How to Select All Photos on iPhone, iPad, and Mac: The Ultimate Guide

While iOS doesn’t include a “Select All” button in the Recents or Library tabs, you can select all photos within any album. There’s also a powerful gesture-based trick for rapidly selecting large batches.

Select All Within an Album

1. Open the Photos app.

2. Navigate to the desired album.

3. Tap Select in the top-right corner.

4. Tap Select All in the top-left corner.

All photos in the album are now highlighted and ready for deletion, sharing, or moving.

Gesture Trick for “All Photos” View
Although there’s no direct “Select All,” this gesture method is incredibly fast:

1. Go to Photos → Library → All Photos.

2. Tap Select.

3. Tap the first photo you want, then drag your finger across the screen without lifting.

4. Slide down at the edge of a row to continue selecting and auto-scroll.

To quickly jump to the top while keeping your selection:

• While holding your selection, tap near the battery icon with another finger.
  This instantly scrolls upward without losing your selected photos.

How to Select All Photos on Mac

On Mac, the process is much simpler with a universal keyboard shortcut.

Using the Photos App

1. Open Photos on your Mac.

2. Go to Library → All Photos.

3. Press Command (⌘) + A to select everything instantly.

You can then export, delete, or organize the selected photos in bulk.

Using Image Capture (For Mass Deletion from iPhone)
Image Capture provides a fast way to clear your iPhone’s photo library directly from your Mac:

1. Connect your iPhone to your Mac.

2. Open Image Capture.

3. Select your device, then press Command (⌘) + A.

4. Click the delete icon to remove all photos at once.

Using Finder (If iCloud Photos Is Disabled)

1. Connect your iPhone to your Mac.

2. Open Finder and select your device from the sidebar.

3. Go to the Photos tab.

4. Press Command (⌘) + A to select the entire library.

Should You Delete All Photos?

If your goal is to free up storage, deleting your entire library may be excessive. Instead, consider targeting space-consuming items like duplicate photos, old screenshots, large videos, and Live Photos. Tools like Clever Cleaner can help automate this process, allowing you to reclaim significant space without losing your entire collection.

Final Thoughts

Selecting all photos in Apple’s ecosystem isn’t always intuitive, but with the right gestures and shortcuts, it becomes a quick and satisfying task. On iPhone and iPad, master the drag-and-scroll gesture. On Mac, rely on Command + A for instant selection. Whether you’re organizing, deleting, or backing up, these methods will save you time and effort.