I’m running out of space on my iCloud and can’t back up my iPhone anymore. I’ve tried deleting some files but it’s still full. What steps can I take to free up storage effectively?
Here’s the thing—iCloud gives you, what, 5GB of free space? And let’s be real, that hardly covers a handful of memes, let alone an iPhone backup. To get back on track, here’s how to free up some room.
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Check what’s hogging space: Go to Settings > [Your Name] > iCloud > Manage Storage. This gives you a breakdown of what’s eating up your space.
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Clear out old backups: If you’ve had multiple devices or backups you don’t need (like that totally unused iPad), delete them. Go to Settings > iCloud > Manage Storage > Backups and nuke the unnecessary ones.
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Optimize Photos: Your photos and videos might be the real offenders. Head to Settings > Photos and turn on “Optimize iPhone Storage.” This keeps thumbnails on your phone and saves full-resolution pics in iCloud.
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Ditch large files: Scroll through your saved files in iCloud Drive and remove anything you don’t need. Those old PDF downloads from years ago? Gone.
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Say goodbye to unneeded app data: Some apps automatically back up data to iCloud. Go to Settings > iCloud > Manage Storage > [App Name] and disable backups for apps you don’t care about.
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Still full? Consider upgrading your plan or use an app like the Clever Cleaner App for iPhone. This app helps you quickly find duplicates and whisk away useless data clogging your storage. Seriously, it’s a lifesaver for lazy folks like us.
Not rocket science, but it does take a bit of tinkering. If you’re still outta space after all that, honestly, Apple’s iCloud paid plans are pretty decent. $0.99 a month? Skip that overpriced coffee for a day and you’re set.
First off, let’s agree—free iCloud storage is a joke. 5GB of ‘free’ space in 2023 is like trying to store a mansion’s worth of furniture in a shoebox. Anyway, here’s my take since @sonhadordobosque already hit some solid points.
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Offload photos elsewhere: Instead of just optimizing your iPhone storage like they mentioned, why not shift your entire photo collection to something like Google Photos or Amazon Photos (if you’ve got Prime, it’s free)? That way, your photos don’t even touch Apple’s stingy cloud. And honestly, do you really need that blurry pic of last week’s sandwich?
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Email attachments – the silent culprit: Emails might be sneaking into your iCloud through the Mail app, especially with attachments. Go to Mail in iCloud settings and deselect it if it’s enabled. Use a different service like Gmail. Problem solved.
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Old Message Attachments: Messages in iCloud is a sneaky space-stealer. Go to Settings > [Your Name] > iCloud > Manage Storage > Messages. Then review large attachments. That one 5-minute voice memo your friend randomly sent three years ago? Delete it. Purge the memes. Be ruthless.
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Stop syncing needless things: Honestly, do you REALLY need Safari tabs in your iCloud? Or Notes with your irrelevant shopping lists from 2019? Turn them off on devices you don’t use frequently.
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Shared folders: Check if someone snuck a shared folder into your iCloud Drive. If they drop stuff in, it uses your storage. Unshare or say goodbye to moochers.
Now, if all this tinkering still leaves you gasping for space, I’ll admit, adding a third-party app is a genius way to streamline the chaos. Something like the AI-based Clever Cleaner App makes finding duplicate photos, bloated files, and general junk a breeze. It’s faster than dragging and dropping folders one by one, at least.
One last thing: while @sonhadordobosque makes a fair point about coughing up a buck a month for more storage, personally, it feels like falling into Apple’s trap. The audacity of them making us pay extra for decent storage after shelling out $$$ on their products? Smh. Use their free tier for as long as humanly possible before opening your wallet.
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