How to transfer photos from an Android phone to a computer

2 min read · 5 steps · Updated 2 October 2026

A cable is the fastest way to move a large number of photos and videos, and it keeps full quality. It needs no account and no internet connection.

Menu names below are from Google Pixel phones on a recent Android version. Samsung, Xiaomi and other brands rename some of them, so the Samsung name is given where it differs. The pictures are simplified diagrams of the screen, not screenshots.

Step by step

1. Connect the phone with a USB cable

   Use the cable that came with the phone if you can. Some cheap cables only charge and cannot carry data.

   Done

2. Unlock the phone and tap the USB notification

   Swipe down from the top. Tap "Charging this device via USB".

   Done

3. Choose File transfer

   The phone now appears on the computer as a drive.

   Done

4. Open the phone on the computer

   On Windows, open File Explorer and click the phone's name under This PC. On a Mac, you need a helper app, because macOS does not show Android phones in Finder. See the note below.

   Done

5. Copy the photos

   Open Internal shared storage, then DCIM, then Camera. Select the files and drag them to a folder on the computer. Screenshots are in Pictures, Screenshots, and WhatsApp images in Android, media, com.whatsapp.

   Done

Good to know

On a Mac, the simplest routes are Google Photos in the browser, or a cloud folder. For a cable transfer you need a file-transfer app for Android on the Mac.

Without a cable: turn on backup in Google Photos, then open photos.google.com on the computer and download what you need.

Between an Android phone and a Windows PC nearby, Quick Share also works: install Quick Share for Windows from Google and send photos from the share menu.

Check the copies open on the computer before you delete anything from the phone.

In short: USB cable, File transfer, open the phone on the computer, DCIM, Camera, copy.