How to Search Photos in Google Photos

Tap each step to follow along in order.

  1. Open the "Search" tab in Google Photos

    Tap the magnifying-glass "Search" tab in the bottom menu.

  2. Browse the categories sorted automatically for you

    You will see categories like "People," "Places," and "Things" that the app has automatically recognized and grouped.

  3. Type a word describing what is in the photo

    Typing something like "dog," "beach," or "birthday cake" automatically surfaces photos that match, based on what is actually in the image.

  4. Find photos of one specific person under "People"

    Tapping a face group that has been automatically sorted shows you only the photos that person appears in.

Find a photo without remembering the file name or date

Even without remembering a file name or the date it was taken, describing what is actually in the photo -- a person, a place, an object -- is often enough to find it instantly among thousands of images.

Combine a person and a place for a narrower search

Search terms can be combined, so searching something like a person's name together with a location or event narrows results down much faster than scrolling through an entire library by hand.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does a search for an object sometimes miss a photo?

Automatic recognition works from what is visually identifiable in the image, so a blurry photo, an object partly out of frame, or unusual lighting can occasionally cause a match to be missed.

Does this search work on photos I have not backed up yet?

Content-based search generally relies on photos that have finished uploading and being processed in the cloud, so an unsynced photo may not show up in results until backup completes.