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how to free up icloud storage

You can free up iCloud storage by deleting old backups, large photos/videos, and unused files or app data, then emptying “Recently Deleted” so space is actually released. You can also stop backing up things you don’t need so iCloud doesn’t fill right back up.

Quick Scoop

Here’s a deep-dive “how to free up iCloud storage” guide you can use like a checklist, plus a bit of forum-style perspective and what people are doing lately to stay under Apple’s limits.

Step 1: See what’s filling iCloud

Before deleting anything, check what is actually eating your storage.

  • On iPhone/iPad:
    • Go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Manage Account Storage (or iCloud Storage).
* You’ll see a bar chart showing categories like Photos, Backups, Drive, Mail, Messages, etc.
  • On Mac:
    • Go to Apple menu > System Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Manage.
  • On the web:
    • Sign in at iCloud.com , click your storage or app icons (Photos, Drive, Mail) to review usage.

Focus first on the biggest chunks: Backups and Photos usually dominate.

Step 2: Clean up iCloud Photos

Photos and videos are often the number-one storage hog.

A. Turn on storage-friendly photo settings

  • On iPhone/iPad:
    • Go to Settings > Photos.
    • Enable iCloud Photos (if you want your library in the cloud).
* Turn on **Optimize iPhone Storage** so full-res files live in iCloud and smaller versions stay on-device.
  • This doesn’t instantly free iCloud space, but it stops your phone from hoarding full-resolution copies everywhere.

B. Delete stuff you truly don’t need

  • Open Photos on iPhone/iPad or iCloud.com.
  • Filter for large space hogs:
    • In Photos app, go to Albums > Recently Deleted, Screenshots, Videos, Bursts, Screen Recordings and clear what you don’t need.
  • If you use iCloud.com:
    • Sign in, click Photos , select unwanted pictures/videos, and delete.

C. Empty “Recently Deleted” to actually free space

Deleting only moves items to a holding area and does not immediately free storage.

  • On iPhone/iPad:
    • Open Photos > Albums > Recently Deleted.
    • Tap Select > Ellipsis (…) > Delete All > Delete From This iPhone.
  • On iCloud.com:
    • Go to Photos > Recently Deleted and choose Delete All.

Apple otherwise keeps those items for about 30 days, so this step is crucial.

Step 3: Tame iCloud Backups

Old device backups can quietly occupy gigabytes.

A. Delete old device backups

  • On iPhone/iPad:
    • Go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Manage Account Storage > Backups.
* Tap a device you no longer use and **Delete Backup**.
  • On Mac:
    • In System Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Manage, select Backups and remove old ones.

Forum users commonly report gaining multiple GBs back this way after upgrading from older iPhones or iPads.

B. Turn off backup for low‑value apps

Within the backup details for your current device, you’ll see a list of apps using backup space.

  • Turn off backup for:
    • Games that can re-download data.
    • Streaming apps (Spotify, Netflix, etc.) that store mostly cache.
    • Apps with noncritical data.

This keeps future iCloud backups smaller and prevents the “storage almost full” warnings from returning.

Step 4: Clear iCloud Drive clutter

iCloud Drive often accumulates forgotten PDFs, exports, and app folders.

A. From a browser

  • Sign in to iCloud.com.
  • Click iCloud Drive.
  • Sort files by size or date and delete:
    • Old downloads and archives.
    • Old project folders you no longer need.
    • Duplicate exports or big media files.

After deleting, go to Recently Deleted in iCloud Drive and clear it to immediately reclaim the space.

B. From a Mac

  • Open Finder > iCloud Drive.
  • Sort by size or date and move/delete files you’re done with, then empty Trash.

Clean-up guides recommend doing this from a computer because it’s easier to scan many files at once.

Step 5: Trim iCloud Mail, Messages, and WhatsApp

Messages and email rarely seem huge individually, but attachments add up.

A. Mail

If you use iCloud Mail (address ending in @icloud.com, @me.com, or @mac.com), its messages and attachments live in iCloud.

  • On iPhone:
    • Open Mail > Mailboxes > Trash (or Bin).
    • Tap Edit > Select All > Delete All to clear trash.
  • Filter and delete:
    • Large attachments, newsletters, or auto-generated messages.

B. Messages in iCloud (iMessage)

Messages in iCloud sync across devices and count against your storage, especially with heavy media sharing.

  • On iPhone:
    • Go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Show All > Messages and confirm if Messages in iCloud is on.
* In **Settings > General > iPhone Storage > Messages**, check **Top Conversations** and **Large Attachments**.

* Delete old chats you don’t care about or remove only large media from certain threads.

Some tech creators recommend setting Messages to auto-delete after 1 year or 30 days to avoid a slow buildup.

C. WhatsApp or other chat backups

If your WhatsApp is set to back up to iCloud, those backups can be big.

  • In WhatsApp > Settings > Chats > Chat Backup, reduce how often it backs up or exclude videos, or move backups to a computer instead.

Step 6: Manage “hidden” app data and third‑party tools

Over time, various apps stash their data in iCloud.

  • In Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Manage Account Storage, you’ll see a list of apps using iCloud.
  • Tap any app:
    • Review what it stores.
    • Disable iCloud for apps you no longer use or that don’t need cloud sync.

Some Mac utilities now include cloud-cleanup views that show what’s stored locally vs. in iCloud, making it easier to pick what to remove.

Step 7: When upgrading storage actually makes sense

Sometimes, even after trimming, you legitimately need more space—especially if you shoot lots of 4K video or have multiple family devices.

  • iCloud+ offers paid tiers (like 50 GB, 200 GB, 2 TB and higher in some regions) and can be shared with Family Sharing.
  • Many forum users say that once they pass around 80–90% usage repeatedly, upgrading a tier is less stressful than constantly pruning.

Still, the best practice is a one-time deep clean plus a few recurring habits, then upgrade if your needs truly exceed the free/cheaper levels.

Forum & “latest news” angle

Recent posts and blog pieces highlight a few trends around “how to free up iCloud storage”:

  • Frequent complaints about the 5 GB free tier being too small for modern backups and photo libraries, especially now that phones shoot higher‑resolution media.
  • Popular advice threads emphasize:
    • Deleting old device backups first.
    • Then cleaning Photos and iCloud Drive.
    • Only then deciding whether to pay for more storage.

There’s also a recurring theme of people learning—sometimes the hard way—that simply “deleting photos” isn’t enough until they clear Recently Deleted to reclaim the space.

Practical mini-checklist (do this in order)

  1. Check Manage Account Storage to see what’s biggest.
  1. Delete old device Backups and turn off backup for low-value apps.
  1. Clean Photos (videos, screenshots, duplicates) and empty Recently Deleted.
  1. Clear out iCloud Drive from a computer and empty its Recently Deleted.
  1. Trim Mail, Messages, and chat backups , focusing on large attachments.
  1. Disable iCloud for apps whose data you do not care about syncing.
  1. If you still keep hitting the limit, consider an iCloud+ upgrade or offloading some content to a computer or another cloud.

Short TL;DR

  • Find what’s largest in Manage Account Storage.
  • Delete old backups, unneeded photos/videos, and iCloud Drive junk, then empty Recently Deleted everywhere.
  • Turn off backups for nonessential apps and shorten how long messages and chats are kept.
  • If you still run out of space after a good clean, it may be time to bump up your iCloud plan or move some content off iCloud entirely.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.