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- Michael Graw
- Find out what’s using up space. Before you start down the road of removing files from iCloud, it’s a good idea to find out what types of files are taking up the most space.
- Get rid of old messages. Individual text messages and iChat threads on their own may only be a few kilobytes each. But if you’ve been an iPhone user for many years, you could have more than a gigabyte of old messages stored away in your iCloud account.
- Delete email attachments. Just as for messages, attachments in emails can take up a huge amount of space—especially if your iCloud account is storing several years’ worth of emails.
- Manage your photo library. There’s a good chance that your photo library is taking up the majority of space within your iCloud account. After all, the cameras on Apple devices have incredibly high resolutions, and more and more people are shooting video clips in addition to photos.
- Overview
- Top cloud storage services
- Where to find iCloud
- iCloud storage components
- Checking storage
- Available storage options
- Removing iCloud storage
- 1. Change your storage plan
- 2. Delete old backups
- 3. Reduce the size of the iCloud backup
How-to
By Bryan M Wolfe
last updated 5 October 2022
We'll show you how to make the most of your current iCloud plan
(Image credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff)
Launched in 2011, iCloud is a cloud and computing service by Apple. With millions of users worldwide, the service offers different benefits and is the successor to MobileMe. As one of the best cloud storage providers for Mac users, iCloud allows users to securely warehouse essential files such as device backups, documents, photos, and music remotely across Apple's many server farms. It's also where personal app data gets stored. Once on iCloud, these files are easily accessible from all your Apple devices — assuming you're logged in with the same Apple ID.
1. IDrive is the top cloud storage provider
IDrive, the cloud storage veteran, delivers tons of storage online for an incredibly small outlay. 10TB for $3.48 for the first year is unmatched till now and so is the support for unlimited devices and the extensive file versioning system available.
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2. pCloud provides a lifetime cloud storage subscription
The Swiss-based company is more expensive than the competition but the one-off payment means that you won't have to worry about renewal fees that can be very horrendously expensive. $350 for 10 years is less than $3 per month.
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Apple's iCloud service is offered across various devices, including Mac, iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, and Apple Watch. You can also use iCloud storage on Windows devices through Apple's file hosting service, iCloud Drive. There's also a web app located at iCloud.com that's reachable from Safari and other browsers.
Over the years, Apple has added to the type of files users can store on iCloud. These options vary by device. For example, iPhone and iPad users may use iCloud for automatic backup and restore, but Mac users cannot. It's a significant difference, but given some Macs now offer upwards of 8TB of available storage, it makes sense.
An iCloud backup for iPhone or iPad can quickly restore an existing device or set up a new one with the same credentials, files, and apps installed. An iCloud backup consists of device settings and app organization, messages (iMessage and text), photos, and videos. It also includes purchase history across all Apple devices, including music, films, TV shows, apps, ringtones, books, and voicemail.
You can also back up your photo library, iCloud keychain, and iCloud Mail on all devices, including Mac. Meanwhile, iCloud Drive is where you can manually move files and folders that you can access from anywhere. Content in iCloud Drive is also shareable with friends, family, and colleagues. Files stored on iCloud Drive can be as large as 50GB, although your storage can get quickly exhausted at that size.
Finally, iCloud is where most apps store personal information. This includes native apps such as News, Fitness+, Notes, and third-party apps. Some of this personal information can be huge. For example, expect to see large files with photo, video, and drawing apps.
You can check how much iCloud storage you're using on your iPhone, iPad, and Mac. On mobile devices, click on the 'Settings' app on the Home screen, then choose your name at the top. From there, tap 'iCloud.' Your storage usage is at the top.
To find iCloud storage information on your Mac, go into 'System Preferences,' then choose 'Apple ID' at the top. Next, select 'iCloud' on the menu at the left. The current iCloud storage is shown on the right-hand side.
Everyone with an Apple ID receives 5GB of iCloud storage for free, regardless of the number of devices. This is a paltry among of storage for even casual users. You can purchase additional storage for a monthly or yearly fee.
Since 2021, iCloud storage options have been renamed as iCloud+. With an iCloud+ membership, you get additional storage and other perks, including Hide My Mail, Custom Email Domain, etc. The available options include:
- iCloud+ with 50GB of storage
- iCloud+ with 200GB of storage
- iCloud+ with 2TB of storage
Prices vary by location, and every membership level now allows storage space sharing with Apple Family members. If you're looking to stretch your money further, consider subscribing to Apple One. Some options include iCloud storage alongside other Apple services such as Music, News, and Arcade.
There are different ways to delete iCloud storage, with some ways more straightforward than others. Before considering any solution, you should ensure the files are no longer needed. If they are, be sure to back them up outside of iCloud before removable.
When running out of iCloud storage, the easiest solution is to simply purchase a better plan. Apple will warn you before the available space is exhausted. When this happens, automatic backups will stop until there's free space.
