---
title: "How big is a Live Photo? Storage vs a regular photo"
description: "A Live Photo is a still plus a short video, about 5 to 9 MB against 2 to 3 MB for a regular photo, by one estimate. See what’s inside and how to save space."
url: "https://picway.app/guides/live-photo-file-size/"
lang: "en"
type: "guides"
updated: "2026-11-01"
published: "2026-11-01"
keywords: "Live Photo file size"
---

# How big is a Live Photo? Storage vs a regular photo

URL: https://picway.app/guides/live-photo-file-size/
Markdown: https://picway.app/guides/live-photo-file-size/index.md
Last updated: 2026-11-01

A Live Photo is a still image plus a short video clip, so it takes more room. One third-party estimate puts a Live Photo at 5 to 9 MB against 2 to 3 MB for a standard shot, about 2 to 3 times as much. Your own numbers vary, so check what your iPhone actually stores.

## How to do it {#steps}

1. **See how much space Photos uses**: Open Settings, tap General, then tap iPhone Storage and find Photos. Live Photos are part of that number, so this is your starting point.
2. **Find your Live Photos**: Open the Photos app, tap Collections, scroll to Media Types, and tap Live Photos. The count shows how many you have.
3. **Decide what to keep live**: Keep the ones where motion matters. For the rest, you can turn off Live Photo in the Camera app, or convert existing ones to stills.

## What’s inside a Live Photo? {#inside}

Your iPhone records what happens 1.5 seconds before and after you take the picture ([Apple](https://support.apple.com/en-us/104966)). Under the hood, an app-maker guide describes two files paired by a shared identifier: a 4032 × 3024 still and a 1920 × 1440 clip at about 30 fps ([AI Frame Grabber](https://aiframegrabber.com/guides/video-to-live-photo/)).

## How much bigger is it? {#how-much-bigger}

| | Regular photo | Live Photo |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Typical size | 2 to 3 MB | 5 to 9 MB |

Source: [Tidy](https://tidy.gallery/blog/live-photos-storage/), a third-party estimate.

## How much does removing the motion save? {#removing-motion}

As a simple example, if the motion part averages 5 MB, removing it from 1,000 Live Photos frees about 5 GB, according to [Live Photo Cleaner](https://livephotocleaner.com/do-live-photos-take-up-more-storage). Your library may be higher or lower.

## What can PicWay do? {#picway}

Two choices:

- **Compress Live Photo**: it stays a Live Photo, with the photo and the motion smaller.
- **Convert to still photo**: removes the motion when you only want the still. On the Set aside page, tap the level on the compression card and choose **Keep one frame**.

Compressing may lose some detail. You can compare before and after, and delete the original only once the new version looks right.

## Does iCloud keep Live Photos as Live Photos? {#icloud}

Yes. iCloud Photos stores special formats such as Live Photos in their original form ([Apple](https://support.apple.com/en-us/108782)).