How many photos can 1TB hold?
A terabyte is a lifetime of phone photos for most people. Here is the count, and what the space costs.
Counted the way storage is sold, 1 GB = 1 billion bytes, so 1 TB is 1,000 GB. That is enough for about 333,333 iPhone photos at 3 MB. A camera shooting RAW fills it after about 37,037 frames. Video is what usually brings a terabyte down.
A 1 TB phone, or a terabyte in the cloud
The iPhone Air tops out at 1 TB. Paying for the top size puts all that space on one device that can be lost, dropped or stolen. The same terabyte in the cloud is 1 TB for $5/mo, and it outlives any phone. Every file is encrypted in your browser before it uploads. Get 1 TB for $5/mo and keep the phone for what you shot this year.
| Photo type | Photos that fit |
|---|---|
| iPhone photo (24 MP HEIF, the default) | 333,333 |
| iPhone 48 MP (HEIF Max) | 200,000 |
| Camera JPEG (24 MP) | 114,942 |
| Camera RAW (24 MP) | 37,037 |
| iPhone ProRAW (48 MP) | 13,333 |
How to use the calculator
The tool opens at 1 TB with a recent iPhone's default photo. Pick another photo type to see its count, or type a different size to compare.
How the count is worked out
Each count is the storage divided by the size of one photo, rounded down. Storage is sold in decimal units: 1 GB = 1 billion bytes. Photo sizes are typical, not fixed, because a detailed scene makes a bigger file than a plain one.
When it fills up
Copy the photos you want to keep somewhere with more room before you delete anything. Every StorageBites size and price is on the pricing page, and each file is encrypted in your browser before upload.
Frequently asked questions
How many photos can 1 terabyte hold?
About 333,333 phone photos or 114,942 camera JPEGs. Taking 30 pictures a day, that is about thirty years of them. Even a heavy shooter takes decades to fill it with photos alone.
How many RAW photos fit on 1TB?
About 37,037 at 27 MB each. Add the JPEG that many cameras save alongside, and it is about 28,011. For a hobby photographer that is many years of shooting; for a busy professional, a few.
How many photos does 1TB hold if I also keep video?
Take the video out first, because it grows much faster than the photos do. Each hour of 4K at 170 MB a minute uses about 10 GB, so 20 hours leaves room for about 265,333 photos.
Is 1TB of cloud storage enough for a family?
For pictures, usually yes. Several phones' libraries fit with room to spare, and long videos are what fill it. Add up each phone's Photos size under Settings > General > iPhone Storage first.
How many photos does a 1TB external drive hold?
The same count as any terabyte: about 333,333 phone photos. A drive in a desk drawer is a good second copy. It is not a safe only copy, because drives fail and one fire or theft takes it with the computer.