Getting an iPhone Photo Library Out of iCloud and Into Degoo's 5 TB Plan

Q: "Why can't I use Apple's official transfer service for this?"

"Apple's library transfer at privacy.apple.com currently exports iCloud Photos to Google Photos only — Degoo isn't an offered destination (and the service skips albums and edits history anyway, taking 3–7 days per request). Third-party transfer is the only direct iCloud-to-Degoo path."

Q: "Do HEIC photos and Live Photos survive the move?"

"HEIC files transfer byte-for-byte — Degoo stores and previews them fine, though sharing them onward to non-Apple users may need conversion. Live Photos are a photo + video pair: the still always transfers; the motion clip transfers where iCloud's web endpoints expose it as a file. In Degoo they exist as separate assets, not a tap-to-animate unit."

Q: "Will my albums come across?"

"Albums are iCloud-side metadata, and Apple's web endpoints expose the library primarily as a date-organized stream — so expect chronology, not album structure, in Degoo. Faces, Memories and edit history stay behind on any transfer method, Apple's own included. Photos arrive with their capture dates intact in EXIF."

Q: "How long will a 500 GB library take?"

"Apple throttles sustained sessions to roughly 50–150 GB per day per Apple ID, so plan on four to ten days of unattended running. CloudsLinker spreads the job across Apple's windows automatically; the manual method would need you re-selecting batches at icloud.com for a week."

Q: "Does Advanced Data Protection interfere?"

"Yes — with ADP enabled, iCloud Photos content is end-to-end encrypted and web access can't read the actual images. Disable ADP for the migration window (Settings → [your name] → iCloud → Advanced Data Protection), then switch it back on afterwards."

Q: "What about Shared Albums and the Shared Library?"

"Neither is part of your transferable library: Shared Albums store reduced-resolution copies in a separate space, and iCloud Shared Photo Library items belong to the library of whoever contributed them. Save anything critical to your own library on-device first."

Q: "Which Degoo plan fits an iPhone library, and what's the video catch?"

"Libraries under ~400 GB fit Degoo Pro (500 GB, $2.99/mo); beyond that it's Ultimate's 5 TB at $9.99/mo. The catch is per-file limits on cheaper setups: free Degoo caps files at 256 MB — smaller than a few minutes of 4K video — while subscriptions allow 50 GB, far beyond any iPhone recording. Video-heavy libraries belong on a subscription tier."

Q: "How do I disconnect everything once it's done?"

"Two levers: sign the CloudsLinker session out of your Apple ID's device list (Settings → [your name] → Sign out of the session), and change the Degoo password if you want its cached session gone too. Neither affects the transferred files."

Move iCloud Photos to Degoo — web download, Degoo's iPhone app, or an Apple ID-authenticated CloudsLinker transfer — with HEIC and Live Photo notes.

Introduction

Degoo stores 5 TB of photos for $9.99 a month and shows them as a browsable feed on any phone — the archive tier iCloud Photos lacks between its 2 TB plan at the same price and the $29.99 6 TB jump. iPhone photo libraries grow relentlessly (4K video at 400 MB a minute does the growing), and Apple's own escape hatch at privacy.apple.com only transfers libraries to Google Photos, nowhere else. That leaves three real routes into Degoo: downloading from iCloud.com by hand, letting Degoo's iPhone app re-backup the camera roll, or connecting both clouds in CloudsLinker and copying server-side. Each handles HEIC files, Live Photos and Apple's session throttling differently — details below.

Why Move iCloud Photos to Degoo?
Method 1: Manual Download from iCloud.com
Method 2: Re-backup with Degoo's iPhone App
Method 3: Server-Side Copy with CloudsLinker
Quick Comparison
Practical Tips
Frequently Asked Questions

What is iCloud Photos?

iCloud Photos is Apple's photo sync — every shot on every Apple device, originals in the cloud, optimized copies locally. It shares the Apple ID's storage pool: 5 GB free, then iCloud+ from $0.99/mo (50 GB) through $9.99 (2 TB) to $59.99 (12 TB). Faces, Memories and edits live in Apple's ecosystem, not in the files.

Seamless on Apple hardware; browser-only elsewhere
2 TB at $9.99/mo; next stop 6 TB at $29.99
Official export path: Google Photos only
~50–150 GB/day practical export throttle

What is Degoo?

Degoo is a Stockholm-based photo cloud whose entire product is what iCloud charges most for: bulk photo storage. 20 GB free, 500 GB at $2.99/mo, 5 TB at $9.99/mo, browsable as a feed with AI 'rediscover' resurfacing — on iPhone and Android alike. No desktop client; the phone app and web app are the interface.

