How to delete photos from iPhone but not from iCloud
Short answer: while iCloud Photos is on, you can't. A deletion on your iPhone removes the photo from iCloud and all your devices. Here are the options that actually work.
Why it happens
iCloud Photos keeps one library in sync across your devices. Deleting a photo on any of them, or on iCloud.com, deletes it everywhere. That's by design, so there is no "delete only here" button.
Option 1: Let iOS keep the originals in iCloud (recommended)
Go to Settings → your name → iCloud → Photos and choose Optimize iPhone Storage. Full-size originals stay in iCloud; the iPhone keeps smaller versions and downloads the original when you open one. You keep every photo and still free space. You need enough iCloud storage for your whole library.
Option 2: Turn off iCloud Photos on this iPhone
- Settings → your name → iCloud → Photos → turn off Sync this iPhone.
- Choose whether to download a copy or remove the iCloud versions from this iPhone.
- From now on, deleting on this iPhone doesn't touch iCloud. New photos taken here no longer upload either.
Option 3: Copy elsewhere first, then delete
Import the photos to a computer (Photos on Mac, or the Windows Photos app) or an external drive, check that they open, and only then delete them from the iPhone and empty Recently Deleted.
What not to do
- Don't delete first and hope iCloud kept a copy. With iCloud Photos on, it didn't.
- Don't turn iCloud Photos off and on in a hurry while an upload is still running; wait until Photos says the library is up to date.
- Don't rely on an iCloud Backup for photos if iCloud Photos is on; photos are then not part of the backup.
Where Lumaroll helps
If you decide some photos can go for good, Lumaroll lets you review them one by one with a swipe. It works through the same Photos library, so the iCloud rules above apply to it too.
- Nothing is deleted until you review the list and confirm; any decision can be undone.
- Deleted items go to Recently Deleted, so you have 30 days to change your mind.
- Everything happens on your device. No account, no uploads, no ads.
- The first 500 decisions are free; Lifetime is a one-time $9.99 purchase, not a subscription.