How do I find out where a photo was taken?

Open its details: swipe up in Photos on iPhone or in Google Photos, use Properties › Details › GPS on Windows, or Inspector › GPS in Preview on a Mac. If no location shows, the camera didn't save one, or it was removed when the photo was shared.

Why does my photo show the wrong date?

Usually because it was received through a chat app, which removed the original date, so your phone shows when it was saved. It can also be a wrong phone clock, or a date that was edited.

Can I see when a WhatsApp photo was taken?

Not from the file: WhatsApp removes the original date and location. The date you see is when it arrived. If it was taken with Timesnap, the time and place are printed on the photo and can be checked on timesnap.info.

How to See When and Where a Photo Was Taken, on Any Device

Phone photos carry hidden details: the date, time, place and the phone that took them. Here's how to read them on any device.

These hidden details are called metadata, or EXIF data. The camera saves them inside the photo file, and you can read them without installing anything.

On iPhone and iPad

Open the photo in the Photos app.
Swipe up on the photo, or tap the info button (ⓘ).
You'll see the date and time, the camera and lens, the file size and, if location was on, a map of where it was taken.

On Android

Open the photo in Google Photos.
Swipe up on the photo, or tap the three dots (⋮).
The details show the date and time, the camera, the file size and the location, if one was saved.

Samsung's Gallery app works the same way: open the photo and swipe up, or tap the ⓘ button, to see its details.

On Windows

Right-click the photo in File Explorer and choose Properties.
Open the Details tab.
Look under Origin for Date taken, under Camera for the make and model, and under GPS for the latitude and longitude.

On a Mac

Open the photo in Preview.
Choose Tools › Show Inspector, or press ⌘I.
Open the ⓘ tab, then the EXIF tab for the date and camera, and the GPS tab (when there is one) for the location.

In the Photos app on a Mac, select a photo and press ⌘I to see its date, camera and a map.

Why the date or location might be missing or wrong

It was shared through an app. WhatsApp, Messenger, Instagram, Facebook and many others strip these details, so the copy you received shows only when it was saved to your phone.
It's a screenshot. A screenshot's date is when the screenshot was taken.
Location was off. If the camera wasn't allowed to use location, no place is saved.
The phone's clock was wrong, or the date was changed afterwards: the gallery apps on iPhone and Android both let you edit a photo's date and location.
It was edited and re-saved by an app that doesn't keep the details.

Sharing photos of your home or children? Their location is saved in the hidden details. On iPhone, tap Options at the top of the share sheet and turn off Location. Or make copies with our photo compressor, which leaves the location and camera details out.

When the time and place need to be certain

Hidden details answer "what does this file say?", not "is this true?". If you need dates and places that can't be changed, for work, claims or disputes, take the photos with the Timesnap camera. The time comes from the internet, not the phone; the date, time and address are drawn into the photo; and anyone can confirm them on timesnap.info with the photo's code, even from a copy sent on WhatsApp.

Take photos with the real time and place on them: get the free Timesnap camera.

How to see when and where a photo was taken