Unable to search in my 'Photos App' after new update

léonie wrote: … We now have to make sure, that the catch phrases we may want to use in a search are the first word of the caption.

Man, that's crazy!

Going here, now:

Feedback - Photos - Apple

Maybe they signed a side deal with MTV new drama series ready to go

None of the above works. You’re treating us like fools now.

Mine stopped working today as well. I hadn’t even updated my phone it just stopped working. I had an update and hoped that would fix the issue, but it did not.

the worst is that the photo i just took is nowhere to be found even in recent pictures. what a mess. may move away from apple

Just to let you know, I tried searching for "Pumpkin" on my iPhone 12 with iOS 18, and I got a bunch of pumpkins, (and a newspaper clipping about my wife's mother's Halloween party I had scanned from her "Baby Book.") So the search works, but not for you for some reason. It took a few days for it to start work for me after the update-- how long have you been waiting?

Have you tried a forced re-start?

Force restart iPhone - Apple Support

I'm starting to get used to the changes-- they're not as bad as I thought at first…

How long ago did you update to iOS 18? How many photos and videos do you have on the phone?

Depending on the size of your library, it can take iOS 18 a while to build up its search index, particularly on an older phone (which an iPhone 13 is starting to be).

Below procedure worked for me so try this:

“The detection process requires iPhone to be locked and connected to power. Depending on what tasks are running in the background and the size of your photo library, the process could happen quickly or take up to a few days to complete”

I was wirelessly charging my iPhone 16 Pro for over 2 weeks and the photo search function still wasn’t working. After coming accross the above information, I used my usbc charging cable and physically charged the phone overnight twice in a row, the search function started working the next morning. So I guess the phone does require to be physically connected to power in order for the phone to learn your large photo library. Hope this helps.

Yep same as. Even before I updated to iOS 18.4 the search function wasn’t working- not even for albums. I have most of my photos in albums and it works intermittently. Try to search for some albums and it won’t work at all so I have to scroll down through the list to find the album I want. They say a smart phone like the iPhone 13 has more sophisticated tech than the Apollo 11 rocket that put a man on the moon- not seeing it if it can’t carry out a basic search function!!!

How do I use the photos app today? Nothing works. Search the name of a ‘person’ and the results delivered are photos of featuring the name spelled within the photo. Search Johnnie and what comes back is a photo where you can read J O H N N I E written on a page in a notebook within a photo.

not long ago I could find a photo by name and activity by typing name and activity. Today, not even close. Each Photos NAME album has been split up into multiple folders and not identified as the same person. This is awful awful, I cannot find a photo in less than an hour! So frustrating.

Exactly🤦🏻‍♀️ I called Apple support they said wait 48 hrs after update & photos will be done re indexing and all should work. I certainly hope so!

Hi there,

Thanks for reaching out in the Apple Community. I understand you're frustrated with the search function in your Photos app since the latest update. It can be annoying when a feature you rely on changes unexpectedly.

First, let's make sure we're on the same page.

Could you clarify which update you're referring to? Knowing your iOS version will help me give you the most accurate advice.

Let's try a few things to get that search working again:

• Restart your device.
• Check for Photos app updates in the App Store.
• Make sure iCloud Photos is enabled and fully synced.
• Rebuild your Photos library (but back up your photos first!). You can find instructions on Apple's support website.

If that doesn't help, tell me more about what happens when you try to search. Any error messages? Does the search bar show up? Can you search by date or location?

I'll do my best to help you get to the bottom of this. In the meantime, remember that Apple's official support channels can provide further assistance if needed.