To purchase an iCloud+ plan on iPhone or iPad, go into the 'Settings' app, tap your name at the top, select 'Manage Storage,' followed by 'Change Storage Plan.' Follow the additional instructions.
On Mac, the steps are similar. To get started, go into 'System Preferences,' then click on the 'Apple ID' icon. Next, choose 'Manage' at the bottom right, then follow the additional instructions.
When selecting a new iCloud+ plan, the change happens immediately on the device where the change was made. However, it might take a few more minutes on other devices, including those from Apple Family members.
For those with more than one mobile device from Apple, another way to regain iCloud storage space is to delete old backups. These are single backup files from devices you no longer own or use, such as an older iPhone.
To view your iCloud backups, open the 'Settings' app on your iPhone or iPad, then choose your account at the top. Next, select 'Manage Storage,' followed by 'Backups.' You'll see a list of your backups on the next screen, starting with the one for the device you're currently using. Each device listed includes the size of the backup. After clicking on a backup, you'll see the last time the backup process ran on that device. Automatic backups happen every evening whenever a device is connected to power and is using a Wi-Fi connection. When this occurs, the last backup date changes.
If you see any device listed that hasn't been updated for a while, the odds are pretty good it's okay to delete its backup. After clicking on the backup, choose 'Delete,' then 'Turn Off & Delete' to remove the file from iCloud. It might take a few minutes to delete the file, depending on the file size.
•How to delete all photos from iPhone
You can also adjust what's backed up regularly on iCloud moving forward. By doing so, you can reduce the size of the iCloud backup. On iPhone or iPad, go into the 'Settings' app, then choose your profile at the top of the screen. From there, select 'iCloud,' followed 'Manage Storage.' Next, choose 'Backups,' then select the device you wish to change. Finally, toggle off any app you no longer want to back up.
App content gets stored on iCloud, so it's synced across multiple devices; this happens with compatible apps on Mac and mobile. When you delete an app from a device, you're asked whether to delete the personal content simultaneously. If you don't, those files remain on iCloud even though the app that uses them is no longer installed. Depending on the type of files being stored on iCloud, this content can take up a lot of space.
Ideally, you should check iCloud regularly to see if there's app content you no longer need and delete it. Otherwise, it's just taking up space.
To find this information on iPhone and iPad, tap on the 'Settings' app, then choose your account. Next, select 'iCloud' followed by 'Manage Storage.' On this page is a listing (large to small) of which apps are taking up space. As you go through this list, click on the apps you no longer use and don't want the files, then tap 'Delete Documents & Data.' After confirming your choice, the files are removed from iCloud.
You can find this same information on Mac. Go into 'System Preferences,' then select 'Apple ID.' Choose the Manage button at the bottom right. Apps with data on iCloud are listed on the left side of the page. Individually select the ones you wish to delete, then choose 'Delete all Files …' and confirm.
Deleting app content is a great way to free up iCloud space. Unfortunately, because you have to delete app content individually, it can take a lot of time. Therefore, it's advisable to delete the largest app content files to regain the most storage space.
Jan 21, 2024 · Is your iCloud storage full? How to clear it and free up space. By Hillary K. Grigonis. Published Jan 21, 2024. Getting the iCloud storage full warning? Here's how to clear up some...
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May 20, 2024 · Why Is My Apple iCloud Storage Full? What to Do When iCloud Storage Is Full; Option A: How to Get More iCloud Storage? Buy More Space; Option B: Get More iCloud Space By Deleting...
- Tech Writer
- Idownloadblog
- Turn off iCloud Photos. iCloud Photos is the number one reason why your iCloud space is full. And to be fair, this isn’t your fault. Irrespective of how many iPhones, iPads, and Macs you own, Apple gives you a mere 5 GB free iCloud storage with your Apple ID.
- Delete files from iCloud Drive. Here’s how to clear iCloud Drive to free up your iCloud storage: On iPhone and iPad: Open the Files app and tap Browse. Tap iCloud Drive.
- Set Safari downloads to local storage. Here’s how to prevent Safari from downloading content to iCloud Drive and occupying iCloud storage: Open iPhone or iPad Settings and tap Safari.
- Manage your devices iCloud backups. Backups are another huge occupier of your iCloud space. To manage this properly, you have the following options: 1) Turn off iCloud Backups: I don’t recommend this as it’s essential to back up your data.
Jan 12, 2024 · If you see a message that your device's storage is full, you can free up space by using iCloud Photos or deleting content on your device. Check to see how much storage you have. See how much storage you have left on your device and in iCloud, and which apps use the most space.
Feb 19, 2021 · How-to. By Mike Jennings. last updated 19 February 2021. Apple iCloud Drive is superb for macOS and iOS users, but it can become full far too quickly. Here’s how easy it is to free up some space. (Image credit: Apple) Apple ’s iCloud service is one of the best cloud storage products around – no wonder when it’s included alongside your Apple ID.
