IPhone: 7 tips for freeing storage space

Discover the amount of storage space that photos and videos occupy on your iPhone, iPad or Mac, and how to free up space on your devices using iCloud photos.

Manage the storage space for your photos and videos

Discover the amount of storage space that photos and videos occupy on your iPhone, iPad or Mac, and how to free up space on your devices using iCloud photos.

The photos, music pieces, apps and other contents that you benefit from on your iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch occupy part of the storage space available on your device. This can be quickly full, depending on the storage capacity it has and the volume of your content. If a message tells you that storage of your device is full, you can release space using iCloud photos or deleting content.

Verification of the available storage space

Consult the quantity of storage space remaining on your device and in iCloud, and identify the apps that use the most.

Device storage

1. Access adjustments.
2. Touch General.
3. Touch storage [device].

This screen can display recommendations to optimize your storage, the list of your apps and the quantity of space used by each of them.

ICloud storage

1. Access adjustments.
2. Touch your name.
3. Touch iCloud.

You can check the quantity of space remaining in your iCloud account and know if an upgrade of your storage package is necessary. Touch Manage account storage to consult the use of storage by each of your apps.

Storage of your photos and videos in iCloud

By default, your photos and videos are stored on your device in their original high resolution version. They therefore occupy a significant storage space on your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch. Thanks to iCloud photos, you can free up more space on your device, while maintaining access to your entire photo library in full resolution, wherever you are.

To use iCloud photos:

1. Touch settings> [your name]> iCloud> Photos.
2. Touch this iPhone Synchronize. Under iOS 15 or previous version, touch the iCloud photos option to activate it.
3. Select Optimize iPhone storage to free up space on your device.

When optimization of storage is activated, the photos and videos in full resolution are stored in iCloud. If necessary, copies occupying less space are stored on your device. As long as you have enough space in iCloud, you can store as many photos and videos as you want.

Increase your storage space

• By subscribing to iCloud, you automatically benefit from 5 GB of free storage space. If you need more iCloud storage, you can go to iCloud+.
• If you need additional storage space on your device, you can transfer the photos and videos you don’t want to store in iCloud on your computer.
• If you need additional help regarding your storage package, for example if you have bought additional storage space, but it does not appear in your account, contact Apple Assistance.

iPhone: 7 tips for freeing storage space

Discover a series of tips if you lack space on your smartphone to save your photos, music or download new applications.

Alexandra Patard / published on April 7, 2022 at 11:45 a.m

Photos, videos, music, movies, electronic books, applications … The memory of your iPhone is not expandable, it happens that you no longer have a storage space available to continue using your smartphone in your daily uses. Here is a series of tips to remedy it.

1. Identify the cause of your lack of space on your iPhone

The first step is to determine the reason for your lack of storage space. Each iPhone has a diagram with the volume of the content categories present on your device: your applications, your photos, the iOS update and the system data. Below, you will find the list of all your applications, native and downloaded, as well as your recorded media, with detail for each of the weight in MO or GO that this represents within your phone, as well as the date of your last use.

1. Go to the Settings of your iPhone,
2. Press on General,
3. Select Storage.

2. Delete stored multimedia content that you no longer use

Once you understand why your iPhone lacks storage space, you can then start making room in your multimedia content that you haven’t used for a while. In category IPhone storage From your mobile, delete for example your old videos, electronic books that you have finished reading, movies or even podcasts that you have downloaded to read them in offline mode, but which remain stored on your device.

3. Automatically delete your old SMS

You used to use mainly instant messaging services (WhatsApp, Telegram, Instagram Direct, Facebook Messenger) to send quick responses or react to content that your friends or your loved ones send you ? If you no longer use (or almost more) the messages application, your iPhone may still contain old conversations you no longer need today. There is a tip to delete them automatically on your device. Here are the steps to follow:

1. Go to the Settings of your iPhone,
2. Select Messages,
3. Scroll the section to messages: Keep messages,
4. Choose from the 3 proposed options: 30 days, 1 year, indefinitely (not recommended).

4. Deactivate the applications that you no longer use without losing your data

To unload the storage space of your iPhone, you can also deactivate the applications of which you no longer have the daily use. Section IPhone storage Allows you to realize since when you have not opened this or that app on your smartphone. Another solution exists, especially if you do not want to lose data or documents associated with an application. The latter will be available again when you re -order your app when the time comes.

To deactivate an app without losing your data:

1. Go to the Settings of your iPhone,
2. Press on General,
3. Select IPhone storage,
4. Choose the app that you want to deactivate and type on the blue button Discharge the app.

Note that you can also configure this option automatically at the app store, which will prevent you from activating this parameter on a case -by -case basis for each app. To do this, follow the following path: Settings > App Store > Unload unused apps.

To access the application again, return to the application sheet and press the blue button: Reinstall the app.

5. Empty the safari cache on your iPhone

Among the solutions at your disposal to free up storage space on your smartphone, you can also empty the cache present on your web browser, in this case Safari. The procedure is simple:

1. Go to the Settings of your iPhone,
2. Select Safari,
3. Press the blue button: Erase history, site data.

Safari warns you that your history, cookies and other navigation data will be deleted if you confirm this operation. You will then have to reconnect on your favorite websites, but this will allow you to eliminate the storage space.

If you use Google Chrome for iOS, you must first open your web browser and click on the 3 points at the bottom. Then follow the following path: Historical > Clear browsing data. The list of the different elements you can erase will then be offered: navigation history, cache images and files, cookies and site data, saved passwords, automatic filling data, or delete everything. You can delete your navigation history from the last hour, the last 24 hours, of the past week, last month, or since you use Chrome. Once your selection is finished, validate your choice by typing on Clear browsing data.

6. Add links to your home screen instead of applications

This tip allows you to continue accessing your favorite documents or news sites from your home screen, as if it were an application. You can for example save one or more links from a Google Drive document, without having to download or have to keep the associated application on your mobile. You will save storage space on your iPhone, because a recorded link on your home screen will be less resource -based than a full -fledged application.

1. Go to the page or the link you want to add from Safari,
2. At the bottom of your screen, press the square icon surmounted by an arrow pointing upwards,
3. Select On the home screen,
4. Change if necessary the name of your link in the upper field, to the right of the logo,
5. Click on the button Add, At the top right of your screen.

7. Use iCloud to save your photos and videos

If despite all of these tips, you always lack storage space on your iPhone, you can also use an online storage service, like Apple iCloud. It will allow you to keep all your photos, videos and music, which take you the most space on your mobile.

If the first 5 GB of iCloud storage are free, there are several iCloud+ packages to benefit from 50 GB, 200 GB or 2 TO of storage. To access it, type on your name at the top of Settings, select iCloud, Then Manage storage. Here you have the possibility of choosing the subscription best suited to your needs and activating family sharing.

Once your package is configured, other options are offered to free up even more space in iCloud. To do this, do not hesitate to consult Apple’s support.