Your Photos library likely contains thousands of irreplaceable photos and videos. Losing access to them due to a failed hard drive or deleted files would be devastating. That’s why regularly backing up your Photos library is essential.
Follow these simple steps to quickly back up your entire Photos library so you can restore it if disaster strikes.
Use iCloud Photo Library as Your Primary Backup
The easiest way to backup your Photos library is to use iCloud Photo Library. Here’s how to set it up:
- Open the Photos app on your Mac.
- Go to Photos > Preferences in the menu bar.
- Click on the iCloud tab.
- Check the box next to iCloud Photo Library.
- Click Done.
This will begin uploading your entire Photos library to iCloud. iCloud will store a copy of your library online and keep it in sync across devices. Any photos you import or edits you make will automatically be backed up.
The amount of storage space you get with iCloud depends on your iCloud storage plan. The 200GB plan ($2.99/month) should give most people plenty of room.
Pros of iCloud Photo Library:
- Automatic backups as you add & edit photos
- Access photos on all devices logged into your iCloud account
- Additional iCloud storage is affordable
Cons:
- Requires a paid iCloud storage plan
- Uploading a large library can take a long time
- No option for physical backups
So use iCloud Photo Library as your main backup, but supplement it with occasional manual backups for extra redundancy.
Manually Back Up Your Library to an External Drive
For a physical backup copy you can restore from, periodically back up your entire Photos library to an external hard drive or SSD. Here’s how:
1. Connect Your External Drive
Connect the external drive you want to use for your Photos backup to your Mac. The drive should have ample free space to store your entire library.
2. Find Your Photos Library
Your Photos library is usually located in the Pictures folder of your home directory. To find it:
- Open a Finder window.
- In the Finder menu, click Go > Home.
- Look for a folder called Pictures. Open it.
- You’ll see a file called Photos Library.photoslibrary. This is your library.
3. Copy Your Photos Library to the External Drive
Drag the Photos Library file from the Pictures folder to your external drive. This will copy the entire library.
This process can take hours for a large collection of photos and videos. Make sure your Mac is plugged in and allow the backup to run overnight if needed.
When copying is complete, you’ll have a backup of your entire library on the external drive.
Back Up Your Library to Another Mac
You can also back up your Photos library to another Mac on your local network:
- On your main Mac, go to System Preferences > Sharing.
- Enable File Sharing.
- Under Shared Folders, click + and add your Pictures folder.
- On your secondary Mac, open Finder and go to Network. Your main Mac should appear under Shared.
- Open your main Mac and navigate to the Pictures folder.
- Drag the Photos Library to your secondary Mac for backup.
Keep both machines on and logged in to complete the backup. Follow the same steps to later update the backup with new photos and edits.
Check Backup Integrity
To verify your backups contain all photos and edits:
- Hold down the Option key while opening Photos.
- Click Create New Library.
- Select your backup drive and open the copied library.
- Browse through the photos and confirm edits are intact.
If everything looks good, your backup was successful! Be sure to periodically update it.
Keep Your Photos Safe
Losing your photo memories would be heartbreaking. Protect them by implementing these backups for your Photos library. Let iCloud handle ongoing backups as you add to your collection, and supplement it with manual backups to an external drive and secondary Mac. Store at least one copy offsite for maximum security.
With redundant backups in place, you can rest easy knowing your photos are safe no matter what happens!
