How to View iCloud Photo Library on PC/MAC

by Jenefey Aaron   Updated on 2022-11-02 / Update for  iPhone Tips

You don’t need to have your iPhone/iPad to view photos if you had saved them on iCloud. It is possible to access iCloud Photostream on PC, Mac. This is enabled by the Photo Stream program with which multiple users can share iCloud photos when the sharing Photos Stream option is switched on. Here is what you can do if you’re wondering how you can access iCloud photos on Mac/PC.

Part 1: How to View iCloud Photos Online

iCloud.com allows users to see iCloud photos on computer with Internet connection.

  • 1.Open iCloud.com on your computer and log in with the same Apple ID as your iOS Device.
  • sign in icloud account
  • 2.Select Photos from the listed menu and you will be displayed with all photo stream uploaded from your iOS device.
  • select photos on icloud
  • 3.You can also click the Download icon to export iCloud photos to your computer, but this proved to be workable for single picture at one time.

Part 2: Access iCloud Photo Library on Mac

Here are some steps to access iCloud without iPhone from your Mac computer/ laptop.

  • 1.Navigate to “System Preferences” on your Mac desktop
  • 2.On the System Preferences menu, click on iCloud and then tick the check box named “Photo”.
  • 3.To confirm if Photo Stream is on, open Options and make sure it’s switched on alongside “iCloud Photo Libreary”, “My Photo Stream” and “iCloud Photo Sharing”.
  • enable icloud photo library

As long as your iOS device in under Wi-Fi network and there is enough iCloud storage, your pictures will be automatically uploaded to Mac computer.

Part 3: How to Access iCloud Photos using a PC

If you need to open iCloud photos on your Windows computer, I shall recommend you with a handy tool called Tenorshare iPhone Data Recovery, which can directly extract your iCloud backup files and restore photos to PC. Below steps will walk you through the process to use iPhone Data Recovery.

windows download btn mac download btn
  • 1. Download and install iPhone Data Recovery

    Connect your Apple device (iPad, iPhone or iPod) to the PC that you’ve downloaded and installed iPhone Data Recovery into. Make sure the device is on before running iPhone Data Recovery. Then select Recover from iCloud Backup Files from the top menu.
  • ultdata interface
  • 2. Sign in with your Apple ID

    Log in with the same Apple ID with your iOS device and select a relative backup file contains your pictures.
  • restore from icloud
  • 3. Choose the images to recover

    After that, you can select the file types you want (photos in this case) if you are short on time. You can also use the “Select All” option. Click on the button named “Start Scan” to scan your device.
  • select photos
  • 4. Export iCloud photos to PC

    UltData will display and allow you to preview the Photos you want and you should check the ones you need. Click on “Recover” and choose a preferred save location for your photos.

Video Guide on How to Access iCloud Photos on PC

windows download btn mac download btn