5 TB at iCloud's 2 TB price point
Native iOS app with camera-roll backup
Feed-style browsing, AI memory resurfacing
Per-file caps: 256 MB free / 50 GB subscription

Comparison: iCloud Photos vs Degoo

Feature	iCloud Photos	Degoo
Free storage	5 GB (whole Apple ID)	20 GB (90-day activity rule)
$9.99/mo buys	2 TB	5 TB
Photo intelligence	Faces, Memories, semantic search	AI rediscovery feed; no face search
Official export options	privacy.apple.com → Google Photos only	— (mobile-first, no export tooling)
Deleted-photo retention	30 days (Recently Deleted)	Recycle bin until emptied
Connection in CloudsLinker	Apple ID + 2FA code	Account email + password

Sources: Apple: iCloud+ plans, Apple: transfer photos to Google Photos, Degoo: plans, Degoo Help Center: Account limits.

Why Move iCloud Photos to Degoo?

The motives cluster around price, platform and permanence:

The 2 TB wall: iCloud's next tier after 2 TB is 6 TB at $29.99 — a 3× price jump. Degoo inserts the missing rung: 5 TB at the price you already pay.
Video does the damage: 4K/60 iPhone footage runs ~400 MB per minute. A family's video habit outgrows 2 TB in a few years; archiving old years to Degoo resets the clock.
Android in the household: iCloud Photos on Android is a browser tab; Degoo is a native app. Mixed households get one shared archive both platforms browse comfortably.
Independence from a single vendor: photos are the least replaceable data most people own; a copy outside Apple's ecosystem (and jurisdiction — Degoo is Swedish) is prudent redundancy.
Apple's export tool won't take you here: the official service moves libraries to Google Photos exclusively — choosing any other destination requires the approaches in this guide.

What you give up is Apple's photo intelligence — faces, Memories, semantic search stay behind. The files, capture dates and quality travel; the index doesn't.

Preparing to Transfer from iCloud Photos to Degoo

Check the library size (Settings → Apple ID → iCloud → Photos, or the storage bar at icloud.com) and match it to a Degoo tier — video-heavy libraries want Ultimate, and definitely a subscription tier for its 50 GB file cap, since a single ten-minute 4K clip already exceeds the free tier's 256 MB. Apple-side: 'Access iCloud Data on the Web' on, Advanced Data Protection off for the window. Save any Shared Album keepers to your own library first — shared spaces don't transfer. Then choose your route by where the originals live: on the phone (Method 2 shines) or cloud-only (Methods 1 and 3)."

Method 1: Manual Download from iCloud.com

Step 1: Select and download at icloud.com/photos

Sign in at icloud.com/photos, select photos (shift-click ranges work; select-all across a big library doesn't) and download. Originals arrive as HEIC/MOV; batches over a few hundred items get flaky, so a large library means many supervised rounds.

iCloud Photos web interface with multiple photos selected and the download button highlighted

Step 2: Upload batches to Degoo

Push each batch to Degoo via app.degoo.com (subscribers) or the mobile app. Chronological folder names ("2019-Q3") imposed at this stage substitute for the albums that don't transfer.

Degoo web uploader receiving batches of HEIC photos downloaded from iCloud

Workable for curated selections — the honeymoon album, one year of highlights. Nobody manually round-trips 100,000 photos.

Method 2: Re-backup with Degoo's iPhone App

Step 1: Ensure originals are on the device

This method uploads what the iPhone holds. If iCloud's 'Optimize iPhone Storage' is on, most of the library is thumbnails — switch to Download and Keep Originals (Settings → Photos) and let the phone re-download everything first, which needs enough free device storage to hold the full library.

Step 2: Install Degoo and back up the camera roll

Install Degoo from the App Store, sign in, enable photo backup (Wi-Fi only recommended) and leave the app to work — iOS background limits mean opening it periodically speeds things up. Photos land in Degoo's feed with capture dates intact.

Degoo mobile app Moments screen in English with Upload and Refresh buttons visible

Zero desktop involvement and Degoo's intended workflow — but hostage to device storage and iOS backgrounding. A 256 GB iPhone can't stage a 500 GB library.

Method 3: Server-Side Copy with CloudsLinker

For the library that no longer fits on any phone

CloudsLinker connects to iCloud Photos with your Apple ID — the dedicated photo-library connector, not the Drive one — and streams originals into Degoo from the cloud side, so device storage never constrains the job. Apple's throttling (50–150 GB/day in practice) sets the tempo; the task paces itself through as many days as the library demands, delivering HEIC originals and video into date-organized Degoo folders.

Step 1: Connect iCloud Photos

Click Add Cloud → iCloud Photos. Enter the Apple ID and password, approve the 6-digit code on a trusted device, done. The session registers in your Apple ID device list like any browser login.

Connecting iCloud Photos in the CloudsLinker dashboard with Apple ID verification

Step 2: Connect Degoo

Click Add Cloud → Degoo, enter email and password, confirm. Same account the Degoo iPhone app uses — the feed will show the incoming archive as it lands.

Degoo account added as the destination cloud in CloudsLinker

Step 3: Configure the Transfer

In Transfer, source is iCloud Photos — whole library or date ranges. Destination: a Degoo folder like iPhone-Archive/.

