How to Reduce Photo File Size on iPhone

Photo file size on iPhone is reduced in two ways. New photos get smaller when the camera uses High Efficiency and keeps ProRAW and Max resolution off. A photo you already have gets smaller only as a new copy, saved at a lower size or quality.

The two goals need different fixes. One keeps the library growing more slowly. The other makes a single file small enough to email or to upload to a form. Neither fix frees storage while the large original is still on the phone.

What Makes an iPhone Photo File Large

Three settings decide how large each photo is: the format, the resolution and the capture mode. Apple gives its size wording in its pages on HEIF and HEVC and Apple ProRAW.

By Apple's figures, ProRAW files are 10 to 12 times larger than HEIF or JPEG files. What that does to a whole phone is worked through, capacity by capacity, under how much iPhone storage you need.

Format and resolution both come from the camera settings, so new photos can be made smaller before they are taken.

How to Make New iPhone Photos Smaller

Camera settings change every photo taken after the change. Photos already in the library keep the size they were saved at.

Switch the Camera to High Efficiency

1. Open Settings, then tap Camera.
2. Tap Formats.
3. Tap High Efficiency.

Most Compatible saves photos as JPEG and videos as H.264, which Apple says use more storage. The Formats setting appears only on devices that can capture HEIF. Apple says a photo may be shared in a more compatible format, such as JPEG, when the receiving device cannot read HEIF.

Keep ProRAW and Max Resolution for the Shots That Need Them

On iPhone 12 Pro and later Pro models, ProRAW is switched on in Settings > Camera > Formats. Turn on Apple ProRAW & Resolution Control under Photo Capture. On iPhone 14 Pro and later Pro models, ProRAW comes at two resolutions, and HEIF Max gives up to 48 MP.

With the switch on, you tap RAW in the Camera app to take a ProRAW photo. With iOS 17 on those models, tap and hold the resolution setting at the top of the Camera screen to choose a Max format. When RAW is off, photos go back to the default format set under Camera Capture.

Turn Off Live Photo When You Do Not Need the Motion

A Live Photo also records what happens 1.5 seconds before and after the shot. The Camera app turns Live Photo back on by itself. To keep it off, go to Settings > Camera > Preserve Settings and turn on the Live Photo switch there. The extra space the clip takes is the subject of do Live Photos take up more space.

None of these settings reaches back to photos already taken.

How to Make a Smaller Copy of a Photo You Already Have

How do I make a photo smaller on my iPhone to email?

To make a photo smaller on your iPhone to email, attach it in Mail and choose a smaller image size when you send it. The recommended answer on Apple's Support Community lists up to four sizes: Actual Size, Large, Medium and Small.

Every route that shrinks an existing photo works the same way. It saves a second file with fewer pixels or lower quality, and the original stays in the library.

Choose a Size in Mail

In a new email, attach the photo, then tap the images button to see the sizes. The same answer says the size you pick becomes the default for later emails, and you can change it at any time. That answer was written for an iPad.

For iPhone, the same route came up when someone needed a photo under 300 KB for a visa form. The answer on that thread was to email the photo to yourself, tap Send and pick a size when Mail asks. The other answer was a screenshot of the photo, cropped. Neither answer promises a figure, so a strict limit takes some trial.

Convert to JPG With a Lower Quality or Width

An in-browser HEIC to JPG converter shrinks a batch of photos without uploading them. It has a quality slider from 60 to 100, an optional maximum width and a ZIP download, and it removes EXIF data from the copies.

Changing the format alone is not a size fix. Apple says HEIF compresses better than JPEG, so a JPG kept at full quality and full width gives no reason to expect a smaller file. The quality slider and the width setting are what make the copy smaller.

None of the four routes touches the original:

Apple's Live Photos page gives the last route: when you share, tap LIVE in the upper-left corner of the photo to send the still.

What a Smaller Photo Does to iPhone Storage

Does reducing photo file size free up space on iPhone?

Reducing photo file size frees up space on iPhone only when the large original is deleted. A smaller copy is a second file, so the library holds both until the original is deleted. Camera settings save space on new photos only.

Apple says deleted photos go to Recently Deleted for 30 days. Emptying that album is one of the steps in freeing up space on iPhone.

To keep every photo and still use less phone storage, Optimize iPhone Storage is the setting made for it. Apple's photo storage page says full-resolution photos and videos are stored in iCloud, with space-saving copies on the device when needed.

The iPhone storage calculator turns the format choice into the number of photos a given capacity holds.

Deleting the Photos You Do Not Need

Smaller copies free no storage while the originals stay. The space comes back from deleting the photos you no longer need, and in a large camera roll that means one decision per photo.

Photo cleaner apps show the camera roll one photo at a time and delete only what you confirm. Apps such as Swipe Quick do this on the device: swipe left to delete, swipe right to keep.

Frequently asked questions

Is HEIC smaller than JPG?

HEIC is smaller than JPG at the same visual quality when it is a High Efficiency photo. Apple says the HEIF format behind its High Efficiency setting offers better compression than JPEG. A JPG made from such a photo at full quality is therefore not a way to save space.

Does High Efficiency lower photo quality?

High Efficiency does not lower photo quality, by Apple's account. Apple says HEIF and HEVC keep the same visual quality as JPEG and H.264 while using less storage space on your devices.