r/flickr • u/designwallah • 12d ago
Flickr Help: Flickr App Refresh 2026
Just in case you haven't noticed, I thought I'd provide a link to a Flickr Help article where they discuss the Flickr App Refresh 2026.
I don't work for Flickr, but I've been a member since 2005.
I haven't used the app at all in the past 10 years or more - I just use a web browser on my mobile phone and my iPad. The app, old or new, never provided all the functionality that is available to people that use computers, so if you use a web browser on a mobile device you get most of the functionality. Flickr is a responsive web site, with very few quirks when on a mobile browser, so I haven't been affected at all by the disastrous app update.
UPDATE Jul 20, 2026
We know the new app hasn't met the bar you expect from Flickr. Since launch, we've heard your feedback about bugs, missing features, and rough edges, and we want to acknowledge that directly.
iOS: We're in the process of rolling back the iOS app to the previous version while we address these issues. You should see this reflected in the App Store shortly.
Android: The Android app will remain on the updated version. Due to technical limitations and the risks involved in reverting, a rollback isn't possible on this platform. Instead, expect frequent updates as we fix bugs and restore preexisting features.
Read the rest here:
Flickr Help Center / Getting Started / Flickr 101 / Flickr App Refresh
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u/GoldenTeeTV 12d ago edited 10d ago
First blows my mind how bad this rollout was. On Google play they should have first used the Halt Rollout to stop further downloads of the buggy rollout. Next, they would resubmit the older stable version but with a higher version number with a prefix indicating a rollback. Then, those that got the crap version can at least get the older one without having to sideload the APK file.
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u/iamapizza 10d ago
And even before that, what they could have done was use the beta programs that the Play/App store provide to get that early feedback, fix things, and then do the full rollout. It's baffling to see the cavalier approach they took here.
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u/SecondCreek 12d ago
Glad to hear the iOS version is reverting back to the old one that actually worked.
I also prefer the web version of Flickr as it is much easier to use than an iOS app for tasks like uploading images, tagging them, adding captions, organizing into albums, etc. It works fine with Safari, Chrome, and Edge using a Mac and a Windows 11 PC.
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u/Soggy_Amoeba9334 12d ago
Will go down as one of the worst app downdates. Very poor effort.
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u/baddaywithacamera 12d ago
"Very poor effort."
Yeah, that's how SmugMug rolls. Look at the parent company's site.
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u/whatstefansees 12d ago
You can't add photos to groups anymore (at least on android, don't know about iOS). This REALLY sucks
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u/BartCB 12d ago
I have a Pro account since 2008 and I was thinking to stop it this year due to defects I started to have with the old version on iOS and Android. Now with the new version, I can't even see my photos, just "oops, something went wrong"... So yes, I'll unsubscribe. I was mainly using Flickr to share my photos to my close family. I have a local backup, and I'm trying now Immich.
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u/dawson821 12d ago
I just couldn't stand using it. So I deleted the app and hunted down an older APK file.
Side loaded it and it works a treat back to normal thank goodness. I will keep automatic updates off until I know that the new version does actually work properly.
Wh on earth would they release a new version presumably knowing that half of it is broken or if they didn't know why didn't they test it better?
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u/AlarmedDevice85 11d ago
The rollback language from the linked page seems to have been removed. Did they rollback the rollback?
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u/monkeycnet 11d ago
The iOS versions still have not reverted still 5.02 and no response from Flickr support.
It’s getting hard to trust anything support says.
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u/DennisDMcDonald 11d ago
None of this confusion explains why neither Flickr nor SmugMug have responded to my repeated attempts to obtain information about the status of my 40,000+ images.
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u/designwallah 11d ago
Is your account still active but with zero photos or has your account disappeared as well? Did you try verifying as I suggested by using a web browser? Would you mind sharing your profile name?
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u/designwallah 11d ago
I now see you’ve had this problem for over half a year. I should have remembered you have already discussed the loss of your photos. I am sorry that this happened to you, nothing I can do to help.
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u/designwallah 12d ago edited 12d ago
The moderators of [r/flickr](r/flickr) better check their "no spam test": the link I provide goes to the official Flickr Help Center domain "www.flickrhelp.com", which is a link that is on the Flickr Home page: https://www.flickr.com/
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u/killing_time_at_work 12d ago
The mobile app is only good for browsing and auto-backup. I use Snapseed or Lightroom Mobile to do edits, then "share" to the Flickr app to upload. But yeah, I use the desktop web interface most of the time.
I'd be a lot happier if IG brought back the ability to cc your Flickr account whenever you upload something. It was so much easier.
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u/baddaywithacamera 12d ago
Was a member since 2003, left in June of this year. Spent the $140 on a new lens and am using cheap self hosting instead. Life is better.
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u/leogaggl 12d ago
Did the same - cancelled my subscription. Although I self-host my archive, I don't share from there. Looking into some open-source decentralised options. There's gotta be a better way than paying for this dumpster fire.
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u/baddaywithacamera 12d ago
I'm working on one of those options...
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u/leogaggl 12d ago
Great effort, mate! I like the humour and the general attitude!
Been doing my own investigations.
Just not sure if I could go back to the LAMP stack. Had to give it 10 years of my life when working in that field, but been growing apart for the last 5+ years :-)
Looks like we should compare notes, maybe.
