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Apple iPhone • Slow or full • 15–30 minutes

My iPhone storage is full — Apple iPhone

Before you delete anythingDeleting a photo removes it from the iPhone, and when iCloud Photos is on, from iCloud and your other devices too. Deleted photos sit in Photos > Albums > Recently Deleted for 30 days, then they are gone for good. Before you delete anything, open Settings > your name > iCloud and make sure iCloud Photos is on and finished uploading, so your pictures are safely backed up first.
Photos and videos are almost always what fills an iPhone. This guide starts with the photo setting that frees the most space safely, then hunts down the biggest space hogs one at a time.

  1. Check for an iOS update

    Open Settings > General > Software Update. If an update is available, tap Update Now and follow the on-screen steps.

  2. Let iCloud hold the full-size photos

    Why: Optimize iPhone Storage keeps small versions of your photos on the iPhone and the full-size originals safe in iCloud. It can free up many gigabytes without deleting a single photo.

    What to do: Open Settings and tap your name at the very top. Tap iCloud, then tap Photos. If iCloud Photos is off, turn it on and let the upload finish while connected to Wi‑Fi and power. Then tap Optimize iPhone Storage.

    What to look for: A checkmark beside Optimize iPhone Storage. The freed space appears gradually as the iPhone swaps full-size photos for small versions, so check the storage page again in a day or two.

  3. See what is filling the iPhone

    Why: The iPhone Storage page shows exactly which categories and apps are using space, so you can clean up the biggest ones first instead of guessing.

    What to do: Open Settings > General > iPhone Storage and wait for the colored bar and the app list to finish loading.

    What to look for: The colored bar breaks storage into categories, such as Photos, Apps, and iOS. Recommendations from Apple appear at the top of the page, and the app list below is sorted with the biggest space users first.

  4. Use Apple’s recommendations

    Why: The recommendations at the top of the storage page are picked for your iPhone and are usually the fastest wins, such as reviewing downloaded videos or offloading apps you never open.

    What to do: Read each recommendation at the top of Settings > General > iPhone Storage. Tap Enable or Review beside one only when you understand what it will remove.

    What to look for: Each recommendation says roughly how much space it will save. Start with the largest one.

  5. Merge duplicate photos

    Why: The same photo saved twice uses double the space. Merging keeps the best copy and removes the extra one.

    What to do: Open the Photos app and tap Albums at the bottom. Scroll all the way down to the Utilities section and tap Duplicates. Tap Merge beside a pair, then tap Merge Exact Copies to confirm. You can also tap Select and Merge to handle several at once.

    What to look for: The number of duplicates goes down after each merge. If you do not see Duplicates at all, you have no duplicate photos to merge.

  6. Delete old screenshots

    Why: Screenshots of tickets, recipes, and directions pile up by the hundreds and are rarely needed again.

    What to do: In the Photos app, tap Albums, scroll down to Media Types, and tap Screenshots. Tap Select, tap every screenshot you no longer need, then tap the trash can and confirm Delete Photos.

    What to look for: The count shown while selecting tells you how many you are about to delete. Screenshots go to Recently Deleted and keep using space for 30 days unless you empty that album too.

  7. Review your largest videos

    Why: A few long videos, such as recordings of family events, can use more space than hundreds of photos.

    What to do: In the Photos app, tap Albums, scroll to Media Types, and tap Videos. Open the longest videos and delete any you do not need or that are already safely stored in iCloud. You can also tap Review Downloaded Videos in the recommendations on the iPhone Storage page to see shows downloaded in the TV app.

    What to look for: The running time on each video. The longest ones are almost always the biggest space hogs.

  8. Check how much space you freed

    Why: Comparing the free space before and after tells you whether you are done or need to keep going.

    What to do: Return to Settings > General > iPhone Storage and read the Available amount near the top.

    What to look for: Aim for at least a few gigabytes free. An iPhone with almost no free space can slow down and fail to install updates.

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