Google Photos is a fantastic way to run into your photos and the powerful search makes it easy to find pictures of certain people, places or times. Earlier 1 June 2021, Google did offer unlimited free storage for photos. Now, things have inverse.

You but get 15GB of Google storage in total, which counts files on your Google Drive and Gmail, also as Google Photos. Therefore, if you desire to upload more photos and videos that will take your limit past 15GB, you'll need to purchase more than storage with Google One.

At that place's 4 tiers of storage currently on Google I. These are:

  • 15 GB - Free
  • 100 GB - £i.59 per month/£15.99 per twelvemonth
  • 200 GB - £2.49 per calendar month/£24.99 per year
  • two TB - £7.99 per month/£79.99 per twelvemonth

Sadly, no unlimited storage option is currently available. You'll have to look at other Deject storage options if you want that. Yous can as well brand more than room for photos and video by clearing out large files on your Google Bulldoze.

At that place'due south no need to worry about existing files from before 1 June, as these photos volition remain on Google's servers and won't be deleted or blocked if you don't pay - that's a common misconception.

If, like me, you accept a photo library full of pictures you lot took prior to owning a smartphone, chances are they're sabbatum on a hard drive somewhere. Google hasn't made information technology like shooting fish in a barrel to upload them, but hither'due south are two ways to upload every single photo, one of which is automatic.

Upload to Google Photos via a web browser

Before I get to the best way, here's the obvious manner: caput to photos.google.com and click on Upload.

How to upload to Google Photos from Windows

Unfortunately, the easy manner won't work for most people considering the Upload selection in Google Photos volition but upload the contents of a single binder.

Almost people keep their photos in multiple folders then they have 'albums' for different occasions. Unless you're willing to go through dozens or even hundreds of folders and copy – or move – those photos into a single folder, yous won't be able to utilize this choice.

Y'all could laboriously utilise the Upload push for each folder y'all take but, once again, that'south impractical if yous accept a hundred or more.

TIP: Before you lot upload all your photos, upload ane or two and check that Google Photos tin correctly identify when they were taken. Otherwise, you'll have a tough time finding them again.

Once uploaded, you should exist able to enter the engagement it was taken, such as '22 May 2000' and all photos from that date should be shown. If not, search for the verbal filename of the photograph you merely uploaded, and Google Photos should evidence it. Click the i symbol at the superlative and you'll see the info for that photo.

How to upload to Google Photos

If there is a problem and the 'date taken' isn't identified correctly, you'll demand to use a tool to edit this metadata.

One time you've hit the limit of what you lot can upload, Google will inform you. If you need more infinite, you can become a premium Google One business relationship.

Upload to Google Photos via Backup & Sync

And and then we come to the best option for uploading your whole photograph library to Google Photos. Information technology involves downloading Google's Fill-in & Sync utility, choosing a folder or folders to sync, and so leaving it to upload the photos, also as whatever videos in those folders.

If those folders happen to be on a NAS drive as mine were, yous may find you cannot select the root folder in Backup & Sync. The workaround is to create a folder inside that (call it upload or whatever you like), then move all your folders of photos into that.

Here, step past step, is how to get about installing Backup & Sync and uploading all those snaps to Google Photos.

Annotation: this only works for Windows computers and you'd need to install the Google Photos app on Android or iPhone if you lot want to upload the photographic camera roll from your phone. This guide is primarily aimed at those who've already done that and now want to upload photos stored on their Windows laptop or PC.

1. Outset, caput to the Google Photos website https://photos.google.com/apps and click the Download button.

How to upload to Google Photos

2. When the file is downloaded, click on it in your spider web browser, or navigate to the folder where downloaded files are stored – ordinarily Downloads. Double-click on the file (called installbackupandsync.exe) and click the Become STARTED push button.

How to upload to Google Photos

3. You'll need to sign into your Google business relationship, the one you use for Google Photos.

4. On the 'set-up' screen, cull Dorsum upwards photos and videos.

How to upload to Google Photos

5. Next, you lot demand to tell Fill-in & Sync which folders your photos are in. This could be as simple every bit clicking the box side by side to Pictures, but if your photos are stored elsewhere, such as another folder on your hard drive, on an external drive or on a NAS drive, click Choose FOLDER and navigate to information technology.

How to upload to Google Photos

You can sync multiple folders, but yous tin can't select multiple folders at the same time.

6. Select the quality y'all want for your photo/video - Storage Saver takes upwardly less room, just compresses the file. Meanwhile Original Quality will not shrink the files, just will take up more storage in your quota.

7. Click Kickoff and Backup & Sync will begin uploading photos and videos in the folder(s) you've chosen to Google Photos.

8. If you want to check on progress, click the ^ symbol on the Windows Taskbar and click the little white cloud symbol. Y'all'll see a scrolling listing of the files being uploaded.

How to upload to Google Photos

How long it will take to upload all your photos and videos will depend on the full corporeality of information to exist uploaded and the upload speed of your internet connection, which is typically a lot slower than the download speed.

Exit your laptop or computer on while information technology's uploading the files. In my case, with a 16Mbps upload speed, information technology took around 24 hours to upload 30,000 photos and videos from hundreds of folders on a NAS drive.

Again, the amount you'll be able to upload will depend on the corporeality of storage you take in your Google One business relationship.

Related articles for further reading

  • All-time alternatives to Google Photos
  • What to do when Google Photos free storage ends
  • How to download all your photos from Google Photos in one go