Google Photos is an app for Android that allows you to upload photos and videos that are made with a smartphone to the cloud. In this way, you can free up space on your phone, and photos and videos can be stored on the virtual storage space, being able to access them not only from the smartphone from which they are loaded but also from other compatible devices that have access to the same Google Photos account.
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Once the backup on Google Photos is set, the application will work automatically and synchronize your photo gallery with the cloud, creating a copy of your shots on virtual memory. Should your smartphone break, if it is stolen, formatted, etc., if you have access to Google Photos you can easily recover the images and videos saved in it.
Obviously, in order to use Google Photos and be able to transfer photos and videos from your phone, an internet connection must be available. There are times, however, when Google Photos throws a tantrum and does not work as it should and could as we will see in this guide stop uploading photos automatically to the cloud. What to do if Google Photos doesn’t load photos from Android.
If Google Photos doesn’t upload photos from Android, there are several reasons why the backup isn’t taking place. The most common causes are listed below:
Make sure the internet is working properly
Google Photos automatically scans the photo gallery of your Android phone in search of new photographs and videos that you can upload to the cloud, but to be able to do so, as has already been mentioned, a stable internet connection must be present, regardless of whether you’re using a Wi-Fi or data connection.
Make sure that the internet network you are connected to is working correctly and the easiest way to understand if the navigation is good or not, is to access the browser of your Android and visit the websites. If the pages open and also fast then there is no problem with the network connection.
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Another test you could try to do is connect to Youtube and open a video, so if this is played without buffering the internet connection should not have any problems. Google Photos then imposes a daily data limit for uploading photos if you’re using your carrier’s data connection. This data limit serves to ensure the user that mobile data is not consumed excessively and without control. However, if Google Photos doesn’t upload your photos and you have a rate plan with internet and enough GB, I recommend that you turn off data restrictions of any kind. Follow the steps given below to understand how:
- Log in to Google Photos or on your Android device
- Tap your profile picture located in the top right corner
- Now click on the Photo Settings option and then go to Backup and Sync
- Now select the Mobile data usage option
- Under the “Backup daily limit” tab, select the unlimited item
- See if you can now backup your Android smartphone to Google Photos
Turn on the automatic sync feature for Google Photos
By default, Google Photos automatic sync is always on, however it may happen that you have accidentally turned it off and for this reason, Google Photos will be prevented from uploading photos to the cloud. Google Photos automatic syncing must then be enabled to upload and download photos from Google Photos. Follow the steps given below to see how:
- First, access Google Photos from your Android device
- From the main screen, click on the profile picture at the top right
- Now tap on Photo Settings
- Now click on Backup and synchronization
- Now activate the switch that you find next to the Backup and synchronization item to activate the function. If the switch was already active, proceed with disabling it, restart your phone and activate the Backup and Sync function again
Check for new updates regarding the Google Photos app
When an application no longer works as it should, many times it depends on an update or multiple updates that have not been performed. Furthermore, updating applications is a fundamental thing to have an app increasingly secure and with bugs that were present in previous versions fixed. So if Google Photos doesn’t back up photos from your Android phone, you can try updating the application, hoping that this will definitely solve the problem of photos not uploading to the cloud. Follow the steps given below to update the Google Photos app:
- Go to the Play Store
- Tap on the icon with three horizontal lines that you find on the top left to access the menu
- Now click on the My Apps and games option
- See if there is Google Photos listed in the Updates section and check if there are any new updates pending. If the Update button is present next to Google Photos, press it with your finger to proceed with updating the app
- Once you have managed to update the app, check if the photos are uploading to Google Photos as usual or not
Clear the cache and data of the Google Photos app
Another solution that could restore Google Photos to its proper functioning is to clear its cache and possibly also its data. The cache files are generated by each application and are used to reduce the loading time of the app, making it faster.
