How to Backup SD Card to Google Photos [Everything Your Need to Know]

This page will focus on how to backup SD card photos to Google Photos on Android phones, addressing the issue where some users' SD card photos are not showing up in Google Photos.

Learn how to backup and sync or update your pictures/videos from an external SD card/micro SD card or TF card on your Android phone to Google Photos, and follow fixes on this page.

PAGE CONTENT:

Part 1. How to Back Up SD Card to Google Photos - 3 Methods
Part 2. Bonus Tip: How to Transfer Photos from Internal Memory to SD Card

Why Are My SD Card Photos Not Showing in Google Photos

You've enabled Google Photos backup and sync on your Samsung Galaxy S20, but the photos on your external SD card aren't appearing in the Google Photos app. This suggests that the backup and sync feature may not be automatically transferring the photos from the SD card to Google Photos. You may need to manually select the SD card as a backup source in the Google Photos settings to ensure your photos are being uploaded and synced correctly.

You can back up your SD card to Google Photos by connecting it to your device, going to the Google Photos app, and following the prompts to upload your files. Alternatively, you can also use a computer and the Google Photos website to upload your files. However, please note that Google Photos has a storage limit, so you may need to delete some files or upgrade to a paid plan to store everything. Additionally, you can also use other cloud storage services like Google Drive or Dropbox to back up your files.

Google Photos app, Google Photos, a cloud storage app for Android, allows users to backup local photos and videos (16Mp-1080pHD) for free, but some users report being unable to access and view their photos on the app.

You may be unable to back up your SD card to Google Photos or access files in the app due to two main reasons. Firstly, Google Photos may not be able to automatically back up files from your SD card if they are not stored in the default camera folder on your device.

The Android version is too old, only Android 6.0 and above works.
The SD card is not mounted as internal memory.
Back up process doesn't complete or failed.

If you encounter issues with the SD to Google Photos backup task, you'll need to restart the process. To do this on your own, follow the provided guides.

Part 1.How to Back Up SD Card to Google Photos

Here, we collected three reliable tools - two from support.google.com and one from the Qiling support team - to help you fully back up SD card photos, videos, and everything to Google Photos.

Pick one and follow the guide to start protecting important files on your Android SD card now:

To back up your SD card using Google Photos Backup and Sync, insert your SD card into your computer and open Google Photos. Select the SD card as the backup source and choose the desired backup settings, such as the resolution and quality. The Backup and Sync tool will then copy all the photos and videos from your SD card to your Google Photos account, where they can be accessed from any device with an internet connection.

#Method 2. Upload Photos to Google Photos from Computer

#Method 3. Back-Up Everything on SD Card

Tip

Google Photos can only back up photos and videos on your devices, including your SD card.

If you tend to back up everything on your SD card to a cloud drive, take Method 3 for help. You can use a cloud storage service like Google Drive, Dropbox, or OneDrive to automatically back up your SD card's contents.

Method 1. Use Google Photos Backup and Sync to Back Up SD Card

Before You Start: Check If SD Card Is Detected

Step 1. Open the Settings app on your phone.

Step 2. Tap Storage & USB.

Step 3. Check if you see your SD Card is under "Device storage" or "Portable storage" section.

If your SD card appears, continue with the steps below. If not, remove the SD card, reinsert it into your phone, and set it as "Portable" or "Internal" storage with a popup notification.

Back-Up SD Card Photos to Google Photos via Backup & Sync

Step 1. Open the Google Photos app on your Android device.

Step 2. At the top left, touch the "menu" icon with three horizontal lines.

Step 3. Select "Settings > Back up & sync".

If it's not enabled, turn on it.

Step 4. Tap "Choose folders to back up..." and select the SD card photo folder like DICM you want to back up.

Wait for the backup process to complete.

Method 2. Upload Photos to Google Photos from Computer

To transfer photos and videos from your Android phone to Google Photos, you can connect your phone's SD card to your computer, and then upload the files to Google Photos. This method allows you to access and manage your media content from your computer, making it easier to upload and organize your files.

