Guide

How to clean up iPhone photos using built-in tools (free)

Want free space today with no new app? Use this Apple Photos cleanup flow first. Then use Photo Monster if you need a faster pass.

Quick answer

  1. Open Photos and scroll to Utilities.
  2. Delete screenshots first from the Screenshots album.
  3. Open Utilities > Duplicates and merge true copies.
  4. Empty Recently Deleted when you are sure.
  5. Check results in Settings > iPhone Storage > Photos.
  6. If this feels slow, use a faster swipe flow.

1) Open Collections and find Media Types

Open the Photos app. Tap Collections at the bottom. Scroll down to Media Types. You can either tap the heading to open the full list, or swipe the row sideways to flip through types until you find Screenshots.

Apple Photos app with the Collections tab at the bottom circled Apple Photos Collections view with the Media Types section circled

2) Open Screenshots and clear the easy wins

In the expanded Media Types list, tap Screenshots. You will see every screenshot on your iPhone in one place. Tap Select, tap the throwaways, and delete. Screenshots pile up silently and are almost always safe to remove.

Apple Photos Media Types expanded with the Screenshots row circled Apple Photos Screenshots album showing many screenshots

3) Merge duplicates

Go to Utilities > Duplicates. Merge true copies. Apple keeps one file and moves the rest to Recently Deleted.

Apple Photos Duplicates list with merge buttons Apple Photos duplicate merge confirmation modal

4) Check Recently Deleted

Deleted photos go to Recently Deleted first. You can find it under Collections > Utilities > Recently Deleted. You can still bring photos back for 30 days before they are gone for good.

Recently Deleted album in Apple Photos

5) Check how much space you freed

Open Settings > General > iPhone Storage > Photos to see how much space the Photos app is using on your device. If iCloud Photos is on, it can take a few minutes to update after a big cleanup.

Photos app storage breakdown in iPhone Settings showing on-device space used

Where built-in tools stop helping

Apple only finds exact dups, so similar photos are impossible to find and even harder to compare. Sorting your photos takes time, and there is no way to keep track of where you stopped last time.

Photo Monster fixes that. Swipe right to keep, swipe left to delete, one photo at a time.

Photo Monster swipe right to keep: a photo card tilting right with a green Keep thumbs-up overlay Photo Monster swipe left to delete: a photo card tilting left with a red Add to Delete pile overlay

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