After you set up or join an iCloud Shared Photo Library, you can share photos and videos with friends and family in the Photos app. You and up to five other participants can add photos and videos to the library, and any edits, comments, or other adjustments made to them are seen by everyone in real time.
Content in a shared library is also added to everyone’s memories, featured photos, and the Photos widget. And because shared photos and videos are separate from your personal library, you can switch between viewing the shared library, your personal library, or both. When you view both, content that’s part of the shared library has a badge on its thumbnail.
Switch between viewing your iCloud Shared Photo Library and personal library
- Start the Photos app on your iPhone.
- Make sure Library is selected.
- Tap the Sort and Filter button and select the following:
- View your Photos content and iCloud Shared Photo Library content: Tap Both Libraries.
- View only your personal Photos content: Tap Personal Library.
- View only iCloud Shared Photo Library content: Tap Shared Library.
Viewing both your personal and shared library? Anything that’s part of the shared library shows a badge in the top-right corner of its thumbnail.
Make edits and changes to content in an iCloud Shared Photo Library
All participants see these changes when you make them to photos and videos in an iCloud Shared Photo Library:
- Edits.
- Favorites, captions, keywords, or date and time adjustments.
- Deleted content.
Note: If someone deletes content you added to the shared library, you get a notification. To turn off these notifications, in Photos tap your account in the top-right corner of the screen, tap Shared Library, and then turn off Deletion Notifications. You can also move deleted content you added from Recently Deleted back to your personal library within 30 days.
Move shared content from an iCloud Shared Photo Library to your personal library
Photos stored in your shared library carry a badge in their top-right corner. If you contributed photos and videos to the shared library, you can move them back to your personal library.
- Start the Photos app on your iPhone.
- Open a photo or video in your shared library.
- Tap the More button at the top of the screen. Tap Move to Personal Library.
Add storage space to your iCloud Shared Photo Library
All participants can access the content in an iCloud Shared Photo Library, but the iCloud storage it uses counts against the library organizer’s storage space.
When the shared library content goes beyond the organizer’s available storage space, the organizer can upgrade to iCloud+ or add more storage to their existing iCloud+ subscription.
