How to Merge Duplicate Photos on iPhone and Clean Up Your Gallery

Have you decided to clean up your gallery and finally get rid of duplicate photos? There are probably way more of them on your iPhone than you think. You may already know, or perhaps this is new information, but iOS 16 or later has a built-in feature for merging duplicate photos on iPhone. But the big question is – how well does it actually work? What kinds of images does it catch? And more importantly – what does it miss? If you’re curious about all that, keep reading. We’ll break it all down and show you exactly how to merge duplicate photos on your iPhone.

What Does Merge Mean on iPhone?

We think it’s worth clearing this up because when you hear “merge,” you might assume your iPhone literally combines duplicate photos into one. That makes sense, right? But in reality, the built-in duplicates feature on iOS doesn’t work that way. Instead of blending images together, it picks the best one from a group of duplicates and sends the rest to the Recently Deleted album. By the way, if you actually want to get more storage on your iPhone right away, you’ll need to empty that album manually. Otherwise, those deleted photos will hang around for 30 days before they disappear.

Duplicate remover apps work the same way (we’ll get into those later in the article). They keep one image from each group of duplicates and move the rest to the Recently Deleted album.

iPhones don’t have a built‑in tool for combining images, duplicates, or otherwise. If you want to merge photos into a single image, you’ll need a third‑party editing app. Just keep in mind that even those apps don’t really merge multiple images into one in a technical sense – they usually just layer or collage them together.

Two Ways to Merge Duplicate Photos on iPhone

Now that we’ve cleared up what “merge” really means, let’s talk about how to actually do it. We’ll start with the iPhone’s built‑in duplicates tool, then show you an alternative that many people find even easier to use.

Method 1: Use the Native iOS Function for Duplicates

This function only detects exact duplicates (images that are identical pixel for pixel). It doesn’t catch photos that are just similar, even though you might consider them duplicates. Also, it might not immediately recognize duplicates right after you add new images since it needs time to index them. Despite these limitations, the feature still works pretty well, and it’s definitely worth mentioning.

1. Open the Photos app on your iPhone and scroll down to the ‘Utilities’ section.
2. Tap on the ‘Duplicates’ album.
3. Here, you’ll see groups of photos that your iPhone has flagged as exact duplicates.

1. Tap on a group, then hit ‘Merge’ – this keeps the highest-quality version and moves the extras to your Recently Deleted album.

If you’d rather handle everything in one go, you can do that, too: open the Duplicates album > tap ‘Select’ at the top right > then tap ‘Select All’ > hit ‘Merge’ at the bottom of the screen and confirm. Just like that, all your duplicates are cleaned up in one move.

Method 2: Use the iPhone Duplicate Remover App

Since the built-in iOS tool doesn’t catch similar photos, like shots taken on the same day with different lighting or angles, it’s clear that you’ll need a better solution to handle those. That’s where iPhone cleaner apps come in. You’ll find plenty of options in the App Store, but in this article, we’ll break down how they work using Clever Cleaner: AI CleanUp App.

We went with this app because it actually delivers on what it promises – it finds both exact duplicates and similar-looking photos (which the iOS utility misses). It groups them, uses AI to pick the best shot in each set, and automatically marks the rest for deletion. If you don’t agree with the selection, you can always change it. Best part? It’s completely free – no subscriptions, no annoying third-party ads.

1. Download the Clever Cleaner app from the App Store.
2. Open it and grant access to your photo library. Let it scan your images – it only takes a moment. Once that’s done, the “Similars” feature will launch automatically.
3. You’ll see groups of duplicate and similar photos. We suggest opening a few groups to confirm you agree with the app’s pick for the best photo. If everything looks good, just tap ‘Smart Cleanup’ to quickly delete the extras.
4. Don’t love the app’s choice? No problem. You can manually select the photo you want to keep and uncheck the ones you want to delete. Then tap ‘Move to Trash.’

1. The app will send the selected images to its internal trash. A message will pop up at the bottom. Tap it if you want to review the files before deleting them. If you’re confident, hit ‘Empty Trash’ to skip the review.
2. Once deleted from the app, those photos move to your iPhone’s ‘Recently Deleted’ album. Because of iOS restrictions, there’s no way around this step. The app will give you quick instructions on how to clear that out, too, and we’ll walk through it in the next section.

By the way, Clever Cleaner also has other features that come in handy if you want to give your gallery a thorough clean. You can check them out either on its App Store page or the official website.

Don’t Forget to Clear the Recently Deleted Album

Just to be precise – clearing the Recently Deleted album isn’t something you have to do. The system will automatically empty it 30 days after the files are moved there. But, until then, those files still take up space on your iPhone. So, if you’re trying to free up storage right away, it’s a good idea to clear it manually.

1. Open the Photos app on your iPhone and scroll down to the ‘Recently Deleted’ album.
2. Tap to open it and see everything that’s still sitting there.
3. Tap ‘Select All’ in the top right corner.
4. Hit ‘Delete All’ at the bottom.
5. When the confirmation pops up, confirm to delete everything and free up that space permanently.

Conclusion

Now you know how to merge duplicate photos on your iPhone. While Apple does include a built-in tool for this, we recommend going with a cleaner app like Clever Cleaner or something similar. These apps offer a broader range of actions, dealing effectively with both complete duplicates and similar images, which are typically more numerous on your iPhone.

To prevent issues with a large number of duplicates in the future, always ensure that you do not download the same picture several times or duplicate the ones already in your gallery. When it comes to similar shots, get in the habit of reviewing your photos right after taking them. Delete the ones that didn’t turn out or that you don’t really like. Spend a few seconds to clean things up immediately, it helps to keep your gallery organized and clutter‑free.

FAQ

How do I merge two pictures together to make one picture on an iPhone?

To combine two photos into one on your iPhone, you’ll need a third-party photo editing app since the built-in Photos app doesn’t offer that feature. Apps like Photoshop Express, Pic Collage, or Canva make it easy to overlay images, place them side by side, or blend them together. Download one of these from the App Store, open it up, and use the built-in tools to create your combined image.

How can I tell which photo will be kept after merging?

When you use the built-in iOS feature to merge duplicate photos, your iPhone usually keeps the one with the best quality – things like sharper focus, higher resolution, or better overall composition. If you’re using a third-party app like Clever Cleaner, it typically lets you review each group and choose which photo to keep. These apps often use AI to suggest the best one, based on similar factors.

Does merging duplicate photos delete them?

Yes, merging photos deletes duplicates. In the iPhone’s native Photos app, when you merge duplicates, it keeps just one and moves the rest to the ‘Recently Deleted’ album, where they hang out for 30 days unless you delete them sooner. In third-party apps, like photo cleaners, the duplicates usually go to in-app trash first, and you’ll need to confirm before they’re deleted.

Why am I unable to merge duplicate photos on my iPhone?

There are a few reasons why you might not see the option to merge photos on your iPhone:

• The merge feature only works on iOS 16 or later, so make sure your iPhone is updated.
• It only shows up if the system detects exact duplicates. If it doesn’t find any, you won’t see the merge option.
• If you just added photos, the system may still be indexing them – it can take a little time for duplicates to show up.
• If you’re using iCloud Photos, syncing delays or issues can sometimes prevent the system from recognizing duplicates right away.