How to Change Quality on Google Photos on iPhone, Android, PC, and Mac

Google Photos is a convenient way to store memories in one place. However, you may run out of storage, especially with the free plan. Here’s how to change the quality of Google Photos to save space.

Close to exhausting your Google Photos storage? Consider purchasing a Google One plan to expand it. Alternatively, reducing the upload quality can also free up space. Now, let’s explore the impact of changing the quality of Google Photos.

What Happens When You Switch From Original to Storage Saver Quality Photos in Google Photos

Google Photos has two quality levels for uploading photos and videos: original and storage saver (previously known as ‘High’ quality).

If you choose to upload in storage saver quality or switch to it, here’s what happens:

– Photos and videos will be resized and compressed.

– Videos will be resized.

– Certain metadata may be removed.

Photos in storage saver quality are compressed with a slight change in visual quality. However, videos experience a noticeable drop in quality. Photos and videos stored in the storage saver quality before June 1, 2021, do not count towards your storage due to a legacy Google policy.

How to Change Photo Quality in Google Photos

Changing the upload quality for photos and videos on Google Photos is a simple process. Here are the steps:

1. Open the Google Photos app on your device.

2. Tap on your profile picture or initial in the top right corner.

3. Select “Settings” from the dropdown menu.

4. Under the “Storage” section, tap on “Upload quality.”

5. Choose between “High quality” or “Original” for your photos and videos.

– “High quality” allows for unlimited storage and automatically compresses your files to save space.

– “Original” maintains the original quality of your files but may count towards your Google storage limit.

6. Once you’ve made your selection, exit the settings menu.

By adjusting the upload quality, you can manage your storage space and optimize the viewing experience of your photos and videos on Google Photos.

Change Upload Quality on PC and Mac

To eliminate redundant words and make the content more concise and impactful, the text can be revised as follows:

Step 1: Open Google Photos and click the Settings icon.

Step 2: Check the ‘Storage saver’ box to change the quality of future uploads. Previously uploaded photos and videos will not be affected.

Change Upload Quality on iPhone and Android

Step 1: Open the Google Photos app on your phone.

Step 2: Tap the profile picture icon in the top right corner.

Step 3: Tap Photos settings.

Tap on Backup (Step 4):

1. Tap on Backup.

Tap on Backup Quality (Step 5):

1. Tap on Backup Quality.

Step 6: Tap on Storage saver. Expand the option, and select.

All future uploads of photos and videos will back up in the storage saver quality on Google Photos. However, note that the quality of previously backed up content will not change.

Change the Quality of Existing Backups on Google Photos

To change the quality of backed up photos and videos on Google Photos, follow these steps:

– Note that this change applies to all uploaded content, not individual files.

– Keep in mind that you can only modify the quality of existing media on the web version of Google Photos for PC/Mac.

– Remember that converting backed up photos and videos from original quality to storage saver quality is permanent and cannot be undone.

– To ensure you are satisfied with the results, upload a sample photo in storage saver quality and compare it to the original version.

– If you’re pleased with the outcome, proceed with converting your existing backup to storage saver quality.

Step 1: Open Google Photos and click on the settings icon.

Step 2: Click on Manage Storage.

Step 3: Click on Learn More next to the ‘Convert existing photos & videos to Storage saver’ option.

Step 4: Check the box to confirm your changes and click ‘Compress photos & videos’.

Doing this frees up space on Google Photos. However, if you want to free up more storage, here are a few tips.

Tips to Optimize Your Google Photos Storage Capacity

Consider clearing files on Google Drive. This will free up storage space for your Google Account, and you can utilize it on Google Photos.

Similarly, consider deleting unwanted attachments on Gmail.

Clear duplicate photos and screenshots on Google Photos to free up space. You can go to the Manage Storage option on Google Photos to do the same.

Delete all unsupported videos on Google Photos. You will find the option in the Manage Storage.

That is everything you need to know on how to change the quality of Google Photos. If you have any further questions, please refer to the FAQ section below.

FAQs on Google Photos Storage

1. Expand Google Photos storage by purchasing Google One, starting at $19, which offers various plans.

2. You cannot change the backup quality for individual photos or videos on Google Photos.

3. Consider Dropbox or OneDrive as alternative storage services to Google Photos. iPhone users can also consider iCloud.

4. Uploaded photos cannot be increased in quality on Google Photos.

Use Google Photos Efficiently

We hope this article helps you improve the quality of your Google Photos and save storage space. However, we wish Google offered the option to selectively change the quality of photos and videos in an existing backup. This would allow us to keep the original quality only for important media.