How to Free Up Space on Your iPhone

Getting the "iPhone storage is full" warning? Here are the quickest ways to free up space without deleting what matters.

In this guide (6 steps):

1.Check what is using your storage
2.Offload apps you rarely use
3.Move your photos to iCloud
4.Delete old text message photos and videos
5.Clear Safari browser cache
6.Delete duplicate photos

Check what is using your storage

~20s

Go to Settings > General > iPhone Storage. Wait a moment for it to load. You will see a colored bar at the top showing how much space is used, and a list below showing what is taking up the most space — usually Photos, Apps, and the iOS system itself.

Quick Tip

For Apple's complete storage guide, visit support.apple.com/en-us/108324

Offload apps you rarely use

~30s

In the iPhone Storage screen, scroll down to see your apps listed from largest to smallest. Tap any app you have not used in months and tap "Offload App." This removes the app to free up space but keeps all your data — if you reinstall the app later, everything picks up where you left off.

Quick Tip

You can also let iPhone do this for you automatically. At the top of the iPhone Storage page, tap "Enable" next to "Offload Unused Apps." iPhone will automatically offload apps you haven't used when storage is low.

Move your photos to iCloud

~24s

Go to Settings > [Your Name] > iCloud > Photos and turn on "iCloud Photos." Then go back to Settings > Photos and turn on "Optimize iPhone Storage." Full-resolution photos move to iCloud and your phone keeps smaller versions — this can free several gigabytes instantly.

Warning

Your photos are still safe in iCloud — you can view and download any of them anytime. You just need a Wi-Fi connection to see the full-quality version.

Delete old text message photos and videos

~15s

Go to Settings > General > iPhone Storage > Messages. Tap "Review Large Attachments." You will see a list of photos and videos sent through text messages, sorted by size. Tap Edit and select the ones you don't need, then delete them.

Clear Safari browser cache

~15s

Go to Settings > Safari > Clear History and Website Data. Tap "Clear History and Data" to confirm. This removes temporary web files stored on your phone and can free up several hundred megabytes. Your bookmarks and saved passwords are not affected.

Delete duplicate photos

~15s

Open the Photos app, tap Albums at the bottom, scroll down and tap "Duplicates." You will see pairs of identical or near-identical photos. Tap "Merge" to keep one copy and delete the other. This works on iPhones running iOS 16 or later (including iOS 18).

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