Can you delete your Google Photos account?

Everyone has their reasons for removing an application or opting out of a particular service. Part of this process, at least towards the end, is account deletion. In the case of Google Photos, deleting an account isn’t an easy decision because you don’t technically have a “Google Photos account.”

You instead have a Google account that includes all Google services. This includes gmail† Google Drive† Google Docs† Google Maps, and Google’s other services. Everything is connected under the umbrella of one Google account, including Google Photos.

To delete your Google Photos account, you must: delete your google account completely† Any of your data from the adjacent Google apps I just mentioned would go up in smoke, along with Google Photos of course. This is one path you could take, although we recommend a different course of action:

You can also remove Google Photos permissions from your phone if you want to keep it on your device.

Delete all your Google Photos

Instead of deleting your Google account, the first thing you can do is: delete all your photos and videos from google photos† This allows you to separate your personal content from Google. In case that, download them all with Google Takeout first and then delete them. You don’t want to accidentally lose something you may have missed.

Delete photos and videos on the Google Photos app, start by long-pressing a photo or video in the grid to select it. When your selected image or video shows a check mark overlay, proceed to choose the rest of the content you want to remove. Finally, tap the trash can in the top right corner to move everything selected to the trash.

On your computer, go to the Google Photos website† You can hover over a photo or video in the grid and then click the check mark that appears above it to select it. Select everything on the platform and then click the trash can in the top right corner to delete everything.

This can be time consuming as you can only select these things one by one or by date. There is no “select all” button that allows you to choose all your photos and videos at once.

Turn off sync on Google Photos

On your phone, the next thing to do is turn it off Backup and Sync†

• Open the Google Photos app on your Android or iOS device. Tap your profile picture or initials in the top right to open the Google Photos menu.
• From the Google Photos menu, select Photo Settings†
• In Photo Settingsselect Backup and Sync† This option usually appears at the top of the list.
• Press Backup and Sync button to turn the function on or off.

Backup & Sync instantly uploads any new photo, video, or screenshot to Google Photos. This can seemingly be a bit intrusive, as anything you can find in your photo gallery will appear instantly on Google Photos. At the same time, it can be a very useful feature for productivity. Disabling this is the logical next step.

READ MORE: Beginner’s Guide to Google Photos

Sign out of Google Photos

The last thing you need to do is sign out of Google Photos. This is not the same as signing out your device from your Google account. However, it’s as easy as just using it without an account.

Open the Google Photos app on your Android or iOS mobile device. Tap your profile picture at the top right.

From the following list of options, tap the downward-facing arrow next to your name and profile picture at the top.

Select Use without account†

You are now signed out of your Google account on Google Photos. After that, you don’t sync anything with a Google account anymore and you can use Google Photos as a normal gallery app. You can manage the photos and videos on your device without being tied to a Google Photos account.

READ MORE: Create and share an album on Google Photos

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