Samsung Gallery adds Google Photos backup, but One UI 9 is required

Samsung makes the integration official

Samsung has officially announced Google Photos backup inside its Gallery app, according to 9to5Google. The company began testing the feature in September 2026, but at that stage it was only available to a small group of users. This week, Samsung confirmed that the integration is now broadly available across Galaxy devices.

The move is notable because Samsung has long pushed its own cloud services for photo storage. Bringing Google Photos directly into the Gallery app means Galaxy owners can keep their default photo app while relying on Google's backup service behind the scenes.

How the feature works

Once the feature is active, photos and videos saved in Samsung Gallery can be backed up to Google Photos. Users who do not see a prompt can enable it manually through the Gallery app. The path is Menu, then Settings, then the option labelled Sync photos and videos.

Samsung has also added a free up space button to the Gallery app. After media has been backed up to Google Photos, this button deletes the local copies on the phone, freeing storage without losing the pictures. That mirrors the storage management that Google Photos itself offers on other Android phones.

According to 9to5Google, the publication has seen Samsung's pop-up about the feature on a Galaxy Z Fold 8, with the backup working fully on that device.

One UI 9 requirement limits access

There is a catch. Samsung requires devices to run One UI 9, which is built on Android 17, before the Google Photos backup option appears. Because that software update is still rolling out, many Galaxy owners cannot use the feature yet.

Samsung says support will expand to additional Galaxy devices in phases. In practice, this means owners of older models may need to wait for the One UI 9 update to reach their phone before the integration shows up in Gallery settings.

What it means for Galaxy owners

For users, the integration removes a long-standing friction point. Until now, backing up with Google Photos generally meant using the Google Photos app as the main gallery, or juggling two apps for the same pictures. With backup built into Samsung Gallery, the choice of app no longer decides where photos are stored.

It also strengthens the partnership between the two companies at a time when Samsung devices remain deeply tied to Google services, from Assistant features to Play Store apps. Samsung has not stated whether the feature will reach devices that never receive One UI 9, so owners of older hardware should treat wider availability as unconfirmed for now.

Galaxy users who want to check should open the Gallery app, look for the setup prompt, or go to Menu, Settings and Sync photos and videos. If the option is missing, the device is likely still waiting on the One UI 9 update.