Moving Your Photo Library from iCloud Photos to Google Drive: What Actually Works

Thinking about getting your photos out of iCloud Photos and into Google Drive? This guide walks you through three practical approaches—from manual browser transfers to iPhone uploads and cloud-to-cloud automation—so you can choose the method that fits your setup.

Introduction

At some point, many Apple users decide they want a copy of their iCloud Photos library stored somewhere more flexible—often Google Drive. Maybe it’s for easier sharing, long-term storage, or simply keeping everything in one place. The challenge is that iCloud Photos isn’t designed like a traditional file system, which makes exporting large libraries less obvious than it should be. In this article, we’ll look at three workable ways to move photos from iCloud Photos to Google Drive, each suited to different library sizes and technical comfort levels.

Method 1: Download from iCloud Photos and Upload to Google Drive (Browser)
Method 2: Upload Directly from Your iPhone Using the Google Drive App
Method 3: Transfer Directly in the Cloud with CloudsLinker
Quick Comparison
Important Things to Know
Frequently Asked Questions

About iCloud Photos

iCloud Photos keeps your entire photo library synced across iPhone, iPad, and Mac. It’s beautifully integrated into the Apple ecosystem — but storage can become expensive quickly.

Only 5 GB free shared across backups, photos, and files.
Paid iCloud+ tiers scale up to 12 TB.
Optimized storage keeps full-resolution photos in the cloud.
Tight Apple lock-in — best experience happens inside Apple devices.

Many users love the seamless syncing — until their photo library crosses 200 GB or 500 GB and monthly costs start stacking up.

About Google Drive

Google Drive offers flexible cloud storage that works across all platforms — Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, and browsers.

15 GB free shared across Google services.
Google One plans offer competitive pricing for large storage.
Easy sharing through public or restricted links.
Works outside Apple ecosystem.

For users who want broader compatibility and often lower long-term cost, Google Drive can feel more flexible than iCloud Photos.

Why Move Photos from iCloud Photos to Google Drive?

I’ve spoken with several users who originally loved iCloud Photos — until their photo library hit a few hundred gigabytes. At that point, the monthly iCloud+ subscription became noticeably more expensive compared to equivalent Google One plans.

One photographer shared that after upgrading twice in a year, she realized most of her photos were simply archived — rarely opened on Apple devices — but still costing premium storage fees. Moving everything to Google Drive reduced her monthly bill while keeping access from Windows PCs and shared family accounts.

Cost Efficiency: For large libraries, Google Drive plans are often more price-competitive.
Cross-Platform Freedom: No dependency on Apple hardware.
Simpler Sharing: Google Drive links are widely compatible.
Long-Term Archiving: Useful if you mainly store rather than edit photos.

That said, exporting from iCloud Photos isn’t as straightforward as moving regular folders. Let’s look at two realistic ways to do it.

Method 1: Download from iCloud Photos, Then Upload to Google Drive

This is the simplest method — and the one most people try first.

Log in to iCloud Photos on the web, select your images or albums, download them to your computer, and then upload them into Google Drive.

Works for small libraries
No third-party tools required
Manual control over what gets transferred

The downside? Time. If your library is 300 GB or more, downloading everything locally can take hours — and uploading again doubles the wait. It also uses your local bandwidth twice.

For 5–20 GB, this is fine. For 500 GB, it becomes a weekend project.

Method 2: Upload Directly from Your iPhone Using the Google Drive App

If most of your photos already live on your iPhone, this might be the most straightforward option.

Instead of downloading everything to a computer, you can install Google Drive for iOS , sign in with your Google account, and manually upload selected photos straight from your device.

Here’s how most people do it:

Download and open the Google Drive app on your iPhone.
Tap the “+” button and choose Upload.
Select Photos and Videos.
Pick the images or albums you want to move.

Upload Photos to Google Drive in Google Drive App

The upload runs in the background, although it may pause if the app is closed for too long or if iOS limits background activity.

One user told me she preferred this method because she didn’t want to export her entire 600 GB library — she only needed specific family albums moved. For that kind of selective transfer, using the phone directly actually felt more controlled and less overwhelming.

That said, for very large transfers, uploading from a mobile connection can be slower than desktop or cloud-based methods.

Method 3: Move Your iCloud Photos to Google Drive in the Cloud (No Downloads)

Why Some Users Skip the Download Step Entirely

If your photo library is already hundreds of gigabytes, downloading everything to your laptop just to upload it again feels unnecessary. Using CloudsLinker allows the transfer to run directly between iCloud Photos and Google Drive — entirely online.

Step 1: Add iCloud Photos

After signing in, click Add Cloud and select iCloud Photos. Log in with your Apple ID and complete two-factor authentication if required.

Connect iCloud Photos in CloudsLinker dashboard

Once connected, your albums and photo folders appear inside the dashboard, similar to browsing them on iCloud.com.

Step 2: Connect Google Drive

Next, choose Google Drive from the cloud list. You’ll be redirected to Google’s secure authorization page to approve access.

After authorization, Google Drive will show up alongside iCloud Photos as an available destination.

