Google Photos is a fantastic style to meet your photos and the powerful search makes it easy to notice pictures of certain people, places or times. Before i June 2021, Google did offer unlimited complimentary storage for photos. Now, things have changed.

You lot only get 15GB of Google storage in total, which counts files on your Google Drive and Gmail, as well as Google Photos. Therefore, if you want to upload more photos and videos that volition take your limit past 15GB, y'all'll need to buy more storage with Google One.

In that location'due south iv tiers of storage currently on Google Ane. These are:

  • 15 GB - Free
  • 100 GB - £1.59 per month/£15.99 per year
  • 200 GB - £ii.49 per month/£24.99 per year
  • 2 TB - £7.99 per month/£79.99 per year

Sadly, no unlimited storage option is currently available. Yous'll have to look at other Cloud storage options if you want that. You can also make more room for photos and video past clearing out large files on your Google Drive.

There's no need to worry about existing files from earlier 1 June, as these photos will remain on Google's servers and won't be deleted or blocked if you don't pay - that's a common misconception.

If, similar me, you accept a photo library total of pictures yous took prior to owning a smartphone, chances are they're sat on a hard drive somewhere. Google hasn't made it easy to upload them, but here'due south are two means to upload every single photo, one of which is automated.

Upload to Google Photos via a web browser

Before I get to the best way, hither'southward the obvious way: caput to photos.google.com and click on Upload.

How to upload to Google Photos from Windows

Unfortunately, the easy style won't work for most people because the Upload option in Google Photos will only upload the contents of a single folder.

Most people proceed their photos in multiple folders so they have 'albums' for different occasions. Unless you're willing to go through dozens or even hundreds of folders and copy – or motility – those photos into a single folder, you won't be able to utilize this option.

You lot could laboriously employ the Upload button for each binder you accept but, once more, that's impractical if you have a hundred or more than.

TIP: Before you lot upload all your photos, upload i or 2 and check that Google Photos can correctly identify when they were taken. Otherwise, you'll have a tough fourth dimension finding them again.

Once uploaded, you should exist able to enter the engagement it was taken, such equally '22 May 2000' and all photos from that appointment should be shown. If not, search for the exact filename of the photograph you just uploaded, and Google Photos should show information technology. Click the i symbol at the top and you'll meet the info for that photograph.

How to upload to Google Photos

If there is a problem and the 'date taken' isn't identified correctly, yous'll need to use a tool to edit this metadata.

Once you've hit the limit of what you lot can upload, Google will inform y'all. If you need more space, you tin get a premium Google One business relationship.

Upload to Google Photos via Backup & Sync

So we come to the all-time option for uploading your whole photo library to Google Photos. Information technology involves downloading Google'southward Backup & Sync utility, choosing a binder or folders to sync, then leaving it to upload the photos, besides as whatever videos in those folders.

If those folders happen to be on a NAS drive as mine were, you may discover you cannot select the root binder in Backup & Sync. The workaround is to create a folder inside that (call information technology upload or any you like), and then move all your folders of photos into that.

Hither, stride by step, is how to go near installing Backup & Sync and uploading all those snaps to Google Photos.

Annotation: this only works for Windows computers and you'd demand to install the Google Photos app on Android or iPhone if you want to upload the photographic camera coil from your telephone. This guide is primarily aimed at those who've already washed that and now want to upload photos stored on their Windows laptop or PC.

1. Offset, head to the Google Photos website https://photos.google.com/apps and click the Download push button.

How to upload to Google Photos

2. When the file is downloaded, click on it in your spider web browser, or navigate to the folder where downloaded files are stored – usually Downloads. Double-click on the file (called installbackupandsync.exe) and click the GET STARTED button.

How to upload to Google Photos

iii. You'll need to sign into your Google account, the one you use for Google Photos.

four. On the 'set-upwards' screen, choose Back upwardly photos and videos.

How to upload to Google Photos

five. Side by side, you demand to tell Backup & Sync which folders your photos are in. This could be as simple as clicking the box next to Pictures, but if your photos are stored elsewhere, such equally another folder on your hard drive, on an external bulldoze or on a NAS bulldoze, click CHOOSE Binder and navigate to it.

How to upload to Google Photos

You tin sync multiple folders, simply yous can't select multiple folders at the same time.

vi. Select the quality yous want for your photo/video - Storage Saver takes upwards less room, but compresses the file. Meanwhile Original Quality will not compress the files, simply will have upwardly more storage in your quota.

vii. Click START and Fill-in & Sync will brainstorm uploading photos and videos in the binder(s) you've chosen to Google Photos.

8. If you want to check on progress, click the ^ symbol on the Windows Taskbar and click the little white cloud symbol. You lot'll run into a scrolling list of the files beingness uploaded.

How to upload to Google Photos

How long it will accept to upload all your photos and videos will depend on the total amount of data to be uploaded and the upload speed of your net connection, which is typically a lot slower than the download speed.

Leave your laptop or computer on while it'due south uploading the files. In my case, with a 16Mbps upload speed, information technology took around 24 hours to upload thirty,000 photos and videos from hundreds of folders on a NAS drive.

Again, the amount you lot'll be able to upload will depend on the amount of storage you have in your Google 1 business relationship.

Related articles for further reading

  • Best alternatives to Google Photos
  • What to do when Google Photos complimentary storage ends
  • How to download all your photos from Google Photos in one go