrade your storage plan, paying anything from $0.99 per month for 50GB to $9.99 for 2TB of cloud storage.

To set up iCloud Photo Library on your iPhone, follow these steps:

  1. Go to Settings

  2. Tap on your name at the top

  3. Go to iCloud
  4. Underneath the iCloud storage indicator, you’ll see a list of Apps Using iCloud
  5. Tap on Photos
  6. Switch on iCloud Photos

Now, to set it up on your Mac:

  1. Launch the Photos app
  2. Go to the Photos menu in the menu bar
  3. Click on Preferences
  4. Next, click on iCloud
  5. Check the box next to iCloud Photo Library (iCloud Photos in macOS Mojave)

Provided you’ve followed both series of steps and both your devices are using the same Apple ID, your photos and videos will automatically sync between iPhone and Mac.

Remember: while you have iCloud Photo Library on, any changes you make to photos on one device will automatically sync to the other. So if you want to delete them on your iPhone and keep them on your Mac, switch off the sync after you’ve transferred everything.

Whichever method you use, Apple makes it easy to transfer photos and videos from an iPhone to a Mac. Just make sure you move the pics you really need, otherwise you’re just shuffling clutter around.

Using an iPhone to take, edit, and share photos of our lives has never been easier or more fun. It’s become common — if not standard — to see smartphones at cafes, concerts, and even nature, as we all try to capture our perspective of the world around us.

Some of these photos will be posted to social media or sent to friends right away, but most need to be stored on a device for safe and easy access in the future. As you might want to edit or just back up your images on your computer, understanding how to download photos from iPhone to Mac is essential.

If you take a significant amount of photos with your smartphone, there are a few issues you’ll eventually run into: the amount of storage that’s being used up on your iPhone, the safety of your photos, and the ability to access your photos from different devices.

All solutions for how to download pictures from iPhone to Mac are fairly easy to implement and will help you free up more storage, as well as back up and retain access to your photos. In case you’re filming and editing lots of videos, you might be interested in how to transfer videos from iPhone to Mac too. Luckily, both can be solved the same way!

How To Sync Photos App On Mac

The most obvious Mac photo and video management solutions are native to Apple, using the Photos app and iCloud Photo Library. But there are plenty of third-party apps that in some cases provide even more flexibility for your workflow.

How To Sync Photos App On Macbook Pro

How To Import Photos From iPhone To Mac

Sync Mac Photos To Iphone

There are several different methods you can use to upload photos from iPhone to Mac. Some have been available for years or are built right into the iOS, while others are more recent and innovative — the choice is up to you! Let’s discuss them all.

How to import photos from iPhone using Apple iCloud Library

Apple’s iCloud allows you to store and consolidate content across all of your devices on the cloud server, starting with a free-tier plan that covers 5 GB of storage space. Setting up iCloud is easy, just sign in with your Apple ID in System Preferences and then use the same Apple ID on another device. After that you can transfer photos from iPhone to Mac using the iCloud Photo Library. Start with your phone:

  1. Go to Settings ➙ Photos

  2. Toggle iCloud Photos and “Upload to My Photo Stream” to On

  3. If you want to be able to share albums with other users, turn the Shared Albums setting to On as well

Next, sync your Mac:

How

  1. Open System Preferences ➙ iCloud

  2. Log in with the same Apple ID used on your iPhone

  3. Turn on iCloud Drive

  4. Select the options you’d like to use

The media from your Apple Photos app will now be transferred to your Mac. Additionally, the process will import photos from iPhone to Mac automatically in the future.

A good next step after figuring out how to sync photos from iPhone to Mac is to learn how to detect duplicate pictures and avoid wasting valuable cloud storage you’re most likely paying for. Of course, you could go through your library manually, but as you take more and more pictures, this task might take hours without guaranteeing a perfect result.

Read more about how to recover permanently deleted photos from iPhone

Gemini solves the duplicate photos problem. It’s a nifty utility that scans your Apple Photos, iTunes, as well as other folders and files for any identical images and allows you to delete all the duplicates in one click. Moreover, Gemini also shows you similar files, which you can review and determine if you want to keep both, or if one of them is more relevant.

