How to Free Up Storage Space in iCloud?

iCloud, which allows connecting and backing up Apple devices, offers its users 5 GB of free storage space. However, this 5 GB storage space fills up over time depending on usage.

The iCloud storage space, which is filled with data such as documents, iCloud e-mail, photos, must be emptied. Alright, Free up storage space in iCloud how to do it?

Methods to Free Up iCloud Storage Space

First, before proceeding with the methods of freeing up storage space in iCloud, you should go to “iPhone Settings > Name > iCloud > Manage Storage”. In this way, you will learn about the factors that cause iCloud storage space to fill up on iPhone devices.

To find the factors that cause iCloud storage space to fill up on Mac devices, “Apple Menu > System Preferences > Apple ID > iCloud > Manage” steps should be followed. Once these checks are ensured, storage space in iCloud can begin to be freed. The following methods can be used for this:

1. Crop the Photo Library

The camera settings on the device should be checked to find out whether more space is being used in iCloud than necessary. At the same time, a conclusion must be reached on whether it is possible to switch to 720p or 1080p videos other than 4K.

The photo library is cropped like this;

• From iPadOS or iOS devices, go to “Settings > Camera > Formats”. Space is saved by selecting “High Efficiency”. In this way, photos and videos will be saved as HEIF and HEVC.
• After the above process, you should return to the area where the camera settings are located and click on the “Record Video” area. Storage space will be saved by selecting the lowest frame rate and resolution. To reduce the file size of low-light videos on the same page, scroll down the page and enable “Auto Low Light FPS”.
• Go back to the camera settings and select “Record Slow Motion” and then select the lowest quality option.
• Live Photos are disabled by following the steps “Settings > Camera > Protect Settings”. When Live Photos is launched later, the yellow circle icon located at the top right of the screen should be clicked. If this icon is gray, “Live Photos” is disabled. This stops saving a few seconds of video and any photos taken with the device.

By completing the above steps completely, the area that photos and videos will take up will be reduced. Subsequently, unwanted items should be cleared from the photo library.

2. Clear Large Files from iCloud Drive

One of the methods of freeing up storage space in iCloud is to clear large files from iCloud Drive. First, it should be checked whether there are necessary files that take up a lot of space in iCloud Drive.

From iOS and iPadOS devices, go to the “Files” area and click on “iCloud Drive”. iCloud Drive It is checked whether there are folders that need to be deleted. On Mac devices, you can also open Finder and select iCloud Drive from the sidebar to check whether there are files to be cleaned.

3. Delete Unwanted iCloud Backups

You can also free up storage space by deleting unwanted files that have been backed up in iCloud for a long time. This method will be especially useful for people who use multiple iOS devices. To delete unwanted iCloud backups, these steps should be followed;

• Go to “iPhone Settings > Name > iCloud > Manage Storage > Backups”.
• Information about which devices are backed up will appear on the screen. From here, click on any device name and select the “Delete Backup > Close > Delete” field. Thus, the backup process in iCloud will be terminated.

Mac users should log in to the Apple menu and go to “System Preferences > Apple ID > iCloud”. From here, click on the “Manage” tab and select “Backups”. As a result, it will be determined which backups will be deleted on Mac devices.

4. Deleting Old Messages

Messages can also take up space in iCloud. For this reason, old, unimportant messages also need to be deleted.

• On iPadOS and iOS devices, go to “Settings > Messages”.
• Go to the “Keep Messages” field and select any of the “30 Days Forever” or “1 Year” options. Immediately afterwards, click on the “Delete” button. Thus, messages older than a month or a year are automatically deleted.
• You can get information about which messages take up a lot of space in iCloud by going to “Settings > Name > iCloud > Manage Storage > Messages”.
• By clicking the “Edit” button in the upper right corner of the screen, the messages you want to delete are selected. To delete the chat, the process is completed by clicking on the trash can icon located in the upper right corner.