I accidentally clicked Free up space in Google Photos. Did I lose my photos?

Are my photos really safe?

Yes. The button only acts on photos that have finished backing up. Open Google Photos with a connection and scroll: they are all there. If one shows a cloud icon with a line through it, that item was not backed up, and Free up space would have skipped it.

What you lost is the offline copy. Your phone's gallery app, which reads files on the device, now looks emptier. That is expected.

Nothing in your Google storage changed, either. The cloud copies were already there and counted before you tapped the button, so your quota is exactly what it was.

How do I put them back on the phone?

There are two ways, depending on how soon you act:

1. Within 30 days, from the device trash. Google's help says you can restore removed photos from the Gallery app's trash: open the menu, then Trash, select photos and tap Restore. Steps vary by phone maker.
2. Any time, from Google Photos. Open a photo, tap the menu and choose Download. For many photos, use a computer and Google Takeout, or select them on photos.google.com and download as a zip.

Bringing back a whole library one photo at a time is slow. For large amounts, Google Takeout or the Google Photos website on a computer lets you download albums in bulk, which you can then copy to the phone over USB.

How do I stop it happening again?

• Check whether Smart Storage is on. On Android it can clear backed-up photos automatically when space runs low.
• Ignore the in-app banner that offers to free space unless you mean it.
• For offline trips, download the albums you need in advance.

To understand the button before using it again, see what Free up space does. For other ways to save space while keeping everything local, read free up space without deleting photos.

If what bothered you was losing photos from your gallery app, consider switching to Google Photos as the main gallery. It shows cloud and device items together, so space-saving steps stop looking like losses.