Apple is giving Shared Albums a major quality upgrade in iOS 27, with new albums retaining the full resolution of photos and videos for the first time. The catch? They will now count towards your iCloud storage including content uploaded by other people you invite.
Until now, photos added to a Shared Album have been automatically reduced to 2,048 pixels on the long edge, while panoramic photos can reach up to 5,400 pixels wide. In iOS 27, those limits are being removed, allowing shared photos and videos will retain their full resolution.
That comes with a significant change to how Shared Albums use iCloud storage. Apple has previously allowed users to store up to 5,000 photos and videos in Shared Albums without counting them towards their iCloud storage limit. However, that exemption is going away for new Shared Albums in iOS 27.
More importantly, the storage hit isn’t limited to photos you upload yourself. If you invite someone to contribute to a Shared Album and they add their own photos or videos, that content will also count towards your iCloud storage limit as the album owner.
Apple is also making Shared Albums more accessible to people who don’t use its devices. Friends and family can now join and contribute through iCloud.com without needing an Apple Account or an Apple device. This means Android and Windows users can take part too.
There is a way to avoid using your regular iCloud storage for short-term sharing. iOS 27 introduces temporary Shared Albums designed for things such as short-term projects. However, they come with a 30-day limit. Any photos and videos that haven’t been saved to your library after 30 days will be deleted.
Existing Shared Albums aren’t affected by default, so you don’t suddenly need more iCloud storage just because you’ve been using the feature for years. Apple is adding an “Upgrade Shared Album” option in the Photos app for users who want to improve the quality of existing albums. However, doing so will make their contents count towards iCloud storage.
Apple hasn’t yet updated its support documentation with the new rules. iOS 27 is currently available as a public beta and is expected to receive its full release in September alongside Apple’s next iPhone models.
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