How to Delete Photos From Your iPad

Clear some space and organize your Camera Roll

Deleting files

Andranik Hakobyan / Getty Images 

by Daniel Nations
Daniel Nations has been a tech journalist since 1994. His work has appeared in Computer Currents, The Examiner, The Spruce, and other publications.
Updated July 27, 2019

It's easy to take a lot of photos when you have a smartphone or tablet around at all times. It also means we need to purge our iPad's Photos app of all those extra shots. You can delete pictures one at a time or get rid of several images at once. Keeping your Camera Roll tidy doesn't only make it easier to find the pictures you've kept; it also frees up some memory.

How to Delete a Single Photo From Your iPad

To clear out one picture that you don't need anymore, follow these steps:

  1. Open the Photos app.

    Delete photos from iPad

  2. Tap Albums, and then tap Camera Roll.

    You can also tap Photos, but this tab has smaller thumbnails that might make it harder to find the picture you're looking for.

    Delete photos from iPad

  3. Tap the photo you want to delete to bring it up in full-screen mode.

    Delete photos from iPad

  4. Tap the trash can icon in the upper-right corner.

    Delete photos from iPad

  5. Tap Delete Photo.

    Delete photos from iPad

  6. The photo will leave your Camera Roll.

How to Delete Multiple Photos From Your iPad

You can also delete multiple photos from your iPad at the same time. Doing so can be a great tool if you take dozens of pictures trying to get that one great shot. It's also a time-saving technique if you need to clear out a lot of space on your iPad. Here's how to do it:

  1. Launch the Photos app, and then go to Albums > Camera Roll.

    Delete photos from iPad

  2. Tap the Select button in the upper-right corner of the screen. 

    Delete photos from iPad

  3. Tap all of the photos you want to delete. Ones you select will have a blue checkmark next to them.

    You can also tap and drag to select multiple photos, or rows of photos, quickly.

    Delete photos from iPad

  4. Tap the trash icon.

    Delete photos from iPad

  5. Tap Delete Photos.

    Both the delete button and the top of the screen will say how many photos you've selected.

    Delete photos from iPad

  6. The iPad will delete the photos you selected.

Where Do Deleted Photos Go?

Photos you delete don't leave your iPad immediately. Instead, they move to the Recently Deleted album in the Photos app. They stay there for 30 days before your iPad deletes them permanently. You can recover photos from this album if you delete them accidentally. You can also empty this album to clear space right away.