3 Ways How Google Photos Counts Against Google Drive Storage

All Google account users should know what is included in Google Drive’s storage quota so as not to fill it with unnecessary garbage. Google Photos will be added to Google Drive’s free storage quota, so you’ll have to be careful with the photos you sync and back up. This means that the 15GB of free storage you get when you create a Google Account will quickly fill up with Google Photos before you know it.

The High-quality upload mode in Google Photos has pretty much guaranteed unlimited photo and video backups on iPhone and Android. Setting this up is easy; Download the Google Photos app and enable the Backup & Sync option to automatically back up photos from your phone’s gallery app. This was also the case with Google Drive’s Backup and Sync client on Windows and macOS.

That will change as Google ends free unlimited storage options for photos. Google is withdrawing its free unlimited upload offer and soon anything you add to your Google account will eventually count towards your Google Drive storage.

There are three ways Google Photos (and photos and videos in general) can be counted against your Google Drive storage quota. This is an important change to know in order not to wake up to a full Google Drive storage and then have to go through and delete thousands of files.

1. Original Quality Downloads

If you use the Original upload setting in the Google Photos mobile apps or the Backup & Sync desktop client, your photos and videos will upload in the same quality and file size as they were originally taken.

If you’re uploading your photos and videos this way, you don’t have to worry too much about your Google Drive storage filling up fast. However, your uploads will still count towards Google Drive storage quota.

2. High Quality Downloads Will Count

Previously, the High quality setting in Google Photos allowed you to upload unlimited photos and videos to Google Drive. However, that means your photos are compressed to 16 megapixels and videos are downscaled to 1080p. For what you get in return this is still great.

Unfortunately, this will not be the case as of June 1, 2021. Similar to original uploads, the photos and videos you back up in High Quality will start hitting your Google Drive storage quota. If you’ve managed to keep everything under Google Drive’s free 15GB of storage, you’re bound to upgrade at some point soon.

Fortunately, any photos you upload before June 1, 2021 will not count towards the storage limit. That means you still have time to backup as many photos as possible in High Quality.

Note that you are also compressing and freeing up your original uploads; Go to Google Photos Back and Sync Settings in the mobile or web app to start converting them.

If you own a Pixel smartphone, count yourself as one of the lucky few. Photos and videos you upload in high quality are not counted even after Google starts the new storage policy. This applies to all models from Pixel 1 to Pixel 5.

3. Direct Photo Uploads to Google Drive

If you upload photos and videos directly to Google Drive, they will be uploaded as is and deducted from your storage. Both Google Photos and Google Drive do not sync photos and videos you upload to a particular service, no matter how much they depend on each other in terms of storage. They did a while ago, but not anymore. So if you don’t want to store your photos outside of Google Photos for some reason, there’s no reason to upload them to Google Drive.

You should also note that Google Drive does not have the High quality option setting to upload your images in compressed quality (16 megapixels).

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Changing the High Quality upload setting to be deducted from your Google Drive storage is a big change that will disappoint many users. Unlimited photo and video uploads were the likely reason why so many people started using the service in the first place. catch; it wasn’t just a business-sustainable backup model.

To Google’s credit, Google Drive is still among the top storage services, with 15GB of free storage and competitive pricing tiers. Also, Google Photos is an excellent photo and video manager and probably one of the best multiplatform services you can use. If you’re going to be too impressed, it’s up to you to weigh the pros and cons and then decide whether you want to stick around or look for alternatives.

Next: Amazon Drive is a worthwhile alternative you should consider. Check out how it stacks up against Google Drive.