How To Recover Permanently Deleted Photos on iPhone

Just like you, I accidentally deleted important photos on my iPhone once, so I understand how heartbreaking it is to loose precious pics of your friends or party night snaps. For sure, the moments themselves can’t come back, but you can recover permanently deleted photos on iPhone.

As someone who troubleshoots iPhones for a living, I know how frustrating this issue can be. So, I’ve decided to look into it and investigate on Apple Community, Reddit, Quora, and online guides. Most of them suggested similar solutions, involving third-party tools and iPhone built-in features.

I’ve tested them all, but only a few helped me get back my cherished memories. Moreover, I’ve gathered the ones that worked for me and others in the community, and drafted them all below with clear screenshots.

How To Recover Permanently Deleted Photos on iPhone?

Fix 1 – Check Recently Deleted Folder

If you’ve accidentally deleted your photos on your iPhone and it hasn’t been 30 days yet, you’re in luck. Your photos are still on your iPhone, but at a different location.

‘Recently Deleted’ is the folder where all your photos go immediately after erasing them. Hence, follow the steps below to restore your pics:

Step 1 : Open the Photos app.

Step 2 : Scroll down and tap on the “Recently Deleted” folder.

Step 3 : Use your face ID or iPhone passcode to proceed.

Step 4 : Tap the Select button which is on the top right corner of the screen.

Step 5 : Now select the photos you want to recover.

Step 6 : Tap the Recover button on the bottom right corner.

Now you should see the recovered photos in your regular album.

It’s easy if you have your pics in this folder. But the question is, how can you recover permanently deleted photos on iPhone after 30 days? Here’s what I’ve discovered:

Fix 2 – Third-Party Software When You Don’t Have a Backup

Recovering photos when you’ve backed up your data is easy, but don’t fret if you haven’t.

There are legit third-party tools developed to recover permanently deleted files without backup. The one I’ve tried and which worked for me is PhoneRescue software.

Here’s how to use it:

Step 1 : Download the PhoneRescue software.

Step 2 : Launch it.

Step 3 : Connect your iPhone to the PC via USB.

Step 4 : Choose “Recover from iOS Device” and click the right arrow on the bottom right corner of the screen to continue.

Step 5 : Check the box next to photos and press OK.

Step 6 : Select the photos and hit the mobile or computer icon in the bottom right corner.

The final step moves the recovered photos to your PC while choosing the mobile icon sends them to your iPhone.

• Get iMobie PhoneRescue

Note: To skip this issue in the future, check out this guide on how to copy iPhone backup to an external hard drive on Windows 10.

Fix 3 – Recover Deleted Photos Using iCloud

If 30 days have passed, and you can no longer see the photos in the Recently Deleted folder, chances are you can find them on iCloud.

Unless you’ve customized your iPhone settings, iCloud sync is automatically enabled. So, follow the below steps to get back your pictures:

Step 1 : Go to iCloud’s website.

Step 2 : Log in with your Apple ID and password.

Step 3 : Click the square grid icon on the top right corner and select Photos icon as shown below.

Step 4 : Choose Recently deleted from the left pane and select the photos you want to recover.

Step 5 : Click ‘Recover‘ on the top right corner of the screen.

The photos will move back to your iCloud photos album. Once iCloud syncs with your device, you’ll be able to view them on your iPhone.

Fix 4 – Recover Permanently Deleted Photos From iCloud Backup

To get back your photos using this method, you’ll need to have an iCloud backup saved before deleting them.

You should first factory reset your iPhone to recover permanently deleted photos from iCloud backup.

Remember: resetting your phone will permanently erase all the data. So, go ahead only if you’ve backed up your files or if you’ve nothing important to lose.

Step 1 : Open the Settings app and go to General.

Step 2 : Tap on Transfer or Reset iPhone.

Step 3 : Tap ‘Erase All content and settings’.

Step 4 : Click Continue and this will wipe out all the data from your iPhone.

Now the reboot begins.

Here are the steps to restore from iCloud backup:

Step 1 : While setting up your phone after restart, choose the Restore from iCloud Backup option in the Apps & Data window.

Step 2 : Sign into your iCloud account with Apple ID and password.

Step 3 : Choose the backup file and follow the simple on-screen instructions to finish the restoration process.

Fix 5 – Recover the Photos With iTunes

If you regularly back up your data using iTunes, you can easily recover permanently deleted photos from there.

Let me show you how:

Step 1 : Open iTunes on your PC.

Step 2 : Connect your iPhone to the computer via USB.

Step 3 : Click File on the top left corner.

Step 4 : Under Devices, select Restore from Backup.

Fix 6 – Contact Apple Support

If all else fails, there’s always Apple Support to rely upon. The company doesn’t just create premium tech gadgets but also thrives to offer exceptional customer service.

Here’s how to contact them:

Step 1 : Go to Apple customer care.

Step 2 : Chat with them or schedule a call to describe the issue.

Conclusion

In my experience, you should always keep your data backed up for situations like these. The solutions involving iCloud and iTunes work perfectly fine in such cases. Otherwise, you’ll have to use third-party software to recover permanently deleted photos on iPhone.

Either way, my step-by-step guide covers each method in detail.

So, try them and let me know which one worked out for you the best!