Microsoft Photos cant sort pictures by date correctly

Jan Csitkovits 30 Reputation points
2025-10-03T12:28:05.92+00:00

I have an Asus Laptop with Win 11 and I would like to use Microsoft Photos downloaded from the MS Store to view my holiday photos.

Only problem: MS Photos doesnt sort the photos correctly. In the explorer page all the photos and videos are sorted correctly (I am sorting by "Date" not "Date created" or "Date Modified") however when I open one photo in MS Photos the following pictures are all in a seemingly random order. It should be said that its always the same order. Another clue might be that it only happens when there are pictures from 2 different cameras (Phone/DSLR) in the same folder. Also after some time, the original picture I have clicked on disappears completely. I dont know how to explain it but the actions are as follows:
-Open explorer and navigate to the folder where all my pictures are stored

-Open a random picture

-see that i cant go to the left, only to the right (there should be other pictures on both sides, since I have taking pictures before and after the picture i opened)

-Press "F" to bring up the film strip

-see that all the pictures after that are not in chronological order

-after some time all the pictures have loaded (I think, because the the scrollbar on the bottom kept getting smaller)

-after all the pictures have loaded the picture I opened originally disappears from the film strip and I cant look at it any other way

This is my problem with MS Photos.

I have tried to repair it (Setting -> Installed Apps -> "Photos" -> Advanced options -> Repair), did not work, I uninstalled and reinstalled it, did not work.

There has to be a fix somewhere because on my desktop, which runs Win11 I am looking at the same pictures (synced via OneDrive) without a problem.

Thanks for your help!

Windows for home | Windows 11 | Apps
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Answer accepted by question author
Haien-L 7,745 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
2025-10-03T22:17:47.8766667+00:00

Dear Jan Csitkovits

Thanks for reaching out! Welcome to Microsoft Q&A. I'm Haien from Microsoft Q&A. 

The incident is highly likely due to a mismatch, inconsistency, or latency in how the Microsoft Photos app on your specific laptop interprets the Date Taken metadata (EXIF data) embedded in the photos, particularly when combining files from different devices (Phone and DSLR). The issue is compounded by the OneDrive sync status and the app's indexing process.

Since you are using Windows 11, please consider trying my suggestions and keep me updated with anything news that you were trying:  

  • Settings > Apps > Installed apps > Photos > Advanced options > Repair. If it doesn't work, please click on Reset.
  • Settings > Privacy & security > Searching Windows > Advanced Indexing Options > Advanced > Rebuild
  • In File Explorer, right-click the folder with your photos > Properties > Customize tab > Select "Pictures" under "Optimize this folder for" > Apply.
  • Also, in the same Properties page > Details tab > Check "Date taken." If inconsistent, open in Photos, right-click > File info > Edit the date/time to match. Do this for a sample from each camera to test.

For additional information about similar situation, please visit this article to know more: How to Organize Your Photos in Windows 11 | Microsoft Windows

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