Short answer: while iCloud Photos is on, you can't: a photo you delete on the iPhone is deleted from iCloud and your other devices too, once it leaves Recently Deleted. If the goal is free space, turn on Optimize iPhone Storage instead: the full originals stay in iCloud and the iPhone keeps small versions. If you really want photos off the phone, turn off iCloud Photos on this iPhone first, then delete; the iCloud copies stay, but this iPhone stops uploading new photos.
Steps
- Open Settings › [your name] › iCloud › Photos and check that Sync this iPhone is on.
- Select Optimize iPhone Storage. On iOS 27, tap iPhone Storage first, then choose it.
- Make sure everything has uploaded: open Photos › Collections and check the status around your account picture in the top-right corner.
- Leave the iPhone on Wi-Fi and charging. iOS replaces originals with smaller versions as it needs the room, so the space comes back gradually.
- That's method 1. If you need the photos gone from the phone entirely, use method 2 below, and read what it changes first.
Method 2: turn off iCloud Photos on this iPhone, then delete
- Check that the photos you want to keep are in iCloud: they should be visible at iCloud.com or on another device with iCloud Photos on.
- Open Settings › [your name] › iCloud › Photos and turn off Sync this iPhone.
- Choose Remove from iPhone to take every iCloud photo off this iPhone at once. The library stays in iCloud and on your other devices.
- Or choose Download Photos & Videos to keep full copies on this iPhone, then delete only the ones you don't want here. This needs room for the whole library first.
- Empty Photos › Collections › Utilities › Recently Deleted. On this iPhone that's now a local delete; the iCloud copies aren't touched.
What this changes:
- New photos aren't uploaded. Anything you take from now on is only on this iPhone until you back it up some other way.
- Changes don't sync. Edits, favorites and deletions on this iPhone no longer reach iCloud or your other devices, and theirs don't reach it.
- iCloud Backup may grow. Apple says that without iCloud Photos, iCloud Backup may include the photos and videos on the iPhone, which uses iCloud storage.
- Turning it back on brings them back. When you turn on Sync this iPhone again, the photos still in iCloud appear on the iPhone again.
The careful, step-by-step version of turning sync off is in turn off iCloud Photos without deleting.
Method 3: keep a copy somewhere else, then delete everywhere
If you want photos off the iPhone and out of your iCloud plan, but not lost, copy them somewhere else first:
- A computer: import them with a cable (how). If Optimize is on, download the originals first, or the computer gets only what's on the phone.
- An external drive: select photos, tap Share › Export Unmodified Original and save to the drive.
- Another cloud service: Google Photos, OneDrive or Dropbox can upload your library. Check the service's own storage limits.
Then delete them on the iPhone with iCloud Photos on. That frees space on the iPhone and in iCloud.
The three methods compared
| Feature | Optimize iPhone Storage | Turn off iCloud Photos, then delete | Copy elsewhere, then delete |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frees iPhone space | Yes, gradually | Yes, right away | Yes |
| Photos stay in iCloud | Yes, all of them | Yes, as they were | No |
| Frees iCloud space | No | No | Yes |
| New photos backed up | Yes | No | Yes |
| Photos still visible on the iPhone | Yes, all | Only the ones you keep | Only the ones you keep |
What doesn't work
- Hiding photos. Hidden photos are still in the library and still use the same space.
- Remove from Album. It only takes a photo out of an album; it stays in the library.
- Deleting on iCloud.com. With iCloud Photos on, that deletes from every device too.
Doing it with Spaceclear
Spaceclear deletes through Apple's Photos framework, so with iCloud Photos on, its deletions also remove the iCloud copy. That's what you want for clutter, not for photos you want to keep in iCloud. Clearing duplicates, retakes, bursts and old screenshots first makes Optimize work better, because less has to be stored at all. Spaceclear finds them in one scan and keeps the best shot of each set, and its iCloud Space view marks the items that are only in iCloud, not on the iPhone. See also Optimize iPhone Storage explained.
FAQ
If I delete photos from my iPhone, are they deleted from iCloud?
Yes, if iCloud Photos is on. They move to Recently Deleted on every device and are removed from iCloud after 30 days, or right away if you empty it. With iCloud Photos off, deleting affects only the iPhone.
Can I delete photos from iCloud but keep them on my iPhone?
Yes. First turn off Sync this iPhone in Settings › [your name] › iCloud › Photos and choose Download Photos & Videos. Once the iPhone has its own full copies, deleting them at iCloud.com or on another device no longer touches the iPhone.
Why do the forums say it's impossible?
Because it is impossible while iCloud Photos is on: the library is one synced library, and a deletion anywhere is a deletion everywhere. It becomes possible only after you stop syncing this iPhone, or with Optimize iPhone Storage, which frees the space without deleting anything.
How can I see photos that are only in iCloud?
At iCloud.com, or on any other device signed in to the same Apple Account with iCloud Photos on. If you turn iCloud Photos back on for this iPhone, they appear in its library again.
Updated 2026-11-14