Useful filter patterns here: date ranges for year-by-year archiving, or a type filter separating stills from video if only footage is being offloaded. Copy mode always — iCloud stays intact until verification.

CloudsLinker transfer configuration with iCloud Photos as source showing a date range filter for pre-2024 items and a Degoo iPhone Archive destination folder

Step 4: Start and Monitor the Transfer

Start it and check back daily if you like — the Task List shows items moved and the current pace through Apple's throttle. Re-verification prompts from Apple (rare, mid-multi-day jobs) surface in the task status waiting for a fresh code.

CloudsLinker task monitoring showing a photo library transfer progressing over multiple days

Comparing the Ways to Transfer From iCloud Photos to Degoo

Method	Ease of Use	Speed	Best For	Uses Local Bandwidth	Skill Level
iCloud.com download / upload	Tedious in batches	Slow, supervised	Curated selections	Yes — twice	Basic
Degoo iPhone app	Easiest	Phone-upload pace	Libraries fully on-device	Phone Wi-Fi	Basic
CloudsLinker	Easy (one 2FA code)	Apple-throttled, unattended	Cloud-optimized libraries too big for the phone	No	Basic

Practical Tips for Moving iCloud Photos to Degoo

Route by where originals live: 'Optimize iPhone Storage' users have a cloud-resident library — that's CloudsLinker territory. 'Download and Keep Originals' users can let the Degoo app do it from the handset.
Subscription tier for video, non-negotiable: free Degoo's 256 MB cap is minutes of iPhone footage; the 50 GB subscription cap swallows hours. Match the tier before starting, not after the skip report.
Preserve chronology with folder names: albums don't travel, capture dates do. Year- or event-named destination folders rebuild the navigation Degoo's feed doesn't infer.
Rescue Shared Album content first: shared spaces hold reduced-resolution copies outside your library — save keepers to your own library on-device before any migration.
ADP off, web access on, for the window: the two Apple settings that silently empty a transfer's results. Flip them back after.
Verify against Apple's counts: Settings → iCloud → Photos shows exact photo/video totals; match them to the Degoo task report before touching Recently Deleted or downgrading iCloud+.
Keep the Degoo account active: an archive parked on free Degoo dies quietly after 90 idle days — a paid tier or a recurring phone-app open keeps it alive.

Frequently Asked Questions

Apple's library transfer at privacy.apple.com currently exports iCloud Photos to Google Photos only — Degoo isn't an offered destination (and the service skips albums and edits history anyway, taking 3–7 days per request). Third-party transfer is the only direct iCloud-to-Degoo path.

HEIC files transfer byte-for-byte — Degoo stores and previews them fine, though sharing them onward to non-Apple users may need conversion. Live Photos are a photo + video pair: the still always transfers; the motion clip transfers where iCloud's web endpoints expose it as a file. In Degoo they exist as separate assets, not a tap-to-animate unit.

Albums are iCloud-side metadata, and Apple's web endpoints expose the library primarily as a date-organized stream — so expect chronology, not album structure, in Degoo. Faces, Memories and edit history stay behind on any transfer method, Apple's own included. Photos arrive with their capture dates intact in EXIF.

Apple throttles sustained sessions to roughly 50–150 GB per day per Apple ID, so plan on four to ten days of unattended running. CloudsLinker spreads the job across Apple's windows automatically; the manual method would need you re-selecting batches at icloud.com for a week.

Yes — with ADP enabled, iCloud Photos content is end-to-end encrypted and web access can't read the actual images. Disable ADP for the migration window (Settings → [your name] → iCloud → Advanced Data Protection), then switch it back on afterwards.

Neither is part of your transferable library: Shared Albums store reduced-resolution copies in a separate space, and iCloud Shared Photo Library items belong to the library of whoever contributed them. Save anything critical to your own library on-device first.

Libraries under ~400 GB fit Degoo Pro (500 GB, $2.99/mo); beyond that it's Ultimate's 5 TB at $9.99/mo. The catch is per-file limits on cheaper setups: free Degoo caps files at 256 MB — smaller than a few minutes of 4K video — while subscriptions allow 50 GB, far beyond any iPhone recording. Video-heavy libraries belong on a subscription tier.

Two levers: sign the CloudsLinker session out of your Apple ID's device list (Settings → [your name] → Sign out of the session), and change the Degoo password if you want its cached session gone too. Neither affects the transferred files.

Conclusion

The phone-app route wins for libraries that still physically live on the iPhone with originals downloaded; it's Degoo doing what Degoo was built for. Cloud-optimized libraries — the common case once storage pressure started the whole problem — need a method that reads iCloud itself: manual downloads for small selections, CloudsLinker for the archive, authenticated by Apple ID and paced through Apple's 50–150 GB/day throttle unattended. Whatever the route, leave iCloud's Recently Deleted alone for its 30-day window until Degoo's copy is verified album by album.

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