How to Transfer Photos from Samsung S24 to PC

Transferring photos from your Samsung Galaxy S24 to your PC allows you to view and edit them on a bigger screen, back them up to external storage, and free up space on your phone. With the S24’s great camera, you likely have a lot of high-res photos and videos eating up storage. Thankfully, Samsung offers several convenient ways to get them onto your computer. In this article, we’ll guide you several method to transfer photos from Samsung S24 to PC.

Why transfer photos from Samsung S24 to PC?

There are a few key reasons you may want to move your images and videos from the S24 over to a PC:

View and edit photos on a bigger screen: Photos and videos look great on the S24’s 6.8″ display, but a computer monitor offers far more real estate for really seeing small details. Plus, editing is easier with a mouse and keyboard.

Free up storage space: High-res images and 4K video take up a lot of room. Offloading them helps keep your phone’s storage uncluttered.

Back up photos: Transferring to a computer or external storage allows you to safely back up your memories in case something happens to your phone.

Print photos: It’s easy to print pictures from your PC.

Different methods to transfer photos

There are a few different routes for getting your media from the S24 onto a Windows PC or Mac:

Connect with a USB cable and use the File Transfer Protocol.
Wirelessly transfer using Samsung Flow
Transfer via Samsung Smart Switch
Upload to cloud storage and download to the computer.

Each method has its own pros and cons, which we’ll cover next.

Step-by-step guide to transferring photos via USB cable

Using a USB cable is the most straightforward way to transfer photos from Samsung S24 to your PC. Here’s how:

Connect your phone to your computer using the USB cable that came with your phone.
On your phone, you may get a notification asking how to connect to the computer. Select Transferring files/Android Auto.
- If the notification does not appear, you may need to change the USB Configuration on your device.

Open the Files app on your Galaxy S24.
- Browse to the folders containing the photos and videos you want to transfer. The most common folders are:
- DCIM for camera photos.
- Pictures for screenshots and downloads.
- Movies for videos.
Select the files and tap More. Transfer to the computer.
On your computer, the phone storage will appear as an external drive. Navigate to the DCIM, Pictures, and Movies folders to access your files.

Copy the files to your local storage or external backup drive on your computer.

And that’s it! USB cable file transfer is super simple. The only downside is that you need to have your phone and computer connected.

If your device is not detected on your PC, you will need to install Samsung Android USB drivers, learn the full guide here.

Transferring photos wirelessly using Samsung Flow

If you don’t want to hassle with cables, you can use Samsung Flow to wirelessly transfer files between your S24 and Windows PC over WiFi.

Samsung Flow requirements:

Windows 10 or 11 PC.
Samsung account.
Flow app installed on both devices.

To transfer photos:

Make sure your S24 and computer are signed into the same Samsung account and connected to the same WiFi network.
Open Flow on your PC and phone, and connect the two devices.
On your phone, open the Files app and navigate to the files you want to transfer.
Tap More > Transfer to computer.
Select your PC on the next screen. The files will begin transferring over WiFi.
On your PC, you’ll get a notification that files were received. Access them in the Flow file transfer folder.

Wireless transfer with Flow works seamlessly once set up. The only potential downside is slower transfer speeds compared to wired USB.

Transferring photos using the Samsung Smart Switch

The Samsung Smart Switch provides another cable-free way to transfer photos, along with other content like contacts, messages, notes, and more.

To use Smart Switch:

Download and install Smart Switch on your Windows PC or Mac.
On your S24, open Smart Switch from the Apps menu.
On your computer, open Smart Switch and click the option to receive data from a phone.
Scan the QR code shown on the computer with your S24 to link the devices.
On your phone, select the content you want to transfer. Tap Transfer when you are ready.
After scanning for files, Smart Switch will transfer everything over WiFi.

Smart Switch makes it easy to transfer more than just photos in one go. But it does require installing software on your computer rather than using the built-in file transfer.

Transferring photos via cloud storage services

You can also transfer photos from your S24 to a PC by uploading them to cloud storage like Google Photos or Samsung Cloud, then accessing them on your computer.

Here’s how this works:

Make sure you’re signed into the same cloud service on both devices.
In the cloud app on your phone, upload the photos you want to transfer.
On your computer, visit the cloud service’s website or install their app.
Download the photos to your local or external storage.

Cloud transfer allows access to your photos from anywhere. But it’s a slower process than direct phone-to-PC transfer methods.

Troubleshooting common issues during photo transfer

Photo transfers via USB or wireless may sometimes fail or not work as expected. Here are a few common issues and fixes:

Connection issue: Make sure your phone and computer are properly connected with adequate signal strength. Move closer to your wireless router if needed.
Transfer freezes: Large high-res files can sometimes stall a transfer. Disconnect and reconnect your devices, and try again.
Access denied: Check that file transfer permissions are enabled on your phone under USB settings.
Missing files: After transferring, do a comparison of your phone and computer folders to make sure all files were copied over properly.
Not enough space: Transfers can fail if your computer lacks sufficient storage space for the files. Free up disk space and try again.
Software issue: With transfer apps like Smart Switch and Samsung Flow, make sure you have the latest versions installed. Reinstall, if needed.

Conclusion

The Samsung Galaxy S24 makes transferring your photos, videos, and other content to a computer simple through several built-in options. Whether you want fast wired file transfers, convenient wireless capabilities, or the flexibility of cloud storage, there’s a suitable method for getting your media backed up on a PC or Mac. Following the right steps for your chosen approach helps ensure smooth transfers without issues.

How to Transfer Photos from Samsung Galaxy S24 to your PC