Using Gemini is as easy as it sounds:

  1. Open Gemini from Applications

  2. Click the plus icon

  3. Choose the folder to scan

  4. Select “Scan for Duplicates”

  5. Review the results and click on Remove for those you no longer need

Transfer photos from iPhone to Mac with AirDrop

Another built-in option to transfer photos from iPhone to Mac is using the AirDrop feature, which makes it easy to send files between two Apple devices via Bluetooth. As it’s a native Apple utility, using it to import photos from iPhone to Mac is quite straightforward:

  1. Turn on iPhone AirDrop (Bluetooth) by either swiping up to the control panel or opening Settings ➙ General ➙ AirDrop (Bluetooth) ➙ On

  2. Similarly on Mac, go Finder ➙ AirDrop ➙ On

  3. Enable Mac Bluetooth through System Preferences ➙ Bluetooth On

  4. Ensure both devices are connected to the same WiFi network

  5. Open your Apple Photos app to see the thumbnails

  6. Select the photos or videos that you’d like to AirDrop to Mac

  7. Tap the share icon at the bottom left of your Photos app screen

  8. Select your Mac device name from the AirDrop section

  9. Confirm the notification on your Mac to download pictures to iPhone, and your images will be saved in your Downloads folder

Using Dropbox to transfer photos from iPhone to Mac

You could be familiar with using Dropbox for large-file sharing between your friends and colleagues. But it’s also a good option to upload photos from iPhone to Mac for yourself.

Dropbox is a cloud-based storage and collaboration tool, and is available as an app for both your iPhone and Mac. The free Dropbox account gives you 2 GB of space for your photos, videos, or any other files. To use it to transfer photos from iPhone to Mac, you’ll need to set up an account on your iPhone first:

  1. Install Dropbox from the App Store

  2. Open the Dropbox app and grant access to your Photos when prompted

  3. Tap the + (create) button

  4. Select Upload Photos from the menu options

  5. Tap each photo you want to upload

  6. Go Next and choose the Dropbox folder in which to store the photos

  7. Hit Upload

Now you can transfer photos from iPhone to Mac:

  1. Visit dropbox.com and log in to your account

  2. Either choose specific photos to download or the entire folder

  3. Select Download from the menu on the right side of the screen

  4. Files will be saved to the Downloads folder on your Mac

The most flexible app to import photos from iPhone to Mac

iCloud and Dropbox will not provide you with enough space for all your photos and videos on their free tiers. On the other hand, using a USB cable to sync photos from iPhone to Mac via iTunes is quite limiting in both space and process as well.

Subsequently, the apparent absence of easy photo sharing and management tools has led to the development of numerous third-party apps, each with its own unique approach to the problem.

AnyTrans is a media downloader and backup manager that makes file moving simple and accessible. This customizable app will instantly back up and copy data from connected devices, so you can export various content and, of course, transfer photos from iPhone to Mac and import videos from iPhone to Mac as well. It’s a truly intuitive and simple solution:

  1. Open AnyTrans

  2. Check that both your iPhone and Mac are connected to the same WiFi

  3. Connect your iPhone and Mac with a USB and allow AnyTrans access when prompted

  4. Navigate to the Device Manager in the top menu bar

  5. Select “Export iPhone Content to Computer”

You’ve now successfully been able to transfer photos from iPhone to Mac. The photos and videos that you download into the Photos app on Mac will also sign in and sync to iCloud, so all of your content is consolidated and backed up. Read more about how to backup iPhone.

With all of these apps available to help you manage your photos as well as tools to keep your files tidy, you won’t have to worry about taking too many shots to get that perfect one.

Best of all, both the Gemini file cleaner and AnyTrans media downloader are available through Setapp, the platform for your Mac that curates and offers over 150+ apps, and is free with a 7-day trial. You can explore every app to improve your Mac experience, as well as optimize your photo and video management to never miss a moment.

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Meantime, prepare for all the awesome things you can do with Setapp.

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