How to easily transfer photos from Google Photos to PC or Mac: instructions

One of the most popular photo storage services is Google Photos. It's convenient because it's accessible from a variety of devices and allows you to easily upload your photos to the cloud.

However, downloading photos to your computer from the service is not as simple and intuitive as it sounds. That's why Tom's Guide has created a step-by-step guide on how to do it. It will help you work with individual files, download entire albums, and even your entire archive, regardless of whether you use Windows or macOS.

How to download your archive from Google Photos

The only service that allows you to download all available data from your Google account is Google Takeout. It allows users of the company's products, such as YouTube and Gmail, to export their data to an archive file for download.

Fortunately, you don't have to create a separate profile to use the service. You can easily sign in to Google Takeout with your Google account.

Select the files you want to export with Google Takeout

As soon as you log in, the program displays a list of everything you can download. It will include, among other things, your contacts, email messages, Drive files, and more.

If you want to download only your photos, click "Deselect all" on the data selection tab. Then scroll to the service you want and select it. In this case, it's Google Photos.

Choose an export method

Next, you'll see a list of export methods from which you'll need to choose one. You can get a download link sent to you via email, or choose to export your photos to another cloud service like OneDrive or Dropbox. You can also set up periodic exports and even choose maximum file sizes.

Export your photos/videos

Once you have completed all the previous steps, click the Create Export button. If you chose to receive a download link via email, it may take a few minutes to a few hours depending on the size of your photo library. The link to your archive will be available within a week.

How to download individual photos from Google Photos

If you only want to download individual photos/videos, you can do so directly from Google Photos. Here's what you need to do.

Select photos to download

Find the photo you want to download and click the checkmark in the upper left corner of the photo. You can select as many individual photos as you want. Hold down the Shift key while selecting and you can select a group of photos at once.

Download the selected files

Once you have selected the photos you want, click the three vertical dots in the upper right corner of the page. Then select the "Download" option. This will create a zip folder with the photos.

How to download albums from Google Photos

Google Photos lets you create albums. Or it saves photos to folders for you if you use the Smart Albums feature. Downloading them is as easy as downloading individual shots.

Find the album you want to download

On the albums tab on the left side of the screen, select View all albums. Then click on the one you want to download.

Upload your album

As in the previous step, click the three vertical dots to start the download. This will also create a zip file. Keep in mind that there is a limit to downloading one album at a time.

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