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 y'all've got a larger screen with a higher resolution, not to mention that native Mac tools allow you to catechumen, resize, and organize your images in no time. In this article, we'll cover the four quickest means to transfer your images over.

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

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

  1. Sync photos to your Mac using Finder (macOS Catalina or later)
  2. Movement 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

Allow's talk about all these in more detail.


Earlier you transfer your iPhone pictures to the Mac

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

So before you offset the transfer, scan your iPhone pics with Gemini Photos: Gallery Cleaner. This app will find all the ataxia 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 washed that, here are our meridian means to transfer photos and videos.


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

The about common ways to transfer pictures from your iPhone to your Mac involve connecting your devices with a USB cable. But even then, y'all accept options depending on which awarding you want to employ. Below you'll read about four different apps that will help y'all 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 up 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. Cull to sync all photos and albums or but selected albums.
  8. Click Apply.

How to transfer photos from iPhone to computer with AnyTrans

iCloud and Photos are obvious choices for prototype transferring, but they're non without flaws. If you desire to transfer all content from your iPhone without having to wait forever, and back it upwardly at the same time, a third-political party utility like AnyTrans for iOS makes much more sense.

A combination of a fill-in tool and media downloader, AnyTrans helps you drift content. Here's how yous employ 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 photograph library.
  4. Go to Device Managing director > Export iPhone content to computer.

Your content will travel instantly. What's more, information technology volition sync to iCloud — so there's no demand to worry your photos don't have a backup.


Import photos from an iPhone to a Mac using Photos

I of the quickest methods is to plug the Lightning-to-USB cablevision y'all employ to charge the iPhone into ane of your Mac's USB ports. When an iPhone is connected, the macOS Photos app automatically opens and suggests importing your photos. Here'due south the import procedure, 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 chief window. If that doesn't happen, select your iPhone from the left-mitt card 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 height right-hand corner, or get through the photos, select the ones yous want to import, and click Import Selected

Once the import is complete, you tin ask Photos to automatically delete the pics on your iPhone, giving you lot space to beginning again and take fifty-fifty more pictures.


Upload photos from iPhone to Mac using Prototype Capture

Some other method for transferring your pictures from iPhone to Mac is with the Epitome 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 up Paradigm 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 salve your pictures.
  5. Select the pictures y'all desire to import and click the Import push or click Import All.

How to transfer photos from an iPhone to a Mac wirelessly

If you lot don't have a USB cablevision nearby, don't worry. You tin can still ship pics from your telephone wirelessly. And even if you have a cable close, you might want to try ane of these methods to relieve you the hassle of plugging your iPhone into your figurer.

Send photos from iPhone to Mac using AirDrop

If you demand to movement merely a few of your images over to your Mac, the quickest way to practise that is past using AirDrop.

Commencement by switching AirDrop on your iPhone.

  1. Go to Settings
  2. Tap Full general
  3. Gyre to AirDrop
  4. Set this to Everyone to send information via AirDrop to whatsoever device

Now switch information technology on on your Mac:

  1. Open Finder
  2. Click Go in the bill of fare bar and select AirDrop
  3. A Finder window volition open up, with the AirDrop icon at the bottom. It looks like an onetime-fashioned set up of blueish 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.

At present, 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 information technology
  5. On your Mac you'll see a pop-upwardly window request you to have the photos. Click Have.

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


Sync photos from an iPhone to a Mac using iCloud

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

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

  1. Get to Settings
  2. Tap on your name at the meridian

  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. Bank 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 aforementioned Apple ID, your photos and videos will automatically sync betwixt iPhone and Mac.

Recollect: while yous have iCloud Photo Library on, any changes you brand 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 lot've transferred everything.


Whichever method yous use, Apple makes information technology easy to transfer photos and videos from an iPhone to a Mac. Simply make sure y'all motility the pics you really need, otherwise you're just shuffling clutter around.