How to Free Up Phone Storage

By the Super Simple Digital Tools Team · Updated June 2026 · Easy · 15 minutes

A full phone can't update apps, take photos or install anything new. The biggest space-hogs are usually photos and videos, app caches and downloaded media — and you can reclaim gigabytes in a few minutes.

Steps

1. See what's using space. Open Settings → Storage to see a breakdown by photos, apps, media and 'other'.
2. Offload photos and videos. Back up to a cloud service or computer, then remove local copies of large videos and screenshots you no longer need.
3. Clear app caches. For heavy apps (browsers, social, maps), clear the cache in their settings — this frees space without deleting your data.
4. Remove unused apps. Delete apps you haven't opened in months. On iPhone, 'Offload Unused Apps' keeps the data but removes the app.
5. Empty deleted folders. Clear the Recently Deleted album and any app trash folders, which keep files for up to 30 days.

Tips

• Turn on automatic cloud photo backup so you can safely keep local storage lean.
• Streaming instead of downloading music and video saves a lot of space.