iOS/iPadOS Tutorials
Last updated: September 11, 2023
Delete Duplicate Photos on iPad

How to Delete Duplicate Photos on an iPad

Blog->iOS/iPadOS Tutorials->How to Delete Duplicate Photos on an iPad

Your iPad is an example of an incredible amount of technology in a small package. An iPad has many uses, including taking and storing photos. Over time, you can wind up with many duplicate images or videos that use up valuable space on your iPad. We are going to look at several methods that can be used to delete duplicate photos on your iPad.

The techniques we will discuss are appropriate for all iPad models including an iPad Pro or iPad Air. If you are challenged for space and need to get rid of duplicate photos on your iPad, read on!

Why Do Duplicate Photos Appear on My iPad?

You might find duplicate photos on your iPad for a variety of reasons. This can result in a shortage of storage space and make it challenging to view your photos. The following are the most common reasons you will see duplicate photos on your iPad.

  • 📱 Syncing from multiple sources – If you sync your iPad from multiple sources that contain photos, there is a good chance you will get some duplicates that you might want to delete.
  • 👆 Importing photos multiple times – If you import photos from other devices to your iPad, you may end up with duplicates.
  • 💽 Restoring from a backup – Restoring from an iCloud backup that includes photos currently on your iPad can result in a lot of duplicate pictures.
  • 📸 Burst mode and HDR photos – Burst mode and HDR photos are great ways to capture action of an activity in a series of related images. You may not want all of them and consider some of them to be duplicates that you want to delete.

How to Delete Duplicate Photos on an iPad

Let’s look at how to remove duplicate photos on iPad now that we’ve seen how you might end up with copies of the same images on your device. You can use the built-in features of iPadOS 16, simply take a manual approach to the issue, or employ a third-party software tool.

Method 1: Merge Duplicate Photos on Your iPad

The first method we will look at takes advantage of the functionality of iOS 16. The Apple developers anticipated this issue and have designed the Photos app to provide a simple method to eliminate duplicate photos on an iPad. Use the following steps to merge and delete your duplicate iPad photos.

  1. Open the Photos app.
  2. Display the sidebar by swiping from the left edge of the screen or tapping its icon.
  3. Tap Duplicates below Utilities.open duplicates album
  4. Tap Merge to combine the duplicates and then tap Merge [number] items. This procedure saves the highest quality version of the duplicates and saves it in your library. The rest of the duplicates are sent to the Recently Deleted album.merge duplicates
If your iPad does not have any duplicate photos, the Duplicate Album will not be displayed.

Method 2: Deleting Manually

You always have the choice of manually deleting duplicate photos. Depending on the size of your photo library and the number of duplicate images and videos, this can be a time-consuming task as you search for the right photos to delete. The following steps demonstrate how to manually delete duplicates from your iPad.

  1. Open the Photos app.
  2. Scroll through your photo library and search for photos that look similar and were taken in the same time frame.
  3. Tap the Select button at the top right of the screen.
  4. Tap on the duplicate photos or videos you want to delete.
  5. Tap the Trash Can icon at the bottom of the screen. You will be presented with a message warning you that the photo will be deleted from iCloud Photos on all your devices.
  6. Tap the Delete Photos button to finish deleting the selected items.Deleting Manually duplicates photos

Method 3: Using a Third-party Tool

You may also want to try using a third-party iPad photo duplicate finder tool. We’re going to look at using the Remo Duplicate Photos Remover to eliminate duplicate photos on your iPad. The tool is available from the Apple App Store for free. It requires that you are running at least iOS 9.0 on your device.

Remo Duplicate Photos Remover lets you scan your iPad Photos library for exact copies of photos or sets of similar photos that may be eligible for deletion. Use the following procedure to use the app on your iPad.

  1. Download Remo Duplicate Photos Remover from the App Store.
  2. Launch the app on your iPad.open Remo Duplicate Photos Remover
  3. Select Scan Exact or Scan Similar to begin scanning the device.remo scan duplicates
  4. The app scans your iPad and displays duplicate or similar photos for your review.
  5. You can delete individual photos or sets of photos by tapping on the checkbox and then the Delete button.select duplicates for deletion
  6. You can Preview the photos and zoom in on them before committing to a deletion.Confirm deletion

FAQs

You can get rid of duplicate photos on your iPad manually, with a third-party tool, or by using the built-in functionality of the Apple Photo app. If you are trying to delete numerous duplicates, a manual process may take too much effort. Look into the other options which are both free and easy to use.
Your iPad has a duplicate photo finder built into the Photos app. When you open the app, you can search through the Duplicates album if it appears to see what duplicate photos are on the device. You can then merge the photos and the app will keep the highest quality image and put the rest in the Recently Deleted album.
The Duplicates album will only be displayed if you have duplicate photos on your iPad. If you don’t see the Duplicates folder, you probably don’t have any duplicate photos at this time. We say probably because the duplicate finder algorithm may not consider two photos to be similar enough to register as duplicates. Of course, you can manually delete these photos yourself if you believe they are very similar.

Conclusion

There is no reason you should have duplicate photos on your iPad taking up space that could be better used for new apps or games. We’ve discussed three free and easy methods for removing duplicate photos and videos. Choose whichever technique you like and take the time to eliminate these duplicates. You will return some valuable storage space to your iPad for more important things.

Jeff Cochin has spent a better part of his writing career helping users recover lost data from their personal and work devices. When not describing the best way to avoid a costly data loss, Jeff likes to spend time outside and go on short cycling adventures.
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