More space on android

How to free up storage space on Android

Have you hit your phone’s storage cap? We’ve felt that frustration and share your pain. Now it’s time to make some changes, and we are here to help you free up space on Android. There are many ways to clear up the clutter in your handset, but we will focus on the most helpful, easier, and more convenient tips and tricks to free up storage space on Android.

How to free up storage space on Android:

Use the Manage Storage feature

The stock Settings app has its own section for helping you keep your storage free of unnecessary files. To check this out, go to Settings > Storage > Manage Storage. Keep in mind manufacturers often modify the Settings. We’re making this tutorial using a Pixel device. The process for finding this feature might be different with your phone.

Once on the Manage Storage page, you’ll get suggestions for deleting certain files. These may include duplicates, old screenshots, photos that have already been backed up, unused apps, downloaded files, and more. Simply go through the recommendations to free up storage space on Android. Here’s a step-by-step guide in case you find it easier to understand.

How to use the Manage Storage feature:

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Select Storage.
3. Hit the Manage Storage button.
4. Go through the recommendations to free up storage on Android.

Use Android Smart Storage to free up space on Android

A great secondary feature you might want to take advantage of is Smart Storage. This is also within the Storage sections in the Settings app. Once you go to Settings > Storage, toggle Smart Storage on. This feature will make it so that older photos and videos are automatically deleted if they have already been backed up. You can choose files to be deleted after 30, 60, or 90 days too. Just in case you want to give yourself a little buffer. Here’s the step-by-step guide to make things less confusing!

How to use Smart Storage to delete things automatically:

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Select Storage.
3. Toggle on the Smart Storage feature.
4. Tap on the Smart Storage button to edit how often you want backed-up photos and videos removed.

Uninstall apps you don’t need

This is the first thing you should look at when looking to free up storage space on Android. Apps can take up a huge portion of your storage space. Do you really need that 2 GB game you haven’t played in months? Get rid of everything you don’t use!

Delete photos and videos

Photos and videos are likely the next big storage hog. Free up space on Android and get rid of some. Are all those images and clips memories worth keeping down the line? Many probably aren’t. Some of you may be a little too shutter happy and have a bunch of repeated images, too. Go through your gallery and see what is actually worth keeping around. You may already have many of these backed up to the cloud, anyways. Why keep them on your device?

Use a microSD card

Your phone may or may not have a microSD card slot. If you are blessed with one, you can use a microSD card in two ways. The first would be to simply use it as external storage and transfer large files to it. There is another solution many of you will prefer, though.

Some phones support adoptable storage. This means the device could use the microSD card as internal storage. It becomes part of the phone’s space instead of an external addition where you can throw files.

There are some downsides to keep in mind with this process. For starters, the microSD card will only work with that specific phone. You also shouldn’t remove the card once it has been set as adoptable storage. Doing so will trigger a factory data reset. Furthermore, many microSD cards are slow. Get a fast one that can keep up with your device.

How to set microSD card as Android adoptable storage:

1. Put the microSD card in your Android phone.
2. Open the Settings app.
3. Select Storage.
4. Tap on the SD card you inserted.
5. Hit the menu button and select Storage settings.
6. Choose Format as internal.
7. Hit Erase and format.
8. Hit OK.
9. Migrate your data (or choose to do so later).
10. You are done!

Take advantage of the cloud to free up space on Android

Cloud services have a lot to offer, especially for those limited in the storage department. Many of these services are free or cost very little money. For example, you can use Google Photos to upload all your images in high quality for free. Just keep in mind unlimited high-quality storage is set to end in June 2021. In addition, services like Google Drive and Dropbox make it super simple to back up all your content. See which option convinces you and take advantage of it.

Those struggling to keep space free on their devices might also have an amazing music collection in there. If you have gigs over gigs of songs, we would advise you to migrate to an online service like YouTube Music or Spotify.

Delete your downloads

If you are like me, your downloads folder is full of stuff you don’t need. In here, we often find a bunch of files you might have needed months ago for a minute or two, but are no longer relevant. Go ahead and use a file manager to delete old files. Most phones now come with one. If yours doesn’t, then go ahead and get one through the link below.

Clear the cache to free up space on Android

Clearing the cache is not always a good idea to free up space on Android. This is data your phone often needs to operate faster and more efficiently. It can definitely build up, though, and if you are looking to clear some space quickly, cleaning the cache is one quick solution.

Simply go to Settings > Storage. Go into Other apps and go into each app you want to delete the cache for. There will be an option in there to do so.

How to clear cache in Android:

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Select Storage.
3. Go into Other apps.
4. Select the app you want to delete cache for.
5. Hit Clear cache.

Delete offline areas in Google Maps

Google Maps makes it easy to navigate through your area without using data. Maps can be downloaded for offline use, but this comes at a pretty big cost. Offline maps can take a huge blow to your storage space. I have well over a GB of offline map data.

Simply go to Google Maps, tap on your profile picture, and access the Offline Maps option. You’ll see a list of the areas you’ve downloaded. Hit the 3-dot menu button to the right to see a series of options. Hit Delete to get rid of it. This will definitely free up space on Android.

How to delete offline maps in Google Maps:

1. Open Google Maps.
2. Tap on your profile picture.
3. Select Offline Maps.
4. Hit the 3-dot menu next to your downloaded areas.
5. Tap on Delete.

