14 Painless Ways to Fix the iPhone/iCloud Photos Not Showing Up on Mac Issue

2021-06-29 18:11:09 / Posted by Brandon Wood to iOS Devices Tips
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"I have taken several pictures today with my iPhone, and after several hours, they are not showing in the Photos on my Mac. Pictures that I have imported to the Mac are showing on the iPhone. I have set up both devices to use iCloud, and both devices appear to be set correctly. How long should it take for pictures from iPhone to appear on the Mac? Help!! Thanks!"

- Posted by Lute Q in Apple Discussion

It's not the only case. Some people recently complain that the iPhone photos not showing up on Mac happens now and then when they are trying to import photos from their iPhone to Mac. Other people even find that iCloud photos are not showing on MacBook. So, how to fix these problems?

No worries! In this tutorial, we will teach you fourteen practical tricks to fix the photos from iPhone not showing up on the Mac issue.

Tip: For PC users who encounter a similar problem, check this guide: Tips to Fix iPhone Internal Storage Empty Issue

Part 1. How to Fix iPhone Photos Not Showing Up on Mac
Part 2. How to Fix iCloud Photos Not Showing Up on Mac
Bonus: FAQs about iPhone Photos Not Showing Up Issue

Part 1. How to Fix iPhone Photos Not Showing Up on Mac

Here are some efficient solutions to fix iPhone pictures not showing up on Mac.

Solution 1. Update the Mac and iPhoto App

The outdated version of the macOS and iPhoto app will bring you a lot of trouble. The first thing you can do when you find pictures from your iPhone not showing up on Mac is updating the Mac and iPhoto version.

To update the macOS:

• Connect your Mac to a stable Wi-Fi network and click the Apple menu.
• Choose the Software Update option. If there is an available update, tap Agree after reading the agreement.
• Wait until the update finishes.

To update the iPhoto app:

iPhoto will notify you automatically when a newer version is available on your Mac. Also, you can update iPhoto manually.

For iPhoto purchased from Mac's App Store, open the App Store under the Apple menu and check and download the update in the Update section.

For iPhoto obtained from the iLife disc, the update will prompt you inside the iPhoto app.

To update the iPhone OS version:

• Go to the Settings app on your iPhone and tap General > Software Update.
• If there is a new iOS version, press the Download and Install button and follow the on-screen prompts to accomplish the updating process.

Solution 2. Check the USB Cable

Randomly plug your iPhone into the Mac with a third-party USB cable? That's maybe another reason for the issue iPhone photos are not showing up on Mac. It's best to use an original USB cable that comes with the iPhone to connect your devices. To check whether it works well, you can connect your iPhone with another computer.

If poorly worked, your USB cable might get broken. Then, change another USB cable and try again.

Solution 3. Restart Your Mac and iPhone

Rebooting your iPhone and Mac is a traditional trick for iPhone photos not showing up on Mac. To start the method, unplug your iPhone into the Mac. Next,

• On your iPhone, click the Side button until the Power-off menu appears on the screen. Pull the slider from left to right to power off your iPhone. After a while, power your iPhone on again.
• On your Mac, click the Apple icon on the menu bar, choose Restart, and select Restart again to reboot your Mac.

After rebooting your devices, you can connect them and check if the problem has been solved.

Solution 4. Check if You Have Trusted the Computer

If you don't trust the computer on your iPhone, the computer won't access the iPhone data. Therefore, when iPhone photos are not showing up on Mac, you need to check whether you have trusted the computer or not.

Unlock your iPhone and connect it to the computer. If the pop-up window shows up on your iPhone again, tap the Trust button to trust the computer.

Solution 5. Close the Conflicting Software like Dropbox

Suppose you use a third-party storage service on your iPhone and Mac, like Dropbox, or some anti-virus software. In that case, it may conflict with the default photo application on Mac, which is prone to effectuate the "iPhone photos not showing up on Mac." Thus, you can uninstall the conflicting app from your Mac to solve the problem.

Solution 6. Reset the iPhone Location & Privacy

In some cases, resetting the location and privacy do solve the glitch. To do this, open the iPhone's Settings, tap General, and find Reset > Reset Location & Privacy. The operation will reset all connections and settings between the iPhone and Mac. After that, reconnect your devices to see whether the photos can show up as usual.

Solution 7. Check If You Have Enabled the iCloud Photo Library Option

Once you have enabled the iCloud Photo Library on your iPhone and Mac, the photos in the Cameral Roll will be automatically synced to your Mac. Therefore, photos from iPhone will not show up on Mac.

To check whether you have turned on the iCloud Photo Library on your iPhone, please go to the Settings app > tap your name > choose iCloud > Photos, and you will see the iCloud Photo Library option here.

To view the iCloud Photo Library option on Mac, open iPhoto > unfold the Preferences option > click General followed by iCloud.

