Back up your phone photos so you never lose them

iPhone

1. Settings → your name → iCloud → Photos → turn on Sync this iPhone.
2. Check your iCloud storage. The free 5 GB fills quickly, and iCloud+ plans are inexpensive.
3. Scroll to the bottom of the Photos library to see the sync status.

Android (or iPhone)

1. Open Google Photos → your profile picture → Photos settings → Backup → turn it on.
2. Choose the quality: Storage saver uses less space; Original quality keeps full size.
3. Backups count toward your Google storage (15 GB free, shared with Gmail and Drive).

Make sure it's working

Look for "Backup complete." Photos taken on mobile data may wait for Wi-Fi.

Keep a second copy

Cloud backups protect you from a lost phone. For irreplaceable photos (kids, weddings), also download a copy to a computer or external drive once or twice a year.

Careful with "free up space"

Only delete photos from your phone once you've confirmed they're backed up.