How to Fix "Can't Backup to Google Photos" Error

As more and more people start adopting cloud technology, this post will help you in fixing issues with Google Drive and Google Photos backup not working. We truly love our internal storage and what better way to maximize its use than to save old media to the cloud? It is truly amazing but how seamless it may seem, issues do arise with cloud storage as well. To fix these issues and problems, you can follow our simple guide below to fix the Google Photos backup. Yes, you can save other media to Google Drive but today, we will focus on Google Photos which is a separate service provided by Google just for your camera.

The steps below will address all the possible problems that may occur and potentially deprive you from backing up your photos to Google Photos. Due to security and better implementation, there are multiple options and methods to back up your photos. This also leads to many conflicting settings but fortunately, you can follow this guide and easily diagnose your problem.

Contents hide

1 How to fix Google Photos backup not working:

1.1 Check your back up settings

1.2 Check which photos & videos are backed up

1.3 Are you trying to back up a folder?

1.4 Clear your app data

How to fix Google Photos backup not working:

You can try the following steps to ensure that all of your desired photos are getting backed up to Google Photos.

Step 1 – Open the Google Photos app on your mobile device .

Step 2 – At the top left, touch the menu icon > Assistant.

Step 3 – Read the first card. If it says:

“Waiting for connection” or “Waiting for Wi-Fi“: You need to either change your settings or connect to a Wi-Fi or mobile network. Touch the card to change your settings.
“Back up & sync is off“: Touch “TURN ON” on the card to back up your device’s photos and videos, including ones you capture in the future.
“A photo or video was skipped“: A photo or video on your mobile device doesn’t meet our upload requirements:
- Photos can’t exceed 75MB or 100 megapixels
- Videos can’t exceed 10GB
“Backing up photos” or “Backup complete“: This means your photos and videos should be saved.

If the above steps didn’t yield you any successful result you can further implement the following methods.

Check your back up settings

Step 1 – Open the Google Photos app on your mobile device .

Step 2 – At the top left, touch the menu icon .

Step 3 – Select Settings.

Step 4 – Touch Back up & sync. If it’s on, you should see these options:

Account: Make sure that the account listed is the same one you’re viewing in the Google Photos app. To see which account you’re viewing in the Google Photos app, open the Google Photos main menu and find your email address at the top.
Upload size: Touch this to change the storage size of your photos & videos.
“Back up photos” or “Photos back up using cellular data“: Choose whether you want to back up your photos using your mobile network (rather than just WI-Fi).
Charges from your service provider may apply.
“Back up videos” or “Videos back up using cellular data“: Choose whether you want to back up your videos using your mobile network (rather than just WI-Fi). Charges
from your service provider may apply.

Check which photos & videos are backed up

Step 1 – Open the Google Photos app.

Step 2 – At the top left, touch the menu icon .

Step 3 – Select Photos.

Step 4 – Photos and videos that aren’t backed up will have this icon .

Computer

Step 1 – Go to photos.google.com.

Step 2 – Every photo and video you see here is backed up.

Are you trying to back up a folder?

If you’re trying to back up a folder on your mobile device, like photos you’ve downloaded, screenshots you’ve taken, or photos saved by other apps, then follow these steps. If not, skip this step.

Step 1 – Open the Google Photos app.

Step 2 – At the top left, touch the menu icon > Device Folders.

Step 3 – To the right of each folder title, touch the cloud icon to turn back up on or off for that folder .