We all likely have thousands of photos on our phones that we have to sift through if we want to make use of them—a nearly impossible task to do manually unless you have lots of time. Thankfully, photo management apps let you do that automatically (and for free, to a point).

If you have an iPhone, the built-in Photos app does that for you and syncs your library to your iCloud account. However, Google Photos does the same and is particularly useful if you have non-Apple devices.

4

I Get Better Value from Apple Photos

I backup my photos on the cloud so that I can always access them no matter what device I use. It’s also important so that I don’t lose my entire library if I lose, change, or upgrade my phones. I initially stuck with the free cloud storage that both Apple and Google offered—5 GB for the former and 15 GB for the latter. However, they quickly filled up, especially as Apple Photos uses the same 5 GB iCloud account for backing up my iPhone and iPad. I used up Google’s free 15 GB to save documents on my Google Drive account.

There are ways to free up your iCloud space without deleting photos or paying for a subscription, but it’s inconvenient for me as I’m too busy to deal with it. I also tried cleaning out my Google Drive to get more space, but I just can’t delete my work files from there. So, I ended up comparing then signing up for a plan on both services.

iCloud offers more flexibility at lower tiers, especially with its 50 GB offer for just $0.99 a month. If that’s not enough for you, you can opt for the 200 GB plan that will set you back $2.99—about $0.75 for every 50 GB.

On the other hand, Google One (which is what Google Photos calls its cloud storage plan) starts at $1.99 per month for 100 GB of cloud storage, which is about the same price as iCloud’s cheapest offer. Unfortunately, if that’s not enough for you, your next option is the 2 TB plan, which costs $9.99 a month. This is less than $0.25 per 50 GB, but you’re likely paying too much if you don’t need that much space.

3

iCloud Is Better for Reminiscing Memories

Both Apple and Google Photos have some capabilities that make it easier to find images. They both have facial recognition capabilities, allowing you to sort images by ‘People & Pets’. They also let you sort through pictures by location, set favorites, automatically create memories and moments, and store screenshots separately. There’s also a search function on both apps if you’re looking for something specific.

But despite being limited to Apple devices only, I prefer iCloud when looking through my pictures. A few people hate the redesigned Photos app in iOS 18, but I find it great if I want to look back at my life. The biggest thing that I love about Apple Photos is its automatic Memories and Trips collections.

While Google Photos does the same for you, I love that Apple Photos separates the two. After all, not all the memories that I have are made during trips, and I love how Apple Photos automatically collects images of me and my wife through the years, saves important photos from a season, and even builds photo and video albums taken at specific places.

2

It’s Easier to Manually Organize Pictures With Google

When it comes to manual organization, I find Google Photos a tad easier to use. That’s because I can create an album, collage, highlight video, cinematic photo, or even an animation with a couple of taps straight from the main screen. It’s also easier to share my photos with a partner and import pictures from other services.

This is crucial if you have other accounts and want to put all the photos you collected in one giant library. It also makes it easier to build your own photo and memory slide shows instead of relying on the app’s algorithm to do it for you.

1

Google Photos Works Across More Devices

The biggest advantage that Google Photos has over Apple Photos is that it works with so many more devices. You need to have an Apple device if you want to use Apple Photos, but Google Photos works with pretty much any Android device. It’s even available on Huawei’s AppGallery for its phones’ HarmonyOS operating system.

This means that even if I change smartphone ecosystems (which I tend to do every now and then), I don’t have to go through the trouble of transferring my photo library from one service to another. This is the reason why I stick with Google Photos—because even if I have a MacBook, an iPad, and an iPhone, I still primarily use an Android phone and a Windows laptop.

Sure, you can access your iCloud account on your Android phone. However, you can only do that from a browser, meaning it’s infinitely harder to back up the photos on your Android device to your iCloud account, as you must do it manually.

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I Love Apple Photos, But I Still Choose Google Photos for This Reason

Apple Photos makes it easier for me to navigate and browse my photos and even make highlights out of images that I would otherwise have forgotten. But the company’s walled-garden approach to hardware and software is holding it back.

Since I buy and use non-Apple devices (today and for the foreseeable future), I have no choice but to stick with Google Photos and ensure that my photo backup and management service will remain uninterrupted, no matter what brand I use.