Accidentally deleting precious photos from your iPhone can feel like a gut punch, especially when you realize you don't have a backup. Whether it was your child's first steps, a once-in-a-lifetime vacation, or simply memories you wanted to keep, losing photos hurts. But here's some good news: "permanently deleted" doesn't always mean gone forever. In this guide, I'll show you several proven methods to recover those precious memories, even without a backup.

Is It Really Possible to Recover Permanently Deleted Photos Without Backup?

Yes, it is possible in many cases! When you delete photos from your iPhone, they are not immediately erased from your device's storage. Instead, the space they occupied is simply marked as available for new data. Until that space gets overwritten with new information, the deleted photos potentially remain recoverable.

The key to successful recovery is acting quickly before new data overwrites the deleted photos. This means you should:

• Stop taking new photos immediately
• Avoid downloading apps or media
• Turn off iCloud sync temporarily
• Put your phone in Airplane Mode

Check the Recently Deleted Album First

Before trying more complex solutions, always check the Recently Deleted album on your iPhone. This is the easiest way to recover deleted photos.

How to Check Recently Deleted Album:

1. Open the Photos app on your iPhone
2. Scroll down and tap on “Recently Deleted” in the Albums section
3. Browse through the deleted photos (they remain here for 30 days)
4. Select the photos you want to recover
5. Tap "Recover" in the bottom-right corner
6. Confirm by tapping "Recover Photo" or "Recover Photos"

If your photos aren't in the Recently Deleted album or the 30-day period has passed, don't worry. We have several other methods to try.

Method 1: Recover Photos from iPhone Storage Using Recovery Software

Third-party data recovery software can scan your iPhone's storage for deleted photos that haven't been overwritten yet. Here's how to use this method effectively:

Step 1: Choose a Reliable Recovery Software

Several reputable options exist for iPhone data recovery. Some popular choices include:

• Dr.Fone - Data Recovery
• PhoneRescue for iOS
• Tenorshare UltData
• EaseUS MobiSaver
• iMyFone D-Back

Most of these programs offer free trials that let you see what photos are recoverable before purchasing the full version.

Step 2: Download and Install the Recovery Software

Choose one of the recovery tools and download it to your computer (Mac or Windows). Follow the installation instructions provided by the software.

Step 3: Connect your iPhone to the Computer

Use your iPhone's charging cable to connect it to your computer. If prompted on your iPhone, tap “Trust This Computer” and enter your passcode.

Step 4: Scan Your iPhone for Deleted Photos

Launch the recovery software and select the option to recover deleted photos. The software will begin scanning your iPhone's storage for recoverable data. This process may take several minutes depending on your iPhone's storage capacity.

Step 5: Preview and recover the photos

Once the scan completes, you'll see a list of recoverable photos. Most recovery software allows you to preview these photos before recovery. Select the photos you want to recover and click the “Recover” button. Choose a location on your computer to save the recovered photos.

Step 6: Transfer Recovered Photos Back to Your iPhone

After saving the recovered photos to your computer, you can transfer them back to your iPhone using iTunes, Finder (on macOS Catalina or later), or AirDrop.

Method 2: Check Other Apple Devices Signed in with the Same Apple ID

If you have other Apple devices like an iPad or Mac signed in with the same Apple ID, your deleted photos might still exist on those devices, especially if you haven't synced them recently.

Steps to Check Other Apple Devices:

1. Put your other Apple devices in Airplane Mode or disconnect them from Wi-Fi to prevent syncing
2. Open the Photos app on these devices
3. Look through your photo library for the deleted images
4. If you find them, you can export them to your computer or share them to your iPhone

Method 3: Recover Photos from iCloud.com

Even if you don't have an iCloud backup, your photos might still be available on iCloud.com if you had iCloud Photos enabled.

Steps to Check iCloud.com:

1. Visit iCloud.com on a computer browser
2. Sign in with your Apple ID and password
3. Click on "Photos"
4. Browse through your library to find the deleted photos
5. If you find them, select them and click the download button (cloud with down arrow) to save them to your computer
6. Transfer the downloaded photos back to your iPhone

Method 4: Check for Hidden Photos

Sometimes photos aren't actually deleted but just hidden. The Hidden album on iPhone stores photos you've chosen to hide from your main library.

Steps to Check Hidden Photos:

1. Open the Photos app on your iPhone
2. Tap on “Albums” at the bottom of the screen
3. Scroll down to the "Utilities" section
4. Tap on “Hidden” (you might need to use Face ID, Touch ID, or your passcode to access it)
5. If your photos are here, select them and tap the share button
6. Tap "Unhide" to move them back to your main library

Method 5: Check Third-Party Cloud Services

If you use other cloud services like Google Photos, Dropbox, or OneDrive, your photos might be backed up there automatically.

Steps to Check Google Photos:

1. Open the Google Photos app on your iPhone (or install it if you don't have it)
2. Sign in with your Google account
3. Browse through your photos to see if the deleted ones are there
4. If you find them, select them and download them back to your iPhone

Steps for Other Cloud Services:

1. Open the respective app (Dropbox, OneDrive, etc.)
2. Check folders where photos might be stored
3. Download any found photos back to your iPhone

Method 6: Use iTunes/Finder Sync

If you've synced your iPhone with iTunes or Finder in the past (even without creating a backup), your photos might be stored on your computer.

