Windows 10 Photos App Missing? How to Reinstall Microsoft Photos

If Microsoft Photos is missing on Windows 10, the safest way to get it back is to install it again from Microsoft Store. If Photos is still listed in Settings but will not open, try Repair or Reset before reinstalling. A PowerShell re-registration command can help when the package is present but its registration is damaged, but it cannot restore files that are no longer installed.

Windows 10 support note: Microsoft ended standard Windows 10 support on October 14, 2025. Windows 10 PCs still run, but free security updates and technical support have ended unless the device is covered by an eligible Extended Security Updates program. See Microsoft's Windows 10 end-of-support guidance.

1. Confirm that the Photos app is actually missing

Press Start, type Photos, and check the search results. If Microsoft Photos appears, open it. If it is listed but crashes or never launches, skip to the Repair/Reset section below instead of removing it immediately.

You can also open Settings > Apps > Apps & features and look for Microsoft Photos. Finding it there means the package is installed even if its Start-menu shortcut or registration is not working correctly.

2. Reinstall Microsoft Photos from Microsoft Store

For a genuinely missing app, use the official Store listing. Microsoft continues to provide the Microsoft Photos page in Microsoft Store.

1. Open Microsoft Store and search for Microsoft Photos, or open the official Store link above.
2. Select Get or Install. The exact button label can vary depending on your Store version and whether the app was previously installed.
3. Wait for the installation to finish, then select Open and test a JPG or PNG file.

3. If Photos is installed but broken, use Repair or Reset

Microsoft recommends using Windows app recovery options before reinstalling a Store app. Go to Settings > Apps > Apps & features, select Microsoft Photos, and choose Advanced options.

1. Select Repair first. Windows attempts to fix the app without resetting its data.
2. If Repair does not help, select Reset. This resets the app's local data and settings, so you may need to reconfigure Photos afterward.

These steps match Microsoft's current Repair apps and programs in Windows guidance for Windows 10.

4. Reset Microsoft Store if Photos will not download

If the Photos Store page will not load, the Install button fails, or downloads are stuck, reset the Store cache:

1. Press Windows + R.
2. Type wsreset.exe and select OK.
3. A blank Command Prompt window may appear briefly. Microsoft Store should reopen automatically when the reset finishes.
4. Return to the Photos listing and try the installation again.

Microsoft also lists the Windows 10 Windows Store Apps troubleshooter under Settings > Update & Security > Troubleshoot > Additional troubleshooters for Store-app problems. See Microsoft's Store app troubleshooting guide.

5. Re-register Microsoft Photos with PowerShell

Use this only when the Photos package is still installed or staged but Windows has lost its registration. Open Windows PowerShell as administrator and run:

Get-AppxPackage -AllUsers Microsoft.Windows.Photos | ForEach-Object { Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml" }

If Get-AppxPackage returns nothing for Microsoft.Windows.Photos, do not keep retrying the command: there is no installed package manifest to register. Go back to Microsoft Store and install Photos there. Microsoft Learn documents Add-AppxPackage -Register as a way to register an existing app package installation.

6. Make Photos your default photo viewer again

After reinstalling, Windows may still open pictures in another app. Go to Settings > Apps > Default apps and set Photo viewer to Microsoft Photos. You can also change associations for individual file types such as JPG or PNG.

If you were looking for older features such as the legacy Video Editor, Microsoft also maintains Photos Legacy. It is separate from the current Photos app, so reinstalling the main Microsoft Photos package does not necessarily restore every legacy feature.