How to Turn Off Live Photos On Your iPhone (and Save Storage Space)

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Photos snapped with an iPhone have long captured 1.5 seconds before and after you take a picture. These Boomerang-like Live Photos allow you to select the best frame and add various looping effects. But Live Photos also take up more storage space than regular pictures, so you may want to disable the feature if you're running out of space.

The good news is that there are multiple ways to control Live Photos. You can turn it off for a single picture, all future photos, and even after the fact, if you change your mind. Here's what you need to know.

How to Temporarily Turn Off Live Photos

The simplest way to turn off Live Photos is to disable the feature from the Camera app. Live Photos is on by default, but you can switch it off by tapping the circular Live Photos icon. Note that the location of this button will vary slightly, depending on the iPhone model you own.

This will cross out the button and show a Live Off message on the screen. The next time you take a photo, the resulting image won't have any Live Photos effects. To turn it on again, simply tap the Live Photos icon and it will say Live.

Permanently Disable Live Photos

Disabling Live Photos from the Camera app is temporary; if you close the Camera app and then open it again, Live Photos will be enabled again. To make your settings stick, go to Settings > Camera > Preserve Settings and toggle Live Photos to on. Once enabled, you can return to the Camera app and disable Live Photos again. Then, when you reopen the app, the feature will continue to be disabled until you decide to turn it on again.

Turn Off Live Photos in Apple Photos

Did you already take a bunch of pictures with Live Photos enabled? You can disable the feature after the fact from the Apple Photos app. Open the app and select an image with the Live Photos effect applied. Tap the Live button in the top-left corner, then select Live Off from the drop-down menu. The button will show a crossed out icon, indicating that Live Photos is disabled.

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Jason Cohen

Senior Editor, Help & How To

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As PCMag's editor of how to content, I have to cover a wide variety of topics and also make our stories accessible to everyday users. Considering my history as a technical writer, copywriter, and all-around freelancer covering baseball, comics, and more at various outlets, I am used to making myself into an expert.

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My job as how-to guru means I use just about every gadget under the sun, so I can figure out how everything works. I work from a Lenovo ThinkPad running Windows 11, but also have a very large Dell Inspiron 17 3000 and Apple silicon MacBook. I also have a Google Pixel 6a for personal use and use a Galaxy Z Flip 4 for additional Samsung-related testing. For iOS coverage, an iPhone 13 mini works like a charm, though it's already becoming a little long in the tooth.

My desktop situation includes a dual monitor setup with a modest Acer monitor. I also use a Logitech mouse (who can use these ThinkPad trackpads) and a Havit keyboard (my first mechanical keyboard; I love it but my wife hates it!). I'm a recent convert from wired headphones; I have Anker Soundcore Liberty Air wireless earbuds for personal use and have taken to the Sennheiser HD 450BT headphones for work.

Whenever I have a second to myself, I'm probably gaming on my Nintendo Switch, Steam Deck, or Xbox Series S. I also still have a bunch of classic consoles lying around as well.

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