For Windows or macOS Mojave and earlier:

1. Open iTunes on your computer
2. Connect your iPhone
3. Click on your device icon when it appears
4. Check if there are any photos synced from your iPhone

For macOS Catalina and later:

1. Open Finder on your Mac
2. Connect your iPhone
3. Select your iPhone from the sidebar
4. Click on the “Photos” tab to see if there are any synced photos

Method 7: Check for Shared Albums

If you've shared the deleted photos with family or friends through iCloud Shared Albums, they might still exist there.

Steps to Check Shared Albums:

1. Open the Photos app on your iPhone
2. Tap on “For You” or “Shared” at the bottom
3. Look through your shared albums
4. If you find your deleted photos, tap on them
5. Tap the share icon and save them back to your camera roll

Method 8: Contact Apple Support

If all else fails and your photos are extremely important, Apple Support might be able to help in some cases.

How to contact Apple Support:

1. Visit support.apple.com
2. Select "iPhone" and then "Photos & Camera"
3. Choose the appropriate issue
4. Select your preferred contact method (chat, phone, or in-person)

While Apple Support can't guarantee recovery, they might have additional suggestions based on your specific situation.

Comparison of Recovery Methods

Method	Success Rate	Cost	Difficulty	Time Required
Recently Deleted Album	Very High (if within 30 days)	Free	Very Easy	1-2 minutes
Recovery Software	Moderate to High	$30-100	Moderate	30-60 minutes
Other Apple Devices	Varies	Free	Easy	5-10 minutes
iCloud.com	Moderate	Free	Easy	10-15 minutes
Hidden Photos	High (if photos were hidden)	Free	Very Easy	2-5 minutes
Third-Party Cloud Services	Varies	Free to $10/month	Easy	10-20 minutes
iTunes/Finder Sync	Low to Moderate	Free	Moderate	15-30 minutes
Shared Albums	Low	Free	Easy	5-10 minutes
Apple Support	Low	Free (potential service fees)	Easy	30+ minutes

Tips to Prevent Future Photo Loss

After going through the stress of trying to recover deleted photos, you'll want to prevent this situation in the future. Here are some proactive steps:

1. Set Up iCloud Photos

iCloud Photos automatically backs up your entire photo library to the cloud.

1. Go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Photos
2. Turn on "iCloud Photos"
3. Choose either "Optimize iPhone Storage" or "Download and Keep Originals"

2. Use Multiple Backup Services

Don't rely on just one backup method. Use multiple services like:

• iCloud Photos
• Google Photos
• Regular iTunes/Finder backups
• External hard drive backups via computer

3. Enable Automatic Backups

Make sure your iPhone is set to automatically back up to iCloud:

1. Go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud > iCloud Backup
2. Turn on "iCloud Backup"
3. Make sure your iPhone is connected to Wi-Fi and a power source regularly to allow backups to complete

4. Be Careful with Deletion

Develop habits that prevent accidental deletion:

• Always double-check before deleting photos
• Use the “Select” feature carefully when deleting multiple photos
• Consider using albums to organize photos instead of deleting them

5. Regularly export important photos

For your most precious photos, create additional copies:

• Export important photos to your computer regularly
• Consider printing physical copies of your most treasured photos
• Use external hard drives or USB drives for offline storage

Quick Tip to ensure your videos never go missing

Videos are precious memories and all of us never want to lose them to hard disk crashes or missing drives. PicBackMan is the easiest and simplest way to keep your videos safely backed up in one or more online accounts. 

Simply download PicBackMan (it's free!) , register your account, connect to your online store and tell PicBackMan where your videos are - PicBackMan does the rest, automatically. It bulk uploads all videos and keeps looking for new ones and uploads those too. You don't have to ever touch it.

Conclusion

Losing precious photos can be heartbreaking, but as we've seen, there are multiple ways to potentially recover them, even without a backup. The key is to act quickly and try multiple methods, starting with the simplest (checking Recently Deleted) and progressing to more advanced techniques like recovery software.

Remember that prevention is always better than recovery. Setting up automatic backups through iCloud and other services will save you from the stress of trying to recover deleted photos in the future. Your memories are precious—protect them with multiple layers of backups.

If you've successfully recovered your photos using any of these methods, take this opportunity to set up proper backup systems. And next time you're about to delete photos, take an extra moment to make sure you won't regret it later.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1: How long do photos stay in the Recently Deleted folder on iPhone?

Photos remain in the Recently Deleted folder for 30 days. After that, they're permanently removed from your device and can only be recovered using specialized methods like recovery software.

Q2: Can I recover photos that were deleted more than a year ago?

It's very unlikely to recover photos deleted more than a year ago without a backup. The storage space has likely been overwritten multiple times. However, if you haven't used your phone much since deletion, recovery software might still find fragments of these photos.

Q3: Are free photo recovery apps effective for iPhone?

Free recovery apps typically have limited capabilities. They might show you which photos are recoverable but often require payment to actually recover them. Paid recovery software generally provides better results and more features for recovering permanently deleted photos.

Q4: Will putting my iPhone in Airplane Mode help with photo recovery?

Yes, enabling Airplane Mode immediately after photo deletion can help prevent new data from overwriting the deleted photos. This increases your chances of successful recovery, especially when using recovery software.

Q5: If I reset my iPhone, will my permanently deleted photos come back?

No, resetting your iPhone will not bring back permanently deleted photos. In fact, it will make recovery even more difficult as it overwrites data on your device. Always try recovery methods before considering a reset.