How to Select Multiple Photos on iPhone?

Q: How to select multiple photos on iPhone?

Open Photos, tap Select in the top right corner, then tap individual photos to select them. For faster selection, tap the first photo and drag your finger across subsequent photos without lifting — this selects entire rows quickly. In some views you can also tap Select All to select every photo at once.

By Jack Smith — Updated March 8, 2026

Open Photos, tap Select in the top right, then tap each photo you want or drag your finger across a row to select multiple at once. Tap Select All (when available) to select every photo in the current view.

Method 1: Tap to Select

The basic method: open the Photos app and navigate to the view you want (Library, an album, or a search result). Tap Select in the top right corner — the photos will show empty circles. Tap each photo you want to select. A blue checkmark appears on selected photos. The count of selected photos appears at the top. When you're done selecting, use the toolbar at the bottom to share, delete, add to album, or favorite the selected photos.

Method 2: Drag to Select (Faster)

For faster selection of many photos: tap Select, then tap and hold the first photo briefly, then drag without lifting your finger. As you move horizontally and vertically across the grid, photos are automatically selected. This is much faster than tapping individually when you want to select dozens or hundreds of consecutive photos. You can also drag to deselect photos that are already selected.

Method 3: Select All in an Album

If you're in an album view (like Screenshots, Videos, or a custom album), tap Select and then tap Select All in the top left. This instantly marks every photo in that album. This is the fastest way to bulk-select for deletion when you want to clear an entire album. After selecting all, tap the trash icon to delete. For the main Library, drag from the first to last photo as described above, or use the year/month view to select entire time periods. See our guide on selecting all photos and deleting.

Selecting Photos Across Multiple Days or Months

In the Months or Years view of the Library, you can tap Select and then tap an entire day or month card to select all photos from that period. This makes it easy to select "all photos from summer 2023" without scrolling through each individual photo. Tap a date header card to select all photos under it, or drag across multiple date cards to select multiple time periods.

Why Multi-Select Matters for Cleanup

Efficient multi-selection is the key to cleaning your photo library quickly. Once you've selected your unwanted photos, delete them all at once and then empty the Recently Deleted album to free the storage immediately. For a smarter approach that lets you review each photo before deciding, use Swype Photo Cleaner — swipe left to delete, right to keep, one photo at a time.

Skip the tapping — swipe to clean with Swype Photo Cleaner

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