Guides

How to Erase Your Photos Before Selling or Trading In Your iPhone

Mehmet Ali Kısacık · Developer of Secure Folder · July 18, 2026 · 4 min read

Updated October 2, 2026

To erase photos before selling iPhone devices, delete any photos you do not want to remain in iCloud Photos before you wipe the device. Apple says Erase All Content and Settings clears the iPhone itself, but it does not delete your content from iCloud.

Travel folder alert asks whether to remove original photos after importing them to Secure Folder.
Choose whether to remove originals from Photos after importing them.
In this article

Erasing the iPhone and deleting from iCloud are separate jobs

If iCloud Photos is turned on, your photo library is connected across devices signed in with the same Apple Account. Delete a photo on one of those devices and the deletion is reflected on the others.2

Erasing the iPhone does something different. It removes the content and settings from that phone, while photos already stored in iCloud remain in your account. For a sale or trade-in, deal with the iCloud Photos library first while you are still signed in, then erase the phone afterward.1

Delete the photos from iCloud before you erase

Remove the photos you do not want to keep

  1. 1.

    Open Photos while you are still signed in

    Do the cleanup before signing out or erasing the iPhone so your deletions can be applied to the iCloud Photos library.1,2

  2. 2.

    Delete the photos and videos you want gone

    Select the items in Photos and delete them. If iCloud Photos is enabled, Apple says that deletion is reflected on your other devices signed in with the same Apple Account.2

  3. 3.

    Check the Hidden album too

    If you have used Apple's Hidden album, review it before handing over the phone. Hidden photos are still part of the Photos library, and when iCloud Photos is in use they can appear on your other devices.3

  4. 4.

    Empty Recently Deleted

    Photos and videos you delete normally remain in Recently Deleted for 30 days. Permanently remove anything you want gone now instead of waiting for that period to expire. For more detail, see how to permanently delete photos on iPhone.2

Finish the hand-over in Apple's current order

Prepare the iPhone for its next owner

  1. 1.

    Turn off Stolen Device Protection if you use it

    Apple recommends turning off Stolen Device Protection before you sell, give away, or trade in the iPhone. If you try to turn it off away from a familiar location, a security delay can begin. The Stolen Device Protection details are worth checking before you meet the buyer or reach the trade-in counter.4

  2. 2.

    Sign out of your Apple Account

    Do this after the photo deletions you wanted have been made. Apple's current pre-sale instructions vary by iOS version, including a "Sign Out But Don't Erase" option on iOS 26 or later, so follow the account-removal prompts shown on your device.1

  3. 3.

    Open Erase All Content and Settings

    Go to Settings, General, Transfer or Reset iPhone, then choose Erase All Content and Settings.5

  4. 4.

    Complete the erase

    Enter your iPhone passcode or Apple Account password if Apple asks for it. Erasing restores the iPhone to factory settings, and Apple's pre-sale documentation says Find My and Activation Lock turn off when the device is erased.1,5

A repair is a different situation from a sale, so use the steps for keeping private photos safe during iPhone repairs instead. If your question is what can reappear after resetting or restoring a phone, see what happens to hidden photos after a reset or restore.

Keep private photos out of the camera roll next time

Apple's Hidden album is useful for keeping photos out of the main library view, but those photos are still part of Photos. When iCloud Photos is in use, hidden photos can also appear on your other devices using the same Apple Account.3

Secure Folder: Privacy Vault takes a different approach by keeping selected private photos in a separate on-device gallery. Importing creates a vault copy, and the original leaves Photos once you delete it. On the first photo import, the app asks whether to remove originals after import, and iOS confirms each deletion.

Secure Folder is local-only: nothing is uploaded, it uses no iCloud, and it needs no account or email. If you remove the originals from Photos after importing them, there is no Photos copy left to keep syncing through iCloud Photos. You can explore the private photo vault features or see the difference between a separate vault and Apple's Hidden album.2

Hide private photos in a PIN-protected vault.

Secure Folder is free to download on the App Store, and your photos and videos stay on your iPhone.

Get Secure Folder→

Sources

  1. 1.Apple Support, “What to do before you sell, give away, or trade in your iPhone or iPad,” support.apple.com
  2. 2.Apple Support, “Delete photos on your iPhone or iPad,” support.apple.com
  3. 3.Apple Support, “Hide photos on your iPhone, iPad, Mac, or Apple Vision Pro with the Hidden album,” support.apple.com
  4. 4.Apple Support, “About Stolen Device Protection for iPhone,” support.apple.com
  5. 5.Apple, “Erase iPhone,” support.apple.com

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