How to Transfer Photos from a Motorola Phone to a Mac

Macs don’t show Android phones in Finder, but you can still import photos and videos from your Motorola phone with a USB cable. Set the phone’s USB mode to PTP and the Mac’s Photos app opens it like a camera.

Quick steps: Connect the USB cable → swipe down → tap Charging this device via USB → choose PTP → in Photos on the Mac, choose Import All New Photos.

On your phone

  1. Motorola phone Home screen
    Step 1

    Connect the phone to your Mac

    Connect your Motorola phone to the Mac with a USB cable and unlock the phone.

  2. Motorola phone with a swipe-down indicator
    Step 2

    Open notifications

    Swipe down from the top of the screen to open the notification shade.

  3. Notification shade with Charging this device via USB highlighted
    Step 3

    Tap the USB notification

    Tap Charging this device via USB.

  4. USB Preferences screen with PTP highlighted
    Step 4

    Choose PTP

    Under Use USB for, select PTP. The Photos app opens automatically on the Mac.

On your Mac

  1. Photos app iCloud Photo Library prompt
    Step 1

    Skip the iCloud prompt (if shown)

    If Photos asks about iCloud Photo Library, choose Not now. If this screen doesn’t appear, go to the next step.

  2. Photos app import screen with photos from the phone selected
    Step 2

    Select photos

    Your phone appears under Devices in Photos. Select the photos and videos you want to import.

  3. Photos app with the Import All New Photos button highlighted
    Step 3

    Import

    Click Import Selected, or Import All New Photos to copy everything that isn’t already on the Mac.

  4. Photos app showing the imported pictures
    Step 4

    Find your imported photos

    The photos are now in your Photos library on the Mac, under Imports and Library.

Transferring other files to a Mac

  1. PTP mode only shows photos and videos. For documents, music and other files, upload them to Google Drive on the phone and download them on the Mac.
  2. You can also use a USB-C flash drive, or a third-party Android file transfer app for macOS.

Frequently asked questions

Why doesn’t my Motorola phone show up on my Mac?

macOS doesn’t mount Android phones in Finder. Choose PTP in the phone’s USB notification so Photos (or Image Capture) can see it, and make sure the phone is unlocked.

Can I use Image Capture instead of Photos?

Yes. With the phone in PTP mode, open Image Capture on the Mac, choose your phone and import photos to any folder.

Still having problems? It may be a hardware fault. Check the Motorola spare part prices for your model, or compare battery and display replacement costs.

Related Motorola guides

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Steps and screenshots based on Motorola's official Transfer data from phone to computer (Mac) tutorial. Steps can vary slightly by model and Android version.