How to Change a Photo's Date on Mac (Photos App and EXIF)

Quick answer: The Mac Photos app can change a photo's date through Image > Adjust Date and Time, but it only updates the Photos library database, not the EXIF date embedded in the file. So the moment you export the photo or move the original, the old date comes back. To change the real date that travels with the file, use a free browser EXIF date editor: it writes DateTimeOriginal into the file itself, runs locally in your browser, and works everywhere. Here are all three approaches, including ExifTool for power users.

macOS keeps the date you see in Photos separate from the date stored in the file. That gap is why a date you "fixed" can reappear later. Here is how to fix it for real.

Method 1: Photos app "Adjust Date and Time" (library only)

The built-in Photos app makes this look easy:

1. Open Photos and select the image (or several images).
2. In the menu bar, choose Image, then Adjust Date and Time.
3. Set the corrected date and time.
4. Click Adjust.

The date now looks right inside Photos, in the timeline and in Memories. This is genuinely useful for organizing your own library.

The catch: it does not rewrite the EXIF on the original file. Photos stores the change as an adjustment in its own database. The underlying file still carries its original DateTimeOriginal. That matters the moment the photo leaves Photos:

• Export the photo and, depending on your export settings, the EXIF can still hold the old capture date.
• Copy the original out of the library (or use the file elsewhere) and Photos' adjustment is left behind entirely.
• Another app or another computer reads the file's EXIF, not Photos' private database, so it shows the old date.

In short, Photos fixes the date you see, not the date inside the file. For a fix that survives export and sharing, use one of the methods below.

Method 2: Browser EXIF date editor (writes the file, works everywhere)

To change the real capture date so it stays correct no matter where the photo goes:

1. Open the EXIF date editor in any browser on your Mac (Safari or Chrome).
2. Upload the photo.
3. Type the new date and time.
4. Click Apply and download the new file.

This writes DateTimeOriginal directly into the file, which is the tag every app and operating system reads for "when this was taken." It runs entirely in your browser, so the photo never uploads to a server, and there is nothing to install. Because the date now lives in the file, it stays correct after export, after AirDrop, and on any device. To check what a file currently holds before and after, open it in the EXIF viewer.

Method 3: ExifTool from the command line (for power users)

If you are comfortable in Terminal, ExifTool is the precision tool. Install it (for example with Homebrew), then run a single command to set the capture date:

exiftool "-DateTimeOriginal=2024:07:15 14:30:00" photo.jpg

That rewrites DateTimeOriginal in the file, the same field the browser editor targets. ExifTool can also batch a whole folder and shift dates by a fixed offset (handy when a camera clock was off by a known amount). It is powerful but unforgiving: get the syntax wrong and you can write the wrong tag. For one-off fixes, or if Terminal is not your thing, the browser editor does the same job with no setup.

Why this matters for sorting and evidence

The capture date is not just cosmetic. It controls how photos sort into albums and timelines, and it is what people rely on when a photo's date needs to be trusted (insurance, claims, records, legal context). If the date only lives in the Photos database, it is invisible to everyone else and gone the moment the file is shared. Writing DateTimeOriginal into the file is what makes the date portable and verifiable. If your dates are already off, why is my photo date wrong explains the usual causes, and date taken vs date created vs date modified untangles which date is which.

The short version

The Mac Photos app's Adjust Date and Time changes only the library, so the date reverts when you export or move the file. To change the real date, use a free browser EXIF date editor: it writes DateTimeOriginal into the file, runs locally, and never uploads your photo. ExifTool does the same from Terminal if you prefer the command line. For other platforms and the wider guide, see how to change the date on a photo.