What Is an AAE File? (And Should You Delete It?)

If you've ever transferred photos from an iPhone to a Windows PC and spotted files ending in .AAE, you're not alone. An AAE file is a small companion file created by Apple Photos whenever you edit a photo. It saves your edits separately, so the original image is never touched. It shows up on Windows because Windows has no way to use it.

Quick Answer

An AAE file is a tiny XML file Apple Photos creates to store photo edits. It does nothing on a Windows PC. Deleting it will not delete your photo — the original image stays completely intact. You only need to keep it if you plan to re-open the photo in Apple Photos on a Mac, iPhone, or iPad.

What Is an AAE File?

An AAE file is a sidecar file — a small companion file that sits alongside a photo and holds edit instructions for it. Apple Photos creates one automatically every time you edit a photo on an iPhone, iPad, or Mac.

The key point: it doesn't store pixels. It stores instructions. Things like how much you cropped the image, what exposure adjustment you made, which filter you applied, or whether Portrait Mode blur was added. The original photo file (JPG or HEIC) stays completely unchanged on your device. That's the whole point of the system — you can always undo or reset edits because the original was never modified.

What's often overlooked is that AAE files are also created for effects like Portrait Mode blur, not just manual edits. So even photos you didn't consciously "edit" may have an AAE file if the camera applied a computational effect at capture.

In practice, most people only ever notice AAE files after a photo transfer to Windows — because on Apple devices, the Photos app handles them silently in the background.

What Does "Sidecar File" Mean?

A sidecar file is simply a companion file that travels with a main file and carries extra information about it. It always shares the same base filename as the photo it belongs to.

Original Photo File	Corresponding AAE File
IMG_0026.JPG	IMG_0026.AAE
IMG_0244.HEIC	IMG_0244.AAE
IMG_1103.JPG	IMG_1103.AAE

If the two files get separated — say you move the photo to a different folder but leave the AAE behind — Apple Photos will no longer apply those edits. The photo will revert to its original, unedited state within the app.

What Does AAE Stand For?

Apple has never officially confirmed what AAE stands for. The most commonly cited theory is Apple Aperture Edits or Apple Aperture Extension, which makes sense given the timing:

Apple introduced AAE files in iOS 8 and OS X Yosemite in 2014 — roughly the same period they discontinued their older photo management software.

According to Wikipedia, Apple announced at WWDC 2014 that Aperture and iPhoto would be discontinued in favour of the new Photos app. That context makes the naming theory reasonable, though it remains unconfirmed.

What's Actually Inside an AAE File?

If you opened an AAE file in a text editor, you'd see XML — a structured, human-readable data format used to store and transfer information between systems. It records specific edit instructions rather than image data.

For example, it might log a crop angle of 4.3 degrees, an exposure increase of +0.5, or the name of a filter applied. That's why the files stay tiny — typically around 1KB. They're just a list of instructions, not a copy of the image.

Why Do AAE Files Appear on My Windows PC?

They appear when you manually transfer photos from an iPhone to a PC — through File Explorer, drag-and-drop, or Windows' built-in AutoPlay import. This method copies the raw source files directly off the device, including any AAE sidecar files sitting alongside the photos.

Seeing AAE files on your PC is actually a signal: it means the transfer copied the original, unedited versions of your photos. The edits stored in those AAE files won't be visible because Windows has no application that can read them.

Some users also report a "permission denied" error when trying to open AAE files on Windows. This is normal — it's not a corrupted file or a traditional permissions issue. Windows simply has no default program assigned to open the format.

The file is fine; the operating system just doesn't know what to do with it. If you're exploring software download options for managing iPhone file transfers on Windows, dedicated tools handle this better than File Explorer does.

AAE File Behaviour Across Platforms

Platform	Can Read AAE File?	Edits Visible?	Safe to Delete?
iPhone / iPad	Yes	Yes	No — edit history is lost
Mac (Apple Photos)	Yes	Yes	No — edit history is lost
Windows PC	No	No	Yes
Linux	No	No	Yes
Android	No	No	Yes

Do You Need to Keep AAE Files?

That depends entirely on where you're keeping your photos.

On Windows, Linux, or Android: AAE files are useless. No application on these platforms can interpret them. Deleting them is safe — it will not affect the original photo in any way.

On a Mac, iPhone, or iPad: Keep them if you want your edit history intact within Apple Photos. Store the AAE file in the same folder as its corresponding photo, and Photos will pick it up automatically. Move them apart, and the edits disappear from view (though the original photo is still unaffected).

Transferring between Apple devices: If you move photos between iPhone, iPad, and Mac using AirDrop or iCloud, AAE files transfer automatically. You don't need to think about them — the system handles it.

Can You Open an AAE File?

Technically, yes. Any text editor can open one — Notepad on Windows, TextEdit on Mac. The contents are XML, so they're readable, just not practically useful outside of Apple Photos.

If you're curious what's inside, opening it in VSCode (a free code editor) makes it easier to read because it applies syntax highlighting and clean formatting. But unless you're troubleshooting something specific, there's no practical reason to open an AAE file manually.

On Apple devices, Photos opens and applies AAE files automatically. You'll never need to interact with them directly.

How to Transfer iPhone Photos Without Losing Edits

The reason most people end up with AAE files on their PC is that they used a transfer method that copies raw files instead of rendered, edited versions.

As reported by TechCrunch, when Apple introduced iOS 8, a central goal of the new Photos app was ensuring that every edit and effect synced automatically across devices — something that only works correctly through the right transfer method.

Transfer Method	Platform	Preserves Edits	Difficulty
iCloud Photos	Mac, Windows, iOS	Yes	Easy
Export from Mac Photos App (File > Export > JPEG)	Mac only	Yes	Easy
iMazing (third-party software)	Mac, Windows	Yes	Medium
Cloud Storage (Dropbox, OneDrive, Amazon Photos)	Mac, Windows	Yes (as flat file)	Easy
Drag-and-drop / File Explorer	Windows	No	Easy — not recommended

iCloud Photos is the simplest option for most people. It syncs the fully edited version of every photo to your devices automatically. On Windows, you can access them through the iCloud for Windows app.

Exporting from the Mac Photos app works well if you're on a Mac. Select your photos, go to File > Export > Export Photos, and choose JPEG. This saves the edited version as a standard image file — no AAE needed.

iMazing is a third-party gadget and software tool worth considering if you transfer photos regularly and want full control over the process. It renders the edited versions of your photos during transfer, so what lands on your PC is the finished image.

Conclusion

An AAE file is Apple's way of saving photo edits without altering the original image. On Apple devices, it works invisibly. On Windows, it's just clutter — safe to delete, and not connected to the photo file itself. If you keep seeing them during transfers, switching to iCloud Photos or a proper export method will stop them from appearing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will deleting an AAE file delete my photo?

No. The AAE file and the photo are separate files. Deleting the AAE file removes the stored edit instructions but leaves the original photo completely intact.

Why do only some photos have AAE files?

AAE files are only created when a photo has been edited or had an effect applied (like Portrait Mode). Unedited photos have no AAE file.

Can I open an AAE file on Windows?

You can open it in Notepad or any text editor. The contents are XML data — readable but not useful outside of Apple Photos.

How big are AAE files?

Typically around 1KB. They store edit instructions only, not image data, which keeps them very small.

What happens if I move the AAE file away from its photo?

Apple Photos will no longer apply the edits to that photo. The original image remains intact, but the edit history won't show in the app.