Step 3: Configure and Start the Transfer

Open the Transfer section. Select iCloud Photos as the source and choose Google Drive as the destination.

Transfer configuration from iCloud Photos to Google Drive

You can select specific albums instead of moving your entire library. Many users prefer transferring gradually, especially if their collection exceeds several hundred gigabytes.

Step 4: Monitor Progress

The active task will appear in your Task List. You can check real-time progress, pause if needed, and review logs in case any files require attention.

Comparing the 3 Ways to Move Photos from iCloud Photos to Google Drive

There’s no single “best” way to move your iCloud Photos library to Google Drive. It mostly depends on how much you’re moving and whether you want to babysit the process. If you’re trying to cut iCloud storage costs (which can add up fast once you outgrow the free tier), the goal is usually simple: get a reliable copy into Drive without breaking your workflow. Here’s a quick side-by-side view of the three approaches in this guide.

Method	Ease of Use	Speed	Best For	Uses Local Bandwidth	Skill Level
Web Browser (Download → Upload)	★★★★★	★★★☆☆	Small batches, occasional exports	Yes (download + upload)	Beginner
iPhone (Google Drive App Upload)	★★★★★	★★☆☆☆	Uploading specific albums or recent photos	Yes (mobile/Wi-Fi upload)	Beginner
CloudsLinker (Cloud-to-Cloud)	★★★★★	★★★★★	Large libraries, hands-off transfers	No	Beginner

If you only need to move a few folders’ worth of photos, the browser method is fine. If you’re mostly working from your phone and want to upload just a few albums, the Google Drive iPhone app is surprisingly practical. But once you’re dealing with a big library (hundreds of GB), the manual download-and-upload loop can feel like punishment — that’s where a cloud-to-cloud transfer with CloudsLinker tends to be the least stressful.

Key Tips for a Smooth iCloud Photos to Google Drive Transfer

iCloud Photos doesn’t behave like a normal “folder of files,” so a little preparation goes a long way. These are the things that most often trip people up when moving photos into Google Drive.

Don’t transfer single photos one-by-one if you can avoid it: if you’re using iCloud Photos as a source, selecting whole albums (or folders) is usually faster and more reliable than picking individual images.
Web downloads have selection limits: on iCloud Photos web, Apple limits how many items you can select at once. If you’re exporting a lot, do it in chunks or choose album-by-album.
Expect “download → upload” to take longer than you think: the browser method uses your local connection twice. If your upload speed is slow, it becomes the bottleneck. That’s a big reason people switch to cloud-to-cloud transfer for large libraries.
Watch out for HEIC and Live Photos: some users prefer converting HEIC to JPEG for compatibility when sharing outside Apple ecosystems. If you want the most “Apple-like” experience on the other side, keep originals; if you want broad compatibility, consider converting later (not during the transfer).
Make sure Google storage has room: Google storage is shared across Drive, Gmail, and Photos. If your account is near full, uploads can fail partway through.
If cost is your motivation, move in stages: many people don’t need to migrate everything at once. Start with older albums you rarely edit, confirm they’re safely in Drive, then decide what to move next. It’s an easy way to reduce iCloud usage without risking your entire library in one go.
Use official logins: avoid tools that ask for raw passwords. OAuth-style sign-ins and app-based authorizations are safer, and you can revoke access later if needed.

The biggest “smooth transfer” hack is boring but true: move in batches, verify a few albums, and only then scale up. That’s how you avoid the classic “I moved everything… and now I can’t find half of it” panic.

Frequently Asked Questions

Answer: iCloud Photos on the web is designed for browsing and downloading, but Apple limits how many photos/videos you can select at once. If you’re exporting a lot, use albums and download in batches instead of trying to “select all.”

Answer: When you connect iCloud Photos, you sign in with your Apple ID and enter the verification code Apple sends to your trusted device. After that, the connection uses a secure session/token so you don’t have to repeatedly re-verify for every transfer.

Answer: Uploads can fail or pause if your Google storage is full. Free Google accounts share storage across Drive, Gmail, and Google Photos, so it’s worth checking your available space first. If you’re tight on space, either free up storage or upgrade before moving large albums.

Answer: Yes. Install the Google Drive app, tap the + button, choose Upload, then pick Photos and Videos. This works best for selected albums or recent photos rather than an entire library.

Answer: The safer approach is always using official sign-in flows (OAuth/authorized logins), not sharing raw passwords. With connected services, you can usually revoke access later from your Apple ID / Google account security settings.

Answer: If your library is huge, cloud-to-cloud transfer is usually the most hands-off. It avoids the “download everything locally, then upload again” loop and keeps your home network from being tied up for days.

Conclusion

Transferring photos from iCloud Photos to Google Drive isn’t difficult—but the right approach depends on how large your library is and how hands-on you want to be. Smaller collections can be handled manually, selective uploads work well from an iPhone, and cloud-to-cloud transfers remove most of the waiting and re-uploading. Pick the method that matches your situation, and always verify your files once they arrive in Google Drive.

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