TidyByteTo delete all your screenshots at once, open Photos › Albums, scroll to Media Types, tap Screenshots, tap Select, then Select All, then the trash (bin) icon. Screen recordings have their own album right next to it, and they are usually far bigger, so do that album too. Everything you delete goes to Recently Deleted for 30 days; empty it if you want the space back today. The steps, and a few tips for keeping the screenshots that matter, are below.
Where do screenshots and screen recordings live on iPhone?
Both are saved to the Photos app, mixed in with your camera photos. That is why they feel scattered. But iOS also files them into two automatic albums:
- Photos › Albums › Media Types › Screenshots
- Photos › Albums › Media Types › Screen Recordings
On newer versions of iOS, scroll down the main Photos screen until you reach the Media Types section and open the album from there. If you cannot see it, search inside Photos for "Screenshots" or "Screen Recordings".
These albums update on their own. Every screenshot you take and every screen recording you make appears there automatically, so you never need to sort them by hand.
How do I delete all screenshots at once?
- Open Photos and go to Albums › Media Types › Screenshots.
- Tap Select in the top corner.
- Tap Select All if it appears. If it does not, tap the first screenshot and drag your finger across the grid without lifting it; keep dragging down to select row after row.
- Look at the count at the top of the screen so you know how many are selected.
- Tap the trash icon and confirm.
The screenshots move to Recently Deleted. They are not gone yet, and they still use space until you empty that album. Recently Deleted keeps items for 30 days; the space comes back when it is emptied.
How do I delete all screen recordings?
Exactly the same way, one album over:
- Open Photos › Albums › Media Types › Screen Recordings.
- Tap Select, then Select All or drag to select.
- Tap the trash icon and confirm.
Screen recordings deserve their own pass because of their size. A screenshot is a small image. A screen recording is a video, and a few minutes of screen recording can be larger than hundreds of screenshots. Many people find that a handful of forgotten recordings, made to show someone a problem or capture a clip, are among the biggest files on the phone.
Which ones should I keep?
Most screenshots have a short life. A boarding pass, a code, an address, a funny message: useful for a day, then clutter. But a few are worth keeping, and it is worth a quick look before you delete everything.
Things people usually want to keep:
- Receipts, confirmations and order numbers you have not saved elsewhere.
- Photos of documents you might need again, such as insurance details.
- Screenshots that are the only copy of a photo or message.
- Screen recordings you made on purpose, such as a tutorial for a family member.
The easiest way to review a big album is to scroll through it once, tapping the ones to keep, then invert your thinking: select everything else. Or copy the keepers into a proper album first, then delete the whole Screenshots album with a clear conscience.
How do I get the space back today?
Deleting moves the files to Recently Deleted. To actually free the storage:
- Open Photos › Albums, scroll to Utilities, and tap Recently Deleted.
- Unlock with Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode.
- Tap Select, then Delete All, and confirm (on newer iOS, tap the ⋯ button, then Delete All).
Then check Settings › General › iPhone Storage. The number can take a few minutes to update. If you are curious why the space does not come back straight away, read Does Recently Deleted take up storage?.
How do I stop screenshots piling up again?
A few small habits keep the album from filling back up:
- Delete after sharing. When you take a screenshot to send to someone, tap the preview in the corner, share it, then tap Done › Delete Screenshot (or Copy and Delete). It never reaches your library.
- Save documents to Files, not Photos. From the same preview, Done › Save to Files keeps receipts and documents where they belong.
- Sweep the album monthly. Two minutes in Media Types › Screenshots once a month keeps it small.
- Watch screen recordings. Delete a recording as soon as you have sent it or finished with it. One long recording can outweigh a month of screenshots.
For a wider clean-up, the storage full guide covers what to delete first, and the duplicate photos guide handles the other common clutter.
Frequently asked questions
Do screenshots take up much space on iPhone?
Individually, no. Each one is a small image. But they pile up quickly, and a few thousand of them add up. Screen recordings are the real space users, because each one is a video.
Where are screen recordings stored on iPhone?
In the Photos app, and also grouped in Photos › Albums › Media Types › Screen Recordings. They are saved automatically whenever you record the screen from Control Center.
Can I stop screenshots saving to Photos?
Not automatically, but you can decide each time. After taking a screenshot, tap the preview and choose Done › Delete Screenshot, Copy and Delete, or Save to Files instead of Save to Photos.
Are deleted screenshots gone straight away?
No. They go to Recently Deleted for 30 days, where they still count against storage and can be recovered. Empty Recently Deleted to free the space now.
Will this delete screenshots from iCloud too?
If you use iCloud Photos, yes. Your devices share one library, so a delete on the iPhone removes it from all of them after the 30-day window in Recently Deleted.
Bottom line: screenshots and screen recordings have their own albums under Media Types, so clearing them takes a minute: Select, Select All, delete. Do the Screen Recordings album too, because that is where the space is. Then empty Recently Deleted when you want the storage back today.
Finds the big videos, duplicates and screenshots. Every deletion is yours to approve, and everything goes to Recently Deleted for 30 days. Free to download.
