Full Storage

Finding that your phone has run out of storage space is a very common problem. While it is very annoying to discover that there is no space left on your phone, it is an issue that can be fixed fairly easily.

Your storage space can get filled up by new operating system updates and apps your phone needs to operate, as well as other things you choose put on your phone, such as photos you take or music you download. 

Different models of phones will have their own storage capacity, measured in gigabytes (GB). Most modern smartphones come with 32GB, 64GB, or 128GB of storage on the device, however, older phones or budget devices may be much lower than this. 

How to Check Your Storage Space

You can check how much storage space you have on your device in the settings. 

Checking Storage Space on Apple Devices

Go to Settings – select General – select About – click on Capacity. 

Checking Storage Space on Samsung Devices

Go to Settings – select Device Care.

Checking Storage Space on Android Devices 

Go to Settings – select Storage.

The capacity of your phone may be slightly lower than the original advertised number because the software needed for the phone to operate can take up some of this space. For example, the phone may be advertised as being 64GB, but there may actually be 62.2GB free for you to use on the phone. 

How to Solve Storage Space Problems on Your Phone

There are a number of ways in which you can expand the storage of your phone or reduce the amount stored on your phone. Here we share a few options you can try:

Clear Out

It can be beneficial to give your phone a bit of a spring clean. Many phones offer a breakdown of which apps or storage folders are taking up the most space when you check on the storage capacity in the settings. 

This can be a good place to start to see any areas of your phone that are taking up more space than others. For example, if 20GB is taken up by photos, you may want to have a look through your image collection and delete any that you do not want to keep – maybe they’re blurry, a duplicate or maybe it’s screenshots or downloads you no longer need. 

It can also be beneficial to take a look through apps you have on your device and see if there are any you do not use that can be uninstalled. Removing apps you do not need can save a lot of space on your device.

Using a Cloud 

One of the best ways of saving space on a device is to make use of a cloud-based storage system such as iCloud or Google Drive. 

You can set your phone up so that your photos are backed up and saved on Google Photos or the iCloud, rather than in your device’s storage, which can save a massive amount of space.

MicroSD Card

Another option for increasing your storage is a microSD card. These little cards can add 100’s of extra GB of space to your device. They can be used to store images, music, and some apps, giving you lots of extra storage space on your device. 

While many phones can use a microSD card, there are some models that do not support them; you will need to check whether your phone can use one before purchasing a card. 

External Hard Drive or Transfer to a Computer 

If images and files take up the space on your phone, and you don’t want to use cloud storage, there are portable storage devices and external drives that are compatible with mobiles available. These can plug into the phone and copy files, while others can be used to transfer wirelessly. 

Most USB phone chargers will also connect your phone to a computer, where you can transfer over files from your phone. 

Once the files you want have been backed up, you can remove them from your mobile and free up some space!