Downloading your own photos from iCloud to any device you are using can be confusing regardless of whether you have been an Apple user in the past or not. Which is why this guide about ‘how to download photos from iCloud’ is for everyone who needs help with it. But for those who have been using Android, it can be a challenging switch from one operating system to another. You’ll get used to how things work after some time. It’s similar to learning how to drive – you’ll make some mistakes initially but will get it eventually. It’s a skill you learn once but after you get used to it, you do not really need to put any effort into remembering where to go, which levers to pull or move.
iPhone users have some experience dealing with backing up their data into iCloud. If you are a new user, however, you might face some issues. This is one of the most commonly asked questions too, not how to backup and save in the first place but how to download already saved pictures from iCloud to another device. Discarding all the complexity of different devices, this guide is going to help you learn how to download your iCloud photos to any computer.
The guide will include both individual photos, all photos and group photos selected by you to cover it all. It is different from downloading pictures generally because Apple likes to do things differently. So let’s get started:
Download a single photo from iCloud to Mac or PC
First is our simple and basic step of how to start with downloading a photo stored in your iCloud to any computer or other device through the web browser.
- Go to iCloud.com and Sign in using your Apple ID.
- As soon as you are in, you will see the apps you use regularly. Go to the Photos
- You will see the entire set of photos backed up on your iCloud. Select the one you want to download from here. You can also select multiple photos, hold the Shift key and Click on all the pictures you want to download from your iCloud.\
- After you have selected the ones you want in your computer, you will find a download option on the top right corner of your screen. Look for a Cloud sign with a downward arrow inside – it looks very much like the iCloud sign. Click on that.
- You can repeat the steps to continue downloading as many photos as you want to your device.
You will find all the downloaded pictures in the default download folder in your device, in the original quality. Since this is a web browser based way you do not need to worry about what device you are using whether its a Windows PC, a Mac, or Linux device. People usually go for this option as it is the most easily accessible one, from practically any device. But also because you can access your photos library anywhere and take a look at any photo whenever you want.
Download all photos from iCloud to Mac or PC – iCloud webpage:
As disclosed in the above method, you have to manually select pictures you want to download through that method. By clicking on the pictures and holding the Shift key simultaneously. But what to do in a situation where you want all the pictures downloaded?. Because selecting each one could be hectic to say the least and downright frustrating too. Some people have pictures saved in thousands of numbers, you cannot physically sit through selecting each of those.
This also brings us to ask a critical question about Apple’s way of doing things. It is no secret that most of the things Apple sets us up with are not only liked but appreciated by the general audience. But this is something people generally complain about, why do we not have a ‘download all photos’ option within the iCloud. It is a genuine complaint and maybe if enough people think so, Apple might bring an update in the near future. All that is good to hope for, meanwhile this is how you can download all photos from iCloud to a computer:
- Repeat the first step from the previous method. Sign in to your Apple ID on iCloud’s website.
- Go to the Photos logo again and choose the All Photos album
- After you are in the folder, scroll down until you reach the bottom of the folder. You will find a button here to Select Photos, on top of iCloud’s photos bar, click that.
- Now hold the Shift key down and select the very last picture in the album. This will select all photos there are in the album. Confirm the number of photos from the bar that shows how many photos are selected
- Continue with clicking on the Download button on the corner after all your photos are selected.
- It will ask for confirmation, generally because the number of photos here is high, select confirm and continue downloading all the photos to your device.
This process is very similar to downloading any file from the web browser in your device. It will end up in your downloads, or any other location that you have specifically set for all downloaded items.
This Shift and click option works well pretty much for any photos you want to download. Since iCloud does not have a download all option in it yet, the web browser is only as useful to you as you make of it in terms of downloading iCloud photos. Use this to download as many photos you want, selective or in bulk. You can also utilize the select option to choose to select all photos manually if you think you can do it without tiring out. This is a good option for those that do not have a large hoard of pictures, which is rarely the case for anybody these days. Life keeps us all busy, we don’t regularly update and backup our photos somewhere, it is usually a large number of photos that need to be downloaded.
Additionally there are more options and ways one can download pictures from iCloud to other devices but they are restricted to Apple devices. Most of them include the usage of iPhone’s photo library app or iCloud’s photo library, which restricts it to Apple products only.
Download all photos from iCloud to a Windows PC – iCloud software:
Not everyone is aware of this method because it requires an extra effort of downloading the software. But it is an option that Windows users have in case they want to utilize it. The file browser within helps you copy any photos you want when you download the iCloud software. Here’s what you need to do:
- If you have ever browsed Apple’s website they have a lot of great suggestions and query resolution pages. They have a support page from where you can download iCloud software. Install and set up the software to run it.
- On your PC you will be able to find iCloud Photos. Go to the file explorer option and search iCloud photos. Open the folder.
- In the navigation bar, select Download photos and videos.
- You will be asked for the dates for the pictures you want to download. Make sure you know the date/year around the time your photos are from. Select the date if there is a particular one, or all dates in case you want to go for all photos.
- Pictures\iCloud Pictures\Downloads, is where you will be able to find the photos iCloud downloads to your windows device
Depending upon the technicalities of the procedure, number of photos, internet connection etc. it will take it’s time. Because iPhone and Mac users have other options specific to their devices due to macOS and iOS, this gives windows users an alternative in case other ways do not work out for them.
These were all the ways for ‘how to download photos from iCloud’ that we knew of. Apple is not a complicated option among electronic devices when you learn its way once. It is like any other system and with time you get used to how it works and it becomes more routine. Hope this guide helps you download your desired photos to any device you like.
