Search for photos and videos on Mac
You can quickly find a photo or video by searching for a title or caption, a keyword or a date. You can also search for text within photos to quickly find receipts, documents and more.
Search for photos and videos
Go to the Photos app
on your Mac.Click the search field in the toolbar.
Tip: Press Command-F to quickly activate the search field.
Type the search text in the search field.
As you type, suggested searches appear below the search field. You can type multiple words separated by a space to search based on multiple criteria. For example, you can search using a location and a month to see photos from a specific time and place.
If you have a Mac with M1 or later, Apple Intelligence makes it even easier to find a specific photo or a key moment in a video. See Use Apple Intelligence in Photos.
Click an item in the suggested searches to see matching photos.
To display all your photos again after a search, click
in the search field.
Search by shared library participant
If you’re a participant in an iCloud Shared Photo Library, you can also search by the person who added the photo or video to the library.
Go to the Photos app
on your Mac.Click the search field in the toolbar.
Enter “Shared by”, then click a suggested name.