iPhone photos not syncing to Mac and iCloud after update

My iPhone stopped syncing photos to my MAC and iCloud Photos. This started after a MAC update from Tahoe 26.1 to 26.2.


How can I correct this issue.


Thank you.

iPhone 14 Pro

Posted on Jan 14, 2026 4:35 AM

Reply
1 reply

Jan 14, 2026 7:51 AM in response to Bullet12

So, can you tell us a bit more?

  •  What does your Mac's Photos say at the bottom of the Library? Like this:

  •  What does your iPhone's Photos say when you tap on your face icon at the top right in Collections? Like this:

  • Do you have “Optimize Storage” checked in Photos’ Settings
  • Do you see all your iPhone pictures at iCloud.com?
  • Do you see all your Mac pictures at iCloud.com?
  • Have you checked to see if the Apple Account is really really the same on the Mac and on the iPhone and at iCloud.com?
  • Do you have more than 10% free storage on your iCloud account? You can check with the Mac at System Settings>[name]>iCloud. Mine says 173GB of 200 GB uses, so I have 27% free.
  • Where does your Mac's Photos Library reside-- in the Pictures folder of your internal drive, or on an external drive? or on a network? on iCloud drive?
  • What is your storage on this iPhone? At Settings>General>iPhone Storage, my phone says 50.5 GB of 128 GB used. What does yours say? Do you have more than 10% free storage on your iPhone?
  • What is your storage on this Mac? At System Settings>General>iStorage, what does yours say? Do you have more than 10% free storage on your Mac?


Since syncing uses the battery, and since lots of people are very anxious about battery drain, the iPhone will avoid syncing when not plugged in. And since syncing uses processing power, and people hate slow-downs, the iPhone will avoid syncing while you are using it. And since syncing requires bandwidth, the iPhone will avoid syncing when the internet connection is weak.


So, if you want faster syncing, then find good wifi, plug the phone in, and leave it alone. All this applies to a lesser extent for the Mac.


So let us know more about your situation…

iPhone photos not syncing to Mac and iCloud after update

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