Here are the steps:

Step 1. Safely unplug and remove the SD card from your Android phone.

Step 2. Visit photos.google.com in a browser on your computer.

Step 3. Click "Photo", then click the Upload icon on the right-top menu.

Step 4. Click "Computer" and then select photos from your SD card to upload.

To transfer photos from your SD card to Google Photos, wait for the process to complete, then open the Google Photos app to verify that your SD card photos have been successfully uploaded.

If you're about to empty or free up space on your SD, remember to disable or turn off the Backup and Sync feature on your phone before deleting photos.

Method 3. Back-Up Everything on SD Card to Google Drive

Google Photos can only back up photos and videos, not other types of files like contacts or documents, so if you have those on your card, they won't be backed up to Google Photos.

To back up everything on your SD card, follow the steps outlined in the article "Back Up Micro SD Card" found at the provided link.

You can either upload the data from your SD card to Google Drive using a computer or mobile device, or you can use a third-party app that allows you to back up your SD card data directly to Google Drive.

1. To manually back up your Android SD card to Google Drive, go to Settings > Google > Backup, and toggle the switch next to "Back up to Google Drive" to the On position. Then, go to Settings > Storage > Internal storage > SD card, and select the files you want to back up.

2. To back up all data from your SD card to Google Drive at once, you can use a cloud backup service that allows you to upload your files from the SD card to the cloud storage service. This way, you can ensure that all your data is safely stored in the cloud, and you can access it from anywhere. You can use a computer or a smartphone to upload the files from your SD card to Google Drive, and then delete the files from the SD card to free up space.

Here, we'll show you the latter way, which is more efficient and easy. Reliable file backup software - Qiling Backup can back up unlimited files to Google Drive at one time.

Free Download

To back up all your SD card data to Google Drive on your computer, first insert your SD card into a card reader and connect it to your computer. Then, open Google Drive and click on the "New" button to create a new folder.

Step 1. Launch Qiling cloud backup software and choose the File option.

Step 2. Choose the target files you want to backup by either "User Defined" mode and "Filer" mode.

User Defined allows you to choose files based on their directory, while Filer is simpler and backs up files with specific formats such as pictures, documents, and videos.

Step 3. To backup files to Cloud storage, click the "Browse" button in the "Destination" area, then select "Cloud Device" and click "+ Add Cloud storage service" in the mini window that pops out.

Step 4. Click "Proceed" to start backing up files to your Cloud drive at once.

Qiling Backup offers comprehensive protection for your computer's OS and data, in addition to backing up SD cards. It provides a range of features, including backing up your SD card, protecting your computer's OS and data, and ensuring the integrity of your system.

Back up Windows 10 to USB
Automatically copy files from one folder to another
Back up files to OneDrive
Clone and upgrade disk without reinstalling Windows
Migrate Windows 10 to SSD

Free Download

Part 2. Bonus Tip - How to Transfer Photos from Internal Memory to SD Card

Some of you may also want to learn how to move internal memory photos to an external SD card, which is what we'll be discussing.

To move and transfer photos from your internal memory to an external SD card, connect the SD card to your device via an adapter or card reader, then go to Settings > Storage and select the internal memory. Select the photos

Step 1. On Android phone, tap on "My Files".

Step 2. Tap "Internal storage" and open the DCIM folder.

Step 3. Tap "Camera", long-press to select the photos or image folder in this folder.

Step 4. Tap the Move button and navigate to your files menu and tap "SD card".

Step 5. Tap the DCIM folder and tap "Done".

If there is no DCIM folder in the SD card, create one and name it "DCIM".

Conclusion

On this page, we explore why SD card photos aren't showing up in Google Photos and provide two reliable methods to fully back up Android SD card photos and videos to Google Photos.

To create a full backup of your SD card at one time, you can also back up to a cloud drive like Google Drive using Qiling Backup, which offers a mature backup feature.

Free Download

It's time to take action and safeguard your files by backing up your SD card, regardless of the method you choose.