Solution 8. Reconstruct Thumbnails on Mac

If you find the thumbnails on your iPhone but you cannot open them on your Mac, you can reconstruct the thumbnails with the following tips:

1. Back up your iPhoto library.

2. Exit iPhoto and navigate to Finder > Application > iPhoto.

3. Press and hold the Command + Option keys until the Photo Library First Aid window pops up.

4. Choose the Rebuild Thumbnails option and then tap the Rebuild button.

5. Open iPhoto to see if all photos display.

Solution 9. Take a New Photo with Your iPhone

Another way to fix the iPhone photos not showing up on Mac is to shoot a new photo or take a screenshot of your device by spontaneously tapping the Home + Side buttons. If the program can work normally, it should have fixed the bug iPhone pictures not showing up on Mac.

Solution 10. Import Photos from iPhone to Mac without iPhoto

Assume that all the above methods cannot fix the iPhone photos not showing up on the Mac issue. At this moment, you can give up iPhoto and use Coolmuster iOS Assistant for Mac instead.

Coolmuster iOS Assistant for Mac is a powerful software that enables you to export photos and other files from your iPhone to a Mac. Besides, you can also manage the iPhone data and back up and restore all iPhone data on your Mac.

Below are the highlights of Coolmuster iOS Assistant for Mac:

* Selective transfer photos, music, contacts, and other files from an iPhone to a Mac.

* Import contacts, notes, calendars, and iBooks from the Mac to your iOS devices.

* Locate the specific file in seconds.

* Back up and restore overall iPhone data in one click.

* Highly compatible with all iPhone models, including iPhone 12 Pro Max/12 Pro/12/12 mini/SE/11 Pro Max/11 Pro/11/XS Max/XS/XR/X/8/8 Plus/7 Plus/7/6S Plus/6S/6 Plus/6/5S/5C/5/4S/4, etc.

How to import photos from iPhone to Mac without iPhoto?

1. Run the software on your Mac.

After installing the app on your Mac, please launch it and connect your iPhone to the computer using a USB cable.

2. Trust the Mac on your iPhone.

When asked, please choose the Trust option on your iPhone immediately to trust the Mac. Then, click the Continue button on this program to move on.

3. Transfer photos from iPhone to Mac.

Once connected, you will see iPhone's main information on the interface. To sync photos from iPhone to Mac, tap the Photos tab from the left window, preview the thumbnails, and mark the items you wish to transfer. Finally, hit the Export button on the top menu to start transferring iPhone photos to the Mac.

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Part 2. How to Fix iCloud Photos Not Showing Up on Mac

People may also encounter the iCloud photos not appearing on Mac issue. Why does iCloud not show all my photos on Mac? Some factors may cause this, such as the poor internet connection, insufficient iCloud storage, different Apple ID, disabled iCloud Photo Library, etc. To resolve the issue, you can try the tips listed below.

Tip 1. Ensure that You Have Signed in to iCloud with the Same Apple ID

To sync photos among all your iOS devices, you need to sign in with the same Apple ID on all of them. Thus, when you discover iCloud photos not showing up on Mac, you need to check if you are logging in with the same Apple ID and passcode on your iPhone and Mac.

Tip 2. Switch on the iCloud Photo Library/My Photo Stream Option

On your iPhone: Head over to Settings > your name > iCloud > Photos and turn on the iCloud Photo Library and My Photo Stream options.

On your Mac: Click the System Preferences option on the Apple menu > iCloud > mark Photos > tap Options next to it > toggle on the iCloud Photo Library and My Photo Stream options.

Tip 3. Check the Internet Connection

The poor internet connection will interrupt the photo syncing process. Hence, when the iPhone photos are not showing up on iCloud on Mac, check whether the Wi-Fi network is stable or not. If not, please change to a stable Wi-Fi network condition and wait for a while.

Tip 4. Make Sure the iCloud Storage is Enough

Some photos may not appear on your Mac in iCloud when the iCloud Storage is not enough. So, check if you have run out of iCloud space. If yes, purchase more iCloud storage or free up more iCloud storage before syncing photos from your iPhone to your Mac.

Bonus: FAQs about iPhone Photos Not Showing Up Issue

You may also concern about the following questions related to iPhone photos not showing up.

1. Where are photos stored on Mac, and how to view them?

Once you have imported the iPhone photos to Mac with iPhoto, you can check them with the following path.

1. Open Finder on your Mac, tap the Pictures tab from the left panel and right-click the Photos Library.
2. Select the Show Package Contents option from the menu > Masters, and you will see photos in different subfolders.

2. What to do if iPhone photos not showing up on PC?

• Reboot your iPhone and Windows PC.
• Unlock your iPhone and ensure that the home screen shows when it is connected to a PC.
• Change to another USB port or cable.
• Enable Windows AotuPlay on your PC.

Tip: Want to batch convert HEIC photos to JPG? You cannot miss the five simple ways in this post.

The Bottom Line

Surely, you have mastered how to fix the iPhone photos not showing up on Mac. If you don't want to take time trying the common tricks one by one to find the crux, I recommend you to use Coolmuster iOS Assistant for Mac. It selectively transfers photos from iPhone to Mac in minutes. Besides, you can also manage the iPhone data on your Mac at the same time.

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