Key takeaways
- A Google Photos bug on Android hid edited pictures from the image picker in apps like WhatsApp and Telegram, and the fix is in version 7.97.
- Your edited pictures weren't deleted; Android Authority says they stayed visible inside Google's gallery.
- Until you can update, saving the edited image as a copy instead of overwriting the original is the workaround all three outlets mention.
- Android Authority reports that a full reboot may be needed before other apps can find an edited image, though that detail comes from one outlet and an issue tracker report.
Google has fixed a bug in Google Photos on Android that hid edited pictures from other apps, according to reports from 9to5Google, Android Authority and Engadget on October 29 and 30, 2026. The fix is in Google Photos v7.97. If your edits still aren’t showing up in WhatsApp or Telegram, your version number is the first thing to check.
Why are my edited photos missing in WhatsApp and Telegram?
You edited a picture in Google Photos on Android and saved it. Afterward, the edited version didn’t appear in the image picker of other apps. Telegram and WhatsApp were named in the reports. Android Authority also lists Google Messages and Gemini.
The pictures weren’t deleted. Android Authority says they stayed visible in Google’s gallery, which is probably why this was so confusing. Everything looked fine in Photos, so it was easy to blame the app on the other end.
The timing is fuzzy. 9to5Google puts the start at roughly July or August 2026, and Engadget says it began over the summer. Google acknowledged the problem last month, per 9to5Google, and said a fix was coming.
Which Google Photos version fixes it?
Version 7.97 contains the fix. Version 7.98 is also fine: 9to5Google says it confirmed the hidden-image behavior no longer happens there either. So the rule is simple: be on v7.97 or later.
Who vouched for the fix depends on the outlet. 9to5Google says it’s apparently in 7.97, going by Artem Russakovskii, the founder of APKMirror, who reported the issue to the Google Photos team and said so on X. Android Authority goes further and says Google later confirmed the fix, with Russakovskii testing it independently. No direct Google statement has been quoted in any of the coverage.
To check what you’re running, open Google Photos’ page in the Play Store and tap Update if the button is there. You can also look in your phone’s app info screen, where the version number usually sits near the bottom. Menus differ by phone maker, so yours may look a little different.
If no update is offered yet, it may not have reached your device. How the rollout is staged hasn’t been reported, so check again in a day or two.
Save a copy if you can’t update yet
The workaround is to save the edited image as a copy instead of overwriting the original. All three outlets mention it. When you finish an edit, pick the save-as-copy option, not the one that replaces the original file.
This only helps with new edits. Whether it brings back a picture you already edited and saved over the original while the bug was active isn’t covered in the reporting. If one of those is still missing after you update, I’d try the reboot step below, then make a fresh edited copy and see if that one shows up.
You can also back up your edits somewhere else while you wait. A portable drive such as the Samsung T7 Portable SSD works for a quick copy of the pictures that matter, though that’s my suggestion and not something the reports recommend.
Reboot if the picture still won’t show
Restart your phone after updating, and do a full restart rather than just closing apps. Android Authority points to a related Google Issue Tracker report that blames how Android indexes local media addresses (URIs) after non-destructive edits. Per that account, other apps may fail to find the edited image until the phone fully reboots.
Treat that as a plausible explanation, not a settled one. The wording is hedged (the culprit “appears” to involve those edits and indexing), and 9to5Google says the exact cause is unclear. The reboot detail comes only from Android Authority and that tracker report. Still, a restart costs you about a minute, so it’s worth trying if a picture is stubborn.
If you send edited photos through WhatsApp or Telegram, you probably hit this without knowing it. The bug ran for months, by the outlets’ accounts, and the pictures looked fine in Google’s own gallery. That’s the kind of thing that makes you think you forgot to save.
Update first. Then edit one test picture, open WhatsApp or Telegram, and see whether the edited version appears in the picker. If it does, you’re done. If it doesn’t, restart and try again.
There’s a second Google Photos bug from last month worth knowing about. After an edit, the buttons for sharing, editing, adding to an album and trashing a picture stopped responding, and Google acknowledged it. Android Authority says Google named v7.94 as the fix. Engadget says Google resolved it within a day or so, but Android Authority says at least one reader reports the problem is still there. The two bugs have different symptoms, and nothing confirms they share a cause. If those buttons still freeze on you, you’re not imagining it, and it may be a separate issue from the one fixed in 7.97.
What nobody has pinned down yet
The biggest gap is the cause. The URI-indexing explanation is a lead from an issue tracker report, and Google hasn’t been quoted confirming it. No official changelog or statement about the fix has been reported either.
Other open points:
- How many people were affected, and on which phones and Android versions.
- Whether the update restores pictures edited while the bug was active, or only protects new edits.
- When the fix reached everyone through the Play Store rollout.
- Whether the earlier unresponsive-buttons bug is fully fixed, given the reader report.
The fix itself rests on Russakovskii’s testing and 9to5Google’s own checks, not a direct Google statement. That’s decent evidence, but it’s worth confirming on your own phone with one test edit.
Tools & products mentioned
- Samsung T7 Portable SSD on Amazon — Check current price
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Frequently asked questions
Why are my edited Google Photos pictures not showing up in WhatsApp?
A Google Photos bug on Android hid edited images from the image picker in other apps, including WhatsApp and Telegram. The fix is in Google Photos v7.97, so update the app, then restart your phone if the picture still doesn't appear.
Did Google Photos delete my edited pictures?
No. Android Authority says the pictures stayed visible in Google's gallery. Other apps just couldn't see them in their pickers.
Which Google Photos version fixes the bug?
Version 7.97 has the fix. 9to5Google says it also confirmed the problem no longer happens on v7.98, so any version from 7.97 up should be fine.
What can I do if I can't update Google Photos yet?
Save edited images as a copy instead of overwriting the original. All three outlets mention this workaround. Android Authority also reports that a full reboot may help other apps find an edited image.
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Sources
This article was compiled from reporting by the following outlets. Links go to the original reports.
- 9to5Google: Google Photos update fixes the bug that hid edited pictures
- Android Authority: This Google Photos bug made edited photos disappear, and there’s finally a fix
- Engadget: Google fixes an annoying Photos bug that hid edited images from other apps
