Android Guide

How to Back Up Photos and Videos from Your Android Phone

Last updated: October 14, 2026

To keep your Android photos and videos safe, save copies somewhere other than the phone itself. You can turn on a cloud photo backup service, copy files to a computer or external drive, or use both. The important part is checking that the copies exist and can be opened before anything happens to the originals.

Which Backup Method Should You Use?

• Automatic online backup: Services such as Google Photos and Microsoft OneDrive can upload selected photos and videos as you take them. They require an account, sufficient cloud storage, and an internet connection. Settings and supported folders vary by service.
• Manual computer backup: Copy your camera and other photo folders to a computer with a suitable USB cable. You control where the files are saved, but must repeat the process for new photos.
• External drive backup: Copy files onto a separate drive, either from your computer or directly from a phone that supports connecting external storage.

For irreplaceable pictures, consider two independent copies in different locations. A cloud photo library can be useful, but a deletion that synchronizes between devices is not the same as keeping a separate, unaffected backup.

Back Up Photos and Videos with Google Photos

Google Photos is one available Android backup option, not an Android-wide backup setting for every gallery. To set it up:

1. Open Google Photos and sign in to the account where you want to store your pictures.
2. Tap your profile picture or initial, then open Photos settings > Backup.
3. Turn on Backup and confirm the selected backup account.
4. Check the backup progress. Leave time for uploads to finish, especially for large videos.

These steps follow Google's Android backup instructions. Google Account storage is shared with services including Drive and Gmail; uploads may pause or fail if your account runs out of space. You can review the backup quality, Wi-Fi, and mobile-data settings to match your storage and data limits.

Check backup quality before uploading. Google Photos offers Original quality, which preserves the resolution and quality of your files, and Storage saver, which compresses photos and may resize photos above 16 MP and videos above 1080p. Both options count toward Google Account storage. See Google's backup-quality guide for details.

Include Screenshots and Other App Folders

Backing up camera photos does not necessarily mean every picture on the phone is included. Screenshots, downloads, messaging-app images, and edited files may live in other folders.

1. In Google Photos, open Photos settings > Backup.
2. Find Back up device folders.
3. Review the available folders and enable backup for the ones you actually want, such as Screenshots or messaging-app folders if they appear.

Google also offers a setting to back up all device folders on supported app versions. That can include photos you did not intend to upload, so review the folders and your privacy preferences first. See Google's guidance on backup accounts and device folders. Folder names and availability vary by device and app.

Copy Photos to a Computer with a USB Cable

You can keep an independent copy without uploading personal photos to a cloud service. These are typical steps for a Windows PC or Chromebook:

1. Connect the unlocked Android phone to the computer using a USB cable that supports data transfer.
2. On the phone, open the USB notification and choose File transfer, if prompted.
3. On the computer, browse the phone's storage. Check DCIM/Camera, Pictures, Movies, and any screenshot, download, or app folders you want to preserve.
4. Copy the selected folders to a new folder on the computer. Do not move or delete the originals.
5. Open several of the copied photos and videos on the computer to verify they work before disconnecting the phone.

See the official Android file-transfer instructions. Other computer operating systems may require different transfer software or steps. Files stored only in a cloud account are not necessarily available through the phone's USB storage. If you use Google Photos, you can download backed-up photos and videos from photos.google.com to a computer for an offline copy.

Keep a Second Copy on an External Drive

An external hard drive, USB flash drive, or other removable storage can hold another copy of your photo folders. You can copy files to that drive from a computer after completing the USB transfer. Some Android phones also support copying files directly to a compatible USB drive through their file manager; Files by Google's USB storage guide explains how to access and copy files on supported devices.

Choose Copy rather than Move, check that the destination contains the files, and safely disconnect the drive. Store it separately from the phone. An SD card that stays inside the same phone is not an independent backup against losing or damaging that phone.

How Can You Tell Whether Your Backup Worked?

Do not rely solely on the fact that a backup switch is enabled. Check the results:

• Google Photos: Look for Backup complete in the app, then visit photos.google.com using the correct account and verify that recent photos and videos appear. That status applies to items selected for backup, not necessarily every folder on your device.
• Individual Google Photos items: Open an important picture or video and check its backup status in its details; Google's backup-status instructions explain how.
• Computer or external drive: Check the copied folders, file counts or sizes where practical, and open several photos and videos directly from the destination.
• Future photos: Periodically check that new pictures are still being backed up, especially after changing phones, accounts, storage plans, or settings.

If uploads are stuck, confirm the network connection, available account storage, and selected folders before assuming a file is safe. Google documents these status checks in its backup troubleshooting guide.

Don't Confuse Backup with Synchronization

Photo services may synchronize deletions across devices and connected gallery apps. A photo appearing on two screens does not necessarily mean you have two independent copies. On some compatible Android phones, the manufacturer's Gallery can connect to Google Photos, and deleting there may also remove the cloud-backed item. Google's gallery integration guidance explains that behavior.

If you want to free up phone storage while keeping backed-up photos, follow your chosen service's specific instructions and verify the uploads first. For Google Photos, Free up space on this device is designed to remove local copies of backed-up items. Ordinary deletion from Gallery is not always equivalent. Keep a separate offline copy of your most important files.

What If Photos Are Already Missing?

Backup cannot retroactively save a photo that was never copied. If you cannot find an image in Gallery, start with Why Are Photos Missing from My Android Phone's Gallery?. If you think it was deleted, see Where Do Deleted Photos and Videos Go on Android Phones? for Trash folders, remaining copies, and realistic recovery limits.