Short answer: yes. A Live Photo is a still photo plus a short video (about 1.5 seconds before and after you tap the shutter), so it usually takes about twice the space of a normal photo: often 3–7 MB instead of 1.5–3 MB. Turn Live off in the Camera app for new photos, and convert old Live Photos to stills where the motion doesn't matter.
Steps
- Turn Live off for new photos: in the Camera app, tap the Live button (the concentric circles) so it's crossed out.
- Keep it off: go to Settings › Camera › Preserve Settings and turn on Live Photo. Otherwise the Camera turns Live back on the next time you open it.
- Find your Live Photos: Photos › Collections › Media Types › Live Photos (on iOS 18, scroll down to Media Types).
- Convert one to a still: open it, tap ••• › Duplicate, then Duplicate as Still Photo. Delete the original Live Photo afterwards.
- Convert many at once: use a converter such as Spaceclear (Live Photos), which keeps the still, its date, place and favorite status, then lets you review and delete the originals.
- Empty Recently Deleted to get the space back.
How much space Live Photos take
| Feature | Still photo (HEIC) | Live Photo |
|---|---|---|
| One photo | about 1.5–3 MB | about 3–7 MB |
| 1,000 photos | about 2–3 GB | about 4–7 GB |
| 10,000 photos | about 20–30 GB | about 40–70 GB |
Sizes depend on the iPhone model, resolution and scene. 24MP and 48MP photos on newer iPhones are larger. The ratio is what matters: Live Photos cost roughly double.
Turning off "Live" in Edit doesn't save space
In Photos you can open a Live Photo, tap Edit and tap Live to turn it off. That's a non-destructive edit: the video is kept so you can turn Live back on, and the file stays the same size. To actually free the space you need a real still copy (step 4 or 5) and to delete the original.
Which Live Photos to keep
Live Photos are worth it for kids, pets, people laughing and anything moving. They're wasted on screenshots of menus, receipts, documents, landscapes and food. A good rule: keep Live on for people, convert everything else. Spaceclear's Documents & Receipts group shows the photos of paper you probably never need in motion.
Doing it with Spaceclear
In Spaceclear, open Live Photos: it shows how much space their videos take in total. Select the ones to convert and tap Convert. Spaceclear saves a still copy of each (date, place and favorites stay; the movement is gone), then asks you to review the originals before they're deleted. The free plan converts ten a day; Spaceclear Pro is unlimited. Everything runs on your iPhone.
Related: free up storage without deleting anything and HEIC vs JPEG.
FAQ
Do Live Photos take up more space than regular photos?
Yes, about twice as much, because each one stores a short video alongside the photo. On a library with thousands of Live Photos, that can be tens of gigabytes.
How do I turn off Live Photos permanently?
Tap Live in the Camera app to turn it off, then go to Settings › Camera › Preserve Settings and turn on Live Photo. The Camera then remembers your choice instead of switching Live back on.
Can I turn a still photo back into a Live Photo?
No. Once you save a still copy and delete the original Live Photo, the motion is gone for good after Recently Deleted is emptied. Convert only the photos where you don't need the movement.
Do Live Photos use more iCloud storage too?
Yes. With iCloud Photos on, the full Live Photo, video included, is stored in iCloud. Converting to stills and deleting the originals frees iCloud space as well.
Updated 2026-11-13