How to Transfer Photos from iPhone to a Mac or Windows Computer

Although Apple’s syncing ecosystem is advanced, it can still be difficult to understand for beginners. So when it comes to transferring photos from an iPhone to a Windows PC or a Mac, it’s only natural to get confused. To help you out, here are the easiest ways to do so.

Transfer Photos from iPhone to a Mac

Using AirDrop

Before using this option, make sure you have BlueTooth and WiFi turned on on both your devices and that they are within 30 feet (9 meters of each other). Also, ensure that both devices have AirDrop enabled and set to receive files from anyone.

1. Open the Photos app on your iPhone and select the photos you want to transfer to Mac. Then, click on the export button you can see in the bottom panel.

   

2. In the sharing tab, select AirDrop.

   

3. On the next screen, select your Mac, and the photos will be transferred there.

   

4. You will receive a notification on your Mac informing you of the pictures you have received. You can now view them in your Mac’s Downloads folder.

   

Using Photos (requires a USB connection)

1. Connect your iPhone to your Mac using a USB cable. If you are using any of the latest MacBooks made after 2020, you will need to use the USB-C to Lightning Cable to connect your iPhone to your MacBook.
2. Unlock your iPhone and click on Trust.

   

3. Open the Photos app on your Mac and click on your iPhone name that appears under “Devices” in the left sidebar.

   

4. After a few seconds, you should be able to see all the photos from your iPhone on your Mac. First, select the images you want to import and then click on the Import Selected button on the top right side of the Photos app.

   

5. The images you imported will now be available in the Imports album of your Mac.

   

Using Finder (requires a USB connection)

1. Connect your iPhone to your Mac using a USB cable.
2. On your Mac, navigate to System Preferences.

   

3. In System Preferences, search and open iCloud settings.

   

4. Make sure that the Photos option is checked and activated.

   

5. Go to Settings on your iPhone, and tap on your user profile to access iCloud settings.

   

6. In the iCloud settings menu, ensure that “iCloud photos” are turned on.
7. Go back to your Mac and open Finder.

   

8. You will see your iPhone listed as a folder on the left sidebar. Open it and navigate to the Photos tab.

   

9. Click on the Sync button on the bottom ride side of the application. All the photos from your iPhone will be transferred to your Mac.

   

Transfer Photos from iPhone to a Windows Computer

Using Window’s iCloud app

1. Download and install iCloud from the Microsoft Store.

   

2. Log in to iCloud using your Apple ID and Password.

   

3. You will receive a code on your iPhone to verify this log-in. Enter that code into iCloud to log in successfully.

   

   

4. On the iCloud home screen, check the box in the Photos tab to activate photo sync between your iPhone and PC.

   

5. You can also change the default import destination on your Windows computer by clicking the Options… button.

   

   

6. Open File Explorer. You should see a folder named iCloud Photos on the left sidebar. Photos and videos from your iPhone will be downloaded here by default.

   

Using iCloud.com

If you don’t want to go through the hassle of downloading and setting up iCloud on your PC, you can also access all the photos on your iPhone directly from iCloud.com.

1. Go to icloud.com and log in using your Apple ID and Password.

   

2. After logging in, select the Photos app from the dashboard.

   

3. Here, you will be able to view every photo on your iPhone that has been backed up by iCloud. You can also directly download pictures to your PC using the Download button in the top right.

   

Using iTunes (requires a USB connection)

1. Connect your iPhone to your Windows PC using a USB cable.
2. Download and install the latest version of iTunes on your PC.

   

3. Open File Explorer and you should see a storage media named Apple iPhone on the home screen. Open it and navigate to the DCIM folder, where you will find multiple folders containing all the images on your iPhone.

   

4. You can select and copy the images you want to transfer to your PC and paste them anywhere on your computer’s drive. You can also “Click and Drag” them into another folder on your PC.

   

Using Window’s Photos app (requires a USB connection)

1. Connect your iPhone to your Windows PC using a USB cable.
2. Open the Photos app on your PC and click on the import option on the top right. You will see a dropdown menu – select import photos from a connected device.

   

3. Select the photos you want to import to your PC and click on the Import button.

   

Change image file format from HEIF/HEVC to JPG/JPEG

iPhone’s unique file format encodes photos to a HEIF/HEVC format. We can convert these HEIC photos to a format more accessible on a PC, such as JPG or JPEG. Note: If you’re using a Mac running macOS High Sierra v10.13 or later, you can skip this step as you can open HEIC files natively on your Mac. Here’s how to convert HEIC photos to JPG format when you share them from your iPhone.

1. 1. Open Settings on your iPhone.
   2. Navigate to Photos settings.

      

1. Scroll down to the “Transfer to Mac or PC” section and select the Automatic transfer option. Note: you can check the Keep Originals options to keep a backup of the old images.