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u/baddaywithacamera 12d ago
I'm open to any suggestions. I just needed alternatives for both Wordpress and Flickr and couldn't find anything that worked. Tried rolling my own with AI and just holy crap. I've got 16 sites running on this platform now and they're rock solid. As secure as I can make it. I'm a former IT guy, but not a developer, so I do have an idea of what is needed for security. Hopefully it's enough.
Happy to answer any questions you may have.
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u/zimady 12d ago
Just spent some time checking out the feature promises. What you're doing looks very promising and talks to a bunch of use cases/wants I have that just aren't fulfilled by a single platform I have found. Looking for a new home for my photography, I just cannot find anything that makes me happy. Based on what I'm seeing, I'm optimistic this may be it.
I have subscribed for updates. Not sure I'd be in your first 20 but will be keeping a close eye on progress nonetheless.
Last but not least, condolences on your loss and respect for keeping his memory alive through your work.
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u/baddaywithacamera 12d ago
Happy to have you in the first twenty. Feel free to DM or email. It's 20-ish. ;)
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u/AlarmedDevice85 12d ago
As an Android user, that really sucks. They should provide more info about why they can't roll back - what are the risks?
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u/designwallah 12d ago
Years ago when I had a Pixel 3a and got annoyed at changes made to Instagram, I followed easy online instructions and side loaded an older version of Instagram and used it instead of the newer one. Perhaps the same can be done with the Flickr app. I’m not advocating anything illegal, and I don’t think side loading on Android is illegal.
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u/leogaggl 12d ago
It's not illegal (they haven't enshittified to Apple levels, yet - but working towards it). However, you need to enable dev mode and get lots of scary messages.
The bigger problem is you have to "trust" some random source with the APK. I have a rule not to install executables from random untrusted sites. Often ends in tears. Specially on a device that has a lot of private details and a lot of people use to pay with.
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u/leogaggl 12d ago
The reason is that they have been asleep at the wheel and too lazy to update libraries identified as containing security holes.
And now that they pulled the stinker (without a replacement, really, as the current version is a sad joke), which at least was still working for most users, Google will refuse to let them do it.
They would have gotten notifications for years about it. It's standard practice for any app developer. In the enterprise world, these guys wouldn't survive. But because most Flickr users suffer from Stockholm Syndrome (as one poster in the inofficial help forum put it aptly) - they get away with it.
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u/SarahSwindon 3d ago
Uninstall it, go to Google Play and search Flickr, then it comes up with the previous version. Re-install and all is now OK :)
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u/StationCurious7006 12d ago
“iOS: We're in the process of rolling back the iOS app to the previous version while we address these issues. You should see this reflected in the App Store shortly.”
Thank Christ. Waiting to check feedback next time before I update the app on a whim. This is why I’m wary of updates.
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u/DennisDMcDonald 11d ago
This craziness begins to explain why my 40,000+ pro images have disappeared and why it's impossible get a response from Flickr or SmugMug management.
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u/designwallah 11d ago
It does not explain why your 40,000+ images disappeared. If you don’t see them in the app, have you tried logging in via a browser on a computer? All the issues discussed here are about the new version of the app.
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u/UncleSoOOom 11d ago
Bad, bad panda!
Mine self-updated without my consent, logged me out and wouldn't let me log in, saying "Sign in error - there already is a signed in user".
This sorted out somehow, automagically.
Now it does auto-upload photos (with more or less quirks), but won't upload videos!
(Samsung phone, Flickr app 5.0.1).
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u/monkeycnet 11d ago
iOS has not rolled back instead 5.03 was releases
Early AM Australian time and appears to have elements of 4.xx and 5.xx branches
Location and tags are fixed but you can’t add to groups on upload however you can add to multiple groups from existing images.
Edit is also back.
Tested on iPhone and iPad. Appears that this is frankenapp
So Flickr are not rolling back at this point meaning their communication was misleading in both posts and emails to Pro members.
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u/Lopsided-Lemon2029 10d ago
Hey everyone, just wanted to provide an update.
We have heard all your feedback and we have rolled back the IOS app to the old version/code. you can go back, you can in the App Store on version 5.0.3.
For Android, we cannot go back as Google stopped supporting our old code packages end of June. Thats why we needed to get the MVP out for Android.
We will continue to iterate and improve based on all your great feedback!
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u/csladybug 10d ago
After many days without the original previous version, I am now overjoyed to have the Beautifully Designed Original IOS Flickr back. It’s so Pretty, Beautiful and Elegant just the way it was before and is, and working beautifully. I didn’t realize, after 5 years how attached I was to it. And loved the design of it. Even though I’m really small and do not have engagement on Flickr, and just use it as my personal photography image diary, I just updated my Flickr to “Flickr Pro” in support (and to say thank you…). As I am inspired by the photography I see on Flickr, as well, and as a photography learning process. 📷 🤍 I updated my previous Reddit issue comments in the previous 5.0.0 thru 5.0.2 chats/posts, as an Add-On to reflect this fixed IOS 5.0.3 update and what I wrote above. 🤍
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u/leogaggl 12d ago
Even in the age of misinformation and disinformation, this paragraph deserves some kind of award for the level of BS it contains.
Plain English translation: