Should you delete photos of your ex?

You don’t have to decide today. There are three options: hide photos of your ex so they stop popping up, delete the ones you’re sure about, or edit your ex out and keep the moment. Many people mix all three.

Hide them without deleting

Hiding is the gentlest option. Nothing is lost, and you can change your mind later. These steps come from each company’s own help pages.

iPhone: feature your ex less in Memories

The Photos app can show someone less often, or not at all, in your memories, featured photos, and the Photos widget. These steps are from Apple’s iPhone User Guide:

1. Open the Photos app on your iPhone.
2. Open a photo of your ex.
3. Tap the More button, then tap Don’t Feature a Person. If there’s more than one person in the photo, tap your ex, then tap Next.
4. Choose Feature This Person Less or Never Feature This Person.
5. Tap Confirm.

To undo it, tap Collections, tap your account in the top-right corner, then tap Reset People & Pets Suggestions. From the same account screen you can also turn off Show Featured Content if you’d rather not see memories at all for a while.

Google Photos: hide your ex from memories

Google Photos can hide a face from the featured memories carousel at the top of the Photos view. These steps for the Android app are from Google Photos Help:

1. Open the Google Photos app.
2. At the top, tap your account profile photo or initial, then Photos settings.
3. Tap Preferences, then Memories, then Hide faces.
4. Under “Show less” or “Blocked”, tap Select faces.
5. Choose your ex, then tap Done.

The two settings differ. With Show less, you won’t get memories about them, but they may still appear in group photos included in memories. With Blocked, they won’t appear in memories at all, including group photos with others. Google notes that changes can take some time to show up, and that face hiding may not work perfectly in every photo. To bring someone back, tap Remove next to their face.

Instagram: archive posts instead of deleting

According to Instagram’s Help Center, archiving a post hides it from your profile, so your followers and other people on Instagram can’t see it. The post keeps all its likes and comments, and you can undo archiving at any time to show it on your profile again. That makes it a good middle step for couple photos you’re not ready to delete.

Delete them

Some photos are easier to let go of, and deleting them can feel like a relief. On iPhone, deleted photos don’t disappear straight away. According to Apple’s iPhone User Guide, they’re kept in the Recently Deleted collection for 30 days, and you can recover them during that time. After that, or once you delete them from Recently Deleted yourself, they’re gone for good.

If you use iCloud Photos, deleting a photo on your iPhone deletes it on your other devices signed in to the same Apple Account too. So if you’re unsure, hide it first. You can always delete it later.

Edit your ex out and keep the moment

Sometimes the photo is worth keeping and only one person in it isn’t. The trip, the view, the night out with friends. With Remove Your Ex, you upload the photo, describe who should go in your own words, and download the edit. There’s no brush or mask to draw.

Before

After AI-edited

Each photo costs 1 credit, including a free second edit if the first isn’t right, and failed edits return the credit. Uploading doesn’t change the copy on your phone or computer, so the original is still there if you want it. For free phone erasers and when each option fits, see how to remove your ex from a photo.

How to decide

Look at what else is in the photo. The trip you saved up for, the friends who showed up, the dog at its silliest. Those can matter more than the person standing next to you, and they’re still yours.

There’s no right answer, and no deadline. If a photo still stings, move it out of sight and decide later. The point isn’t to erase a chapter. It’s to keep what still feels like yours.