Your iPhone already knows where the duplicates are. Since iOS 16, the Photos app quietly checks your library and collects exact and near-exact copies in one place, so there is no need for a third-party cleaner app.
Open Photos, tap Collections, scroll to Utilities and tap Duplicates. Review a pair, tap Merge, then confirm. Merging keeps the highest-quality version with all its details and sends the rest to Recently Deleted, where you can recover them for 30 days.
Merge duplicates step by step
Apple says merging combines the highest-quality version and all the relevant data across the copies into one photo (Apple). On older iOS layouts, look under Albums › Utilities instead of Collections.
When to leave a group alone
The Duplicates collection is a list of suggestions. Leave a group unmerged if:
| You see | Why to keep both |
|---|---|
| One version edited, the other not | You may want the unedited original later |
| A Live Photo and a still saved from it | Check which form you want before merging |
| A cropped copy you made on purpose | The crop is a separate image you chose |
| Photos in a Shared Library | Other people may rely on them |
Merge everything at once, carefully
At the top of the Duplicates collection, Select › Select All › Merge combines every group in one go. That is quick on a library you have backed up and checked. On a large library, merge ten groups by hand first, look at the results, then decide.
If the Duplicates collection is missing
| What you see | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| No Duplicates under Utilities | Photos has not found any duplicates, or has not finished checking | Wait, then check again |
| A message at the bottom of Library about indexing | The iPhone is still scanning your library | Lock the phone and connect it to power; Apple says this can take up to a few days |
| Utilities looks different | Older Photos layout | Look under Albums › Utilities, and check you are on iOS 16 or later |
Apple’s guide for a missing Duplicates collection covers the same checks (Apple).
Burst photos are a separate job
Bursts are many shots taken in one press, shown as a single stack. They are not duplicates, so they rarely appear in the Duplicates collection. To trim one:
- Open the burst in Photos and tap Select.
- Swipe through and tick the shots you want.
- Tap Done, then Keep Only the selected favorites.
The rest go to Recently Deleted.
On a Mac
Photos on a Mac running macOS Ventura or later has its own Duplicates entry under Utilities in the sidebar, with the same Merge button. With iCloud Photos on, merging on the Mac changes the library on your iPhone too, so work on one device at a time to avoid confusion.
With iCloud Photos
Merging changes your library everywhere it syncs: iPhone, iPad, Mac and iCloud.com. Merged copies in Recently Deleted do not count toward iCloud storage, so the space shows up in iCloud straight away. To keep an independent backup first, use the photo backup guide.
Expect a modest space gain
Unless you have imported the same photos several times, duplicates are usually a small share of a library, so merging rarely frees gigabytes on its own. Large videos usually give more back; the iPhone storage guide covers them. For photos on more than one service, start with the duplicates chooser.
After merging duplicates, organize family photos into folders that last so the library stays easy to browse.
Steps checked against Apple Support in November 2026 (iOS 26 and iOS 27). Menu names can shift slightly between iOS versions.
Sources
- Apple Support: Merge duplicate photos and videos on iPhone
- Apple Support: If you can’t find the Duplicates album
- Apple Support: Manage your iCloud storage