Over time, however, the volume of files contained in the cache continues to increase and could become damaged, thus giving rise to possible malfunctions of the app. It is a good idea to delete the old cache in case of malfunctions and if this is not enough, also the data. This will not affect in any way the photos or videos that have been saved on the Google Photos cloud, but very simply the old cache will be replaced with the new files that will be created as you use the application. By deleting the data, however, you will be disconnected from your Google account and the settings will be reset, finding the app as it was when it was first installed. Also, in this case, photos uploaded to the Google Photos cloud will not be affected. Follow the steps given below to clear the cache and clear data for the Google Photos app:
- Go to your smartphone Settings
- Scroll through the various items in the list to App to view the list of applications installed on your smartphone
- Now using the search bar search for Google Photos and once found tap it to access the Application Information screen
- Now tap on the item Storage space
- You will be shown the option to be able to Clear the cache. Tap it to clear the cache and see if Google Photos has started working normally again
- If after clearing the cache, Google Photos still does not back up to the cloud, I recommend that you clear the data as well. As mentioned, doing this will bring the app back to how it was when you first opened it and you will need to select your Google account again, activate the backup, and set the app again from scratch. To delete the data of Google Photos, simply press on Clear data, the item that you find next to Clear the cache
What to do if Google Photos doesn’t upload photos from Android- Change the photo upload quality
Just like any other cloud storage unit, Google Photos has some limits regarding the space that is granted to the user, who is basically entitled to 15 GB of free cloud storage space where they can upload their photos and videos in the original format, space which is then to be divided between Google Drive, Gmail, and Google Photos. On top of that, you have to pay if you need more additional cloud storage to use.
These, however, are the terms and conditions for uploading photos and videos in their original quality, i.e. with the file size remaining unchanged. As for all the photos and videos you back up in high quality, before June 1, 2021, will not be counted towards your Google Account storage space. The advantage of choosing the latter option (high quality) is therefore in addition to the provision on the cloud of unlimited space (at least until June 1, 2021), is that there is no noticeable loss of quality due to compression and you get the same exact photo in its original resolution when you download it from the cloud. If you are uploading the photos in their original format, it is possible that this free space that has been allocated to you of 15 GB has been completely used up, and therefore, the photos are no longer uploaded.
Now, if you are using the 15GB space and it is exhausted, you can decide whether to pay for extra storage or whether to compromise with the quality of the backup of your images and movies to continue backing up your photos to the cloud. but with the security of having everything on unlimited virtual memory. Google Photos has two alternative upload size options, and these are “High Quality” and “Express” And the coolest point of these options is that they offer unlimited storage space. So if you are willing to compromise with the image quality and give up the original one, Google Photos will allow you to store all the photos or videos you want without limits. I suggest you select the high-quality option for future uploads which compresses the image to a resolution of 16MP and the videos will still be compressed in high definition.
In case you plan to print these images later, the print quality would be good up to 24 x 16 inches. This is a good compromise if you think you will have unlimited storage space available.
- First, access Google Photos from your Android device
- Tap your profile picture located in the top right corner of the screen
- Now click on the Photo Settings option
- You must now press on the Backup and synchronization item and from the settings tab, you will find the option called Upload size. Press on it
- From the options that are shown to you, select the High-quality item as your preferred choice for the next uploads of photos and videos to Google Photos
If you initially uploaded photos in original format to the cloud, selecting the High-quality option will guarantee you unlimited storage space and you should solve the problem of not uploading photos to Google Photos if you ran out of the 15 GB of free space made available of users who upload photos in their original size.
What to do if Google Photos doesn’t upload photos from Android- Uninstall Google Photos updates
Google Photos is a system app that we find installed on Android devices and consequently, if not through the Root permissions it is not possible to delete it and then reinstall it, but it is however possible to uninstall the latest updates of the application and then update it following its latest version available on the Play Store. Here are the steps to follow to remove Google Photos updates:
- Enter the Settings of your Android device and look for the App item, then access it with a tap
- Look for the Google Photos app and when you find it, press on it with your finger to view its information screen
- At the top right of the screen, you will see the icon with three dots depicted vertically, click on them
- Click on the item that refers to uninstalling updates
- I recommend that you now restart your device, then open Google Photos
- You should be prompted to update the app to its latest version. Proceed with the update and this should fix backups not uploading to Google Photos
What to do if Google Photos doesn’t upload photos from Android- problem with Google’s servers
Sometimes the photos may not be uploaded to Google Photos, not because of your problem, but the Google Photos servers. Since the Google Photos app uploads your photos and videos to the cloud via the internet, it needs access to Google’s servers, but if these don’t work due to technical problems, the app will not be able to upload the backup of your photos and videos.
In this case, there is not much to do but wait a little time, usually a few hours at the most and you can see if everything has returned to normal. You could also try writing to Google Customer Support to let them know about your problem with your feedback and hope that if it’s theirs, they’ll fix it as quickly as possible.
