OneDrive Photo Downloads

Hello rdwessex, welcome to Microsoft Q&A forum.

It is possible to download all photos from OneDrive, but the method is not obvious at first.

OneDrive has two different areas: the Files tab and the Photos tab (the view you are currently using). These two sections work very differently.

The Files tab contains your real folder structure, such as Pictures, Camera Roll, Documents, or any folders you created. These are actual filesystem locations, so they support full file operations such as Ctrl+A, “Select all,” downloading whole folders, and synchronizing with your PC.

The Photos tab is not a folder. It is a virtual gallery view that collects photos from many different folders across your OneDrive. Because it is not a true directory, it does not support bulk actions such as Ctrl+A or downloading everything at once. This is intentional. The Photos view is designed for consumption—quick browsing, light sharing, and creating albums—rather than large‑scale file management. If OneDrive allowed “Download all” from this view, the download would mix photos from many different folders into a single bundle and break their original structure. Since it is not a real folder, it cannot behave like one (Ctrl+A won't work).

If your photos are in a single folder, or just a few folders, then downloading them is straightforward:

• Go to OneDrive > My files
• Open the actual foldeṛ(s) that contain the photos
• Switch to list view if needed
• Use the easy‑to‑find checkbox in the header row, or press Ctrl+A
• Choose Download to receive a ZIP file

If your photos are scattered across many folders and you still want to download everything, there is a reliable workaround by syncing your OneDrive to your PC and using File Explorer’s search. This avoids the limitations of the Photos tab.

• Open the OneDrive desktop app and sync your OneDrive to your computer
• After syncing finishes, open the OneDrive folder in File Explorer
• In the search bar, search for common photo file types so that File Explorer can find all image files. For example: *.jpg OR *.jpeg OR *.png OR *.heic
• File Explorer will show all matching files across every folder
• Press Ctrl+A to select everything
• Copy or move the files wherever you need

In short, downloading all photos is absolutely possible, but it must be done from the real folders under the Files tab, or by using the sync‑and‑search method on your computer. The Photos tab is intentionally optimized for viewing and light management, not for bulk file operations.

If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it. If you have extra questions about this answer, please click "Comment".  

Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread.