How to Delete Duplicate Photos on iPhone

Copies creep into every iPhone library: the same picture saved twice from a chat, a batch imported again, a burst of frames when you wanted one shot. Since iOS 16 the Photos app finds duplicate photos and videos by itself and lets you merge them for free. This guide shows where that tool lives in each version of iOS and iPadOS, what a merge keeps, how to keep the best frame of a burst and how to get the space back.

On Android? Read how to delete duplicate photos on Android and Samsung.

Step 1: Merge copies in the Duplicates album

The Duplicates album sits under Utilities in the Photos app. Where Utilities lives depends on your version of iOS:

• iOS 26 and later: Photos → Collections → Utilities → Duplicates.
• iOS 18: open Photos, swipe up to Utilities, then tap Duplicates.
• iOS 16 and 17: Photos → Albums → Duplicates (below Utilities).

Then:

1. Look through the sets before you merge them.
2. Tap Merge on a set, then tap Merge [number] Items to confirm.
3. To merge several sets at once, tap Select, tap Select on each set you want (or Select All), then tap Merge and confirm.

What Merge keeps: Photos keeps one photo, combining the highest quality version with the relevant data from all the copies. The other copies move to Recently Deleted.

On iPad: the same album is there on iPadOS 16.1 and later. On iPadOS 26 and later tap Collections → Utilities → Duplicates. On iPadOS 16 to 18, open the sidebar (swipe from the left edge) and find Duplicates under Utilities. From iPadOS 18 the confirm button reads Merge [number] Exact Copies.

With iCloud Photos: the extra copies go to Recently Deleted like any photo you delete, and with iCloud Photos a deletion on one device reaches every device signed in to the same Apple Account.

No Duplicates album? See the questions at the end of this page.

Step 2: Keep the best frame of a burst

A burst is a run of photos taken in rapid succession, kept together behind one Burst thumbnail. To pick the frames worth keeping:

1. In Photos, tap the burst's thumbnail.
2. Tap Burst (number) on iOS 26 and later, or Select on iOS 16 to 18.
3. Grey dots under the thumbnails mark the frames your iPhone suggests keeping.
4. Tap the circle in the lower-right corner of each frame you want to save as a separate photo, then tap Done.

If no frame is worth keeping, delete the whole burst: tap its thumbnail, then tap the Delete button.

What the built-in tools leave to you

• Merge decides which copy stays. You choose which sets to merge, and Photos keeps the highest quality version. It is a quick clean, not a photo-by-photo review.
• Bursts have their own tool. You pick frames inside each burst, one burst at a time (step 2).
• Retakes are your call. When you took the same scene twice, choosing the better take is a judgement no merge makes for you.
• The album takes time. It appears only after your iPhone has indexed your library, which runs while the phone is locked and connected to power and can take up to a few days.

Another way: compare copies side by side in Picmori

Picmori (our app) is a free photo cleaner for iPhone, iPad and Android that plays like a game: a pixel-art adventure where every level is made from your own photos. You swipe left to delete and right to keep, with undo, and it gathers copies for you along the way:

• What it groups: exact copies (same file size, dimensions and type, confirmed with a fingerprint of the image) and burst shots taken seconds apart. In Premium sessions it also groups repeated screenshots.
• How you choose: a badge on the card shows a group is nearby. Tap it and the group opens side by side, with a suggested shot to keep, picked by resolution, file size and your favourites. Keep one and let the rest go.
• Nothing is deleted while you swipe: you confirm at the end of the session, iOS asks once more, and the photos go to Recently Deleted, where you can recover them for about 30 days.
• Free or Premium: duplicate groups show up in the free chapters and reviews. The Duplicates mode, which brings only groups, is part of Premium.
• Privacy: photos are analysed on your iPhone and never uploaded. No account, no ads.

Picmori does not group photos that merely look alike and does not detect blurry photos. It needs iOS 16 or later.

App Store · Google Play

Step 3: Get the space back

Merged copies and deleted photos stay in Recently Deleted for 30 days before they are permanently deleted. Until then they can be recovered. To clear them sooner:

1. Open Photos, tap Collections, swipe up and tap Recently Deleted under Utilities. On iOS 18, swipe up from your library instead. On iOS 16 and 17, start from Albums.
2. Tap View Album and unlock with Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode.
3. Tap Select and choose the photos, then tap the More button and Delete. To clear the whole album, choose Delete All instead.
4. Confirm the deletion.

Photos you delete from Recently Deleted can't be recovered.

Two iCloud notes: items in Recently Deleted don't count toward your iCloud storage. And if you are over your iCloud storage limit, photos you delete are removed right away and don't wait in Recently Deleted, so be sure before you merge.

To see how much space you have, go to Settings → General → iPhone Storage.

Keep going

Duplicates are one kind of clutter. For screenshots, see how to delete screenshots on iPhone. For a full pass through your library, including large videos and failed shots, see how to clean up your iPhone photo library.

Questions about duplicate photos on iPhone

Why don't I see the Duplicates album on my iPhone?

The album needs iOS 16 or later (iPadOS 16.1 or later on iPad), and it appears only after your iPhone has indexed your library and found duplicates. Indexing runs while the iPhone is locked and connected to power, and for a large library it can take up to a few days. To check, open Photos, tap Library and scroll to the bottom: while indexing is running, a status message shows there. If indexing is done and there is still no Duplicates album, your iPhone has not found any duplicates.

Does merging duplicates delete them from iCloud?

If you use iCloud Photos, yes. A merge keeps one photo and moves the other copies to Recently Deleted, and with iCloud Photos a deletion on one device reaches every device signed in to the same Apple Account. The removed copies stay in Recently Deleted for 30 days, and while they are there they don't count toward your iCloud storage.

Can I undo a merge?

The copies a merge removes go to Recently Deleted, so you can bring them back within 30 days: open Recently Deleted under Utilities, tap View Album and unlock it, tap Select, choose the photos, tap the More button, then tap Recover. After 30 days, or once you delete them from Recently Deleted, they can't be recovered.

Does the Duplicates album work on iPad?

Yes, on iPadOS 16.1 or later. On iPadOS 26 and later, open Photos and tap Collections, then Utilities, then Duplicates. On iPadOS 16 to 18, open the sidebar by swiping from the left edge and find Duplicates under Utilities.