If you’ve recently tried to long-press an image in Google Images on your phone and noticed the “Download” option is just… gone, you’re probably not imagining things.

Reports of the missing download button in Google Image Search have been coming in across Reddit for several months now. A thread on r/AndroidQuestions from around four months ago has been steadily gaining traction, with the OP saying the option had disappeared entirely after a system update on their Android 16 / One UI 8 device. The thread quickly drew in others dealing with the same problem, and the frustration was hard to miss.

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The pattern across reports is pretty consistent. When you long-press an image in Google’s Images tab, the “Download image” option is replaced by “Save to collection,” “Share,” “Search with Google Lens,” and “Report.”

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Actually saving the file to your device is no longer a one-tap thing. Some users tried going through Share and sending it to Google Files, only to hit a “We can’t save this file” error. Others had to open the image in Chrome separately to get the download to work.

The problem isn’t new, either. As far back as July 2025, a user on X flagged similar issues while trying to download an image, and replies from others confirmed it wasn’t a one-off. It has clearly been a rolling problem since at least mid-last year.

What makes this tricky is that not everyone is affected. A post on r/GoogleSupport highlighted that the issue seems account-dependent. One user found the download option missing on one Google account but fully working on another, which points to a possible staged rollout or server-side test rather than a clean removal. Several users in a recent r/google thread still see the option fine, even on the latest app version.

As of yesterday, a fresh thread on r/GooglePixel confirmed the issue is still active, with Pixel 9 users reporting they can’t download images from the Google app. The Chrome workaround keeps coming up as the fix, and it checks out: browsers like Chrome, Brave, and Firefox still handle long-press downloads without any issues.

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For what it’s worth, I tested this on both iOS and Android using Chrome and the Google app. On iOS, downloading images worked without any issues. On Android, though, the “Download” option showed up just fine, but the image never actually downloaded after multiple attempts. That matches exactly what the user had reported on X last year.

Google hasn’t said anything publicly about this change yet.

Are you also seeing the download option missing in Google Image Search on your phone? Drop a comment below.

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Dwayne Cubbins
1436 Posts

For nearly a decade, I've been deciphering the complexities of the tech world, with a particular passion for helping users navigate the ever-changing tech landscape. From crafting in-depth guides that unlock your phone's hidden potential to uncovering and explaining the latest bugs and glitches, I make sure you get the most out of your devices. And yes, you might occasionally find me ranting about some truly frustrating tech mishaps.

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