The best way to scan and digitize old photos

Your precious old photos won't last forever. If you want to preserve your memories from time, damage, and dust, you need to bring them into the digital age.

1. Use a scanner at home

Scanning old photos at home with a scanner is time-consuming, but it gives you complete control over how you organize, digitize, and archive your photos. Plus, reliving old memories is fun, making it the perfect excuse to spend a few afternoons relaxing.

The best scanners for digitizing photos

There are many different brands of photo scanners, all offering a wide range of prices and features.

If you want to convert your photos into digital copies at home, the best way to scan them is with a flatbed scanner. They are less likely to damage your photos, are compact, and usually only require a regular laptop. A basic option like the Canon CanoScan LiDE 300 is a great way to scan photos up to 8x10 without breaking the bank.

Scan negative film to digitize photos

If you have negatives to work with, you may wonder: Is it better to scan or photograph old photos?

If you can afford it, scan your negatives directly. The Epson Perfection V600 is a great option because it can digitize your negatives as well as your printed photos. The Kodak Scanza is a great portable option if you need a film scanner.

If you're willing to pay a premium and don't have a lot of time to scan photos, some scanners are designed to quickly scan stacks of 4x6 photos at very high quality.

The Epson FastFoto FF-680W is said to be one of the fastest photo scanners available today. It scans batches of 36 prints at a rate of one per second. It's also wireless, so you can save directly to cloud services like Google Drive and Dropbox .

Another convenient and affordable option is the battery-powered Doxie Go SE. It scans your old photos onto an SD card and is about the size of a rolled-up magazine.

To scan photos from prints, use a minimum quality setting of 300 dpi (but consider increasing it to 600 dpi if you plan to enlarge the photo). Even if you're scanning black and white or sepia photos, scanning in color gives you more opportunities to edit your digital photos.

2. Using the app

If you just need a way to scan old photos to quickly digitize them, you may not want to invest in a photo scanner. You can use a dedicated app on your phone to scan instead.

Of course, you can always take a photo with your phone’s camera app. But then you run the risk of introducing shadows, distortions, and glare. A scanning app eliminates these features and guides you through the scanning process. It’s no surprise that one of the best ways to convert old photos to digital is Google’s PhotoScan app.

This free app takes multiple photos of each print to improve quality, remove glare, and correct any distortion. Best of all, it integrates seamlessly with all the great Google Photos tools you already know and love.

• Download PhotoScan for iOS | Android (Free)

iScanner is a free scanning app available for both iOS and Android, with some minor Pro features added. While the app focuses on documents, you can also scan photos with the app. The app has straightening, cropping, and editing tools to get the perfect shot. Some of the app’s other features include object counters, AI text tools, and document converters.

• Download iScanner for iOS | Android (Free, in-app purchases available)

There are plenty of other alternatives to choose from, too. We recommend Photo Scanner Plus for iOS or iPadOS, which costs $3.99. Or check out Photomyne’s Photo Scan app for Android, which offers a free trial and is also highly rated.

If you don’t have old photos to scan and digitize, there are some great modern ways to get old film photos. Apps can simulate film effects on digital photos to save you the time of scanning photos but still give you all the vintage effects of having old photos to share online.

3. Use photo digitization services

If you don’t want to waste time, a photo digitizing service might be an option for you. However, not everyone is comfortable with this service.

One thing to consider is the privacy of the photos you send. You’ll be sending family photos to a stranger, often trusting them with some of your most precious memories. This stranger will be viewing every photo you send them, so be careful when choosing which photos to scan.

If you're comfortable sharing your images, this might be the best way to digitize a bunch of old photos at once.

When choosing a scanning service for your photos, consider local photo studios. While not all locations offer this service, this option can be more convenient and faster, but it will cost more. It may also be a better option if you only want to scan a few high-quality photos.

No matter how you digitize your photos, it will save space in your home, keep your memories safe, and bring back that feeling of nostalgia that only a long trip down memory lane can bring.