Perform a factory data reset

Your best bet might be to start new and perform a factory data reset if all else fails. This will erase everything in your phone and bring it back to the state it was the first time you turned the device on (at least software-wise). Your apps, photos, videos, files, and other content will be gone, so make sure to back up whatever you deem important.

The good news is all unnecessary files will also be gone, giving you a chance to start fresh and better manage your storage space. This is especially helpful if you’ve exhausted all other options and simply don’t know where all your storage space is going.

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How to free up storage space on Android

Source: Joe Maring / Android Central

One of the most important features of your smartphone is its storage. It’s how you download your favorite apps, save all of your special photos, download music playlists for long road trips — you name it. The longer you hold onto your phone, the more likely it is you’ll start to run out of space at some point down the road. Should you find yourself in this situation, here are a few tips on how to free up storage space on your Android phone.

Products used in this guide

We’re using a Google Pixel 4 XL running Android 10 for this guide. Some screenshots may not look 100% the same depending on what phone you have, but the core idea of everything should be the same.

Check how much storage left on your phone

First thing’s first, we should take a look at how much space is left on your phone. It’s a good idea to go through and clean stuff up every now and then regardless of how much space you have, but if you still have a lot of room to go, there’s no sense in going overboard.

Open the Settings on your phone.

Tap Storage.

Source: Joe Maring / Android Central

At the very top of the page, you’ll see how many gigabytes of storage you’ve used, along with a percentage to put things in perspective better. Although devices like the Pixel 4a offer 64GB of storage out of the box, you can fill that up astonishingly quickly.

Delete app data and files

Now that you’re at the Storage page, it’s time to start taking action. The first thing we’re going to suggest you do is to delete app data and files.

Everything is broken up into handy categories, including:

• Photos & videos
• Music & audio
• Games
• Movie & TV apps
• Other apps
• Files
• System

Tapping on one of these categories will then show a list of apps that fall under it, and this is where you’ll go for deleting data on a per-app basis. Here’s an example of what this looks like:

1. Tap on the category you want (we’re using Music & audio).
2. Tap on an app.
3. Tap Clear storage.

Tap OK.

Source: Joe Maring / Android Central

As you’ll see on the pop-up that appears on your screen, doing this will delete «all files, settings, accounts, databases, etc.» In other words, just about everything except the app itself is deleted. If there’s an app on your phone that you want to keep installed but don’t use that often, this can be helpful.

You can also tap on the Files category to be taken to your phone’s file manager, making it easy to delete any random downloads you may have forgotten about.

Use Android’s «Free up space» tool

Source: Joe Maring / Android Central

On the Storage page, you’ll see a button at the top called «Free up space.» Tapping on this will take you through a guided process for clearing up saved files/apps on your phone that Android doesn’t think you need.

This is broken up into three categories, including Backed up photos & videos, Downloads, and Infrequently used apps. Just tap on the checkbox next to any of these items, tap the Free up button at the bottom-right of the screen, and you’ll give your phone a bunch of extra space just like that.

Make sure Smart Storage is turned on

Source: Joe Maring / Android Central

The best Android phones have cameras that let you take standout photos in any condition. As a result, pictures and videos you take with your phone can be one of the biggest reasons for running out of storage. Android has a cool way to minimize their effect.

Again from the main Storage page, Tap Smart Storage right above the app categories we previously talked about. From here, you have a couple of things you can do.

The toggle will be moved to the right and have an accent color behind it if it’s turned on, which it should be for most people. If you tap on Remove backed up photos & videos below that; you can choose whether you wanted your backed up files to be deleted if they’re over 30, 60, or 90 days old.

All of the pictures and videos you’ve ever captured will always be available in Google Photos. This feature simply removes the local versions of them that are taking up unnecessary space on your device.

Buy a microSD card

Source: Android Central

Last but certainly not least, you can always go out and buy a microSD card if your phone supports them.

MicroSD cards are available in myriad sizes, including 32GB, 64GB, and 128GB, to name a few. We’ve rounded up the best microSD cards for Android for you to choose from, with many of them being more affordable than you might be thinking.

Not all Android phones offer expandable storage, so ensure yours does before going out and buying a card that may not work with your device.

Our top equipment picks

Outstanding camera

Google Pixel 4a

The Pixel 4a once again shows that you don’t need to pay a premium to get a great phone. The device has reliable hardware, a stellar camera that challenges flagships, and a clean interface with the promise of quick updates.

Add more space

Samsung EVO Select 128GB microSD Card

Lots of extra space for not much money

If you have a phone that offers expandable storage, this microSD card from Samsung is one of the best out there. You get a ton of space, fast data transfer speeds, and a 10-year limited warranty.

We may earn a commission for purchases using our links. Learn more.

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Joe Maring

Joe Maring was a Senior Editor for Android Central between 2017 and 2021. You can reach him on Twitter at @JoeMaring1.

Harish Jonnalagadda

Harish Jonnalagadda is the Asia Editor at Android Central. A reformed hardware modder, he now spends his time writing about India’s technology revolution. Previously, he used to ponder the meaning of life at IBM. Contact him on Twitter at @chunkynerd.

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