How to Free Up Apple iCloud Account Space from iPhone, Mac and PC

If you have an Apple device and need more storage on it iCloudthe Cupertino giant’s cloud storage service, know that with some targeted measures it is possible to recover precious gigabytes by acting directly from your iPhone, Mac or Windows PC. Among the various things you can do there is checking the “Suggestions for you” section, reducing the size of backups made on iCloud and, of course, deleting large documents, photos and videos first and foremost. Let’s see in detail, therefore, how to free up Apple iCloud account space from iPhone, Mac and PC.

Check the “Tips for You” section

The first thing we recommend you do for free up space on iCloud is that of check the “Tips for you” sectionavailable in iCloud settings on iOS 17 and later. By accessing this section, you can quickly delete items such as duplicate photos, bulky files or old backups that are no longer needed. To do this, open the app Settings of your iPhone, select the your namethen press on the item iCloud and finally Tips for you. By following the on-screen instructions, you will be able to easily identify less useful resources, freeing up space without having to manually search through your data.

Reduce backup size and delete old backups

Another effective trick to free up space on iCloud is to reduce the size of backups. When you set up iCloud backup, many apps are included by default, but let’s be honest: not all of them are essential in the strict sense of the word. To proceed, follow these steps, keeping in mind that the backup of some apps is always performed and for these it is not possible to deactivate it. Also consider deleting old backups.

On iPhone

To exclude some apps from backup on iPhonedo this:

1. Open the app Settings and follow the path (name) > iCloud > Save to iCloud.
2. Move up OFF the switch for which apps to exclude from backup.

To delete old backups, proceed as follows:

1. Go to the section Settings > (name) > iCloud > iCloud Backup > (device name).
2. Touch the voice Deactivate and delete from iCloud and confirm the operation by touching the item Deactivate and delete.

On Mac and Windows

On Mac you can delete old backups as follows:

1. Click on the menu Apple  and select the item System Settings.
2. Click on your name and then follow the path iCloud > Manage > Backup.
3. Select the device backup to delete and click the button Remove to delete it or, if you intend to deactivate the backup and remove all existing iCloud backups for the chosen device, select the item Delete when confirming the operation.

If you have Windowsinstead, proceed in this other way:

1. Open iCloud for Windows and click on Storage.
2. Select Backups from the options listed on the screen and select the backup to be eliminated.
3. Click on the entry Delete and, if you want to deactivate the backup and remove all existing iCloud backups for the chosen device, select when confirming Delete.

Delete media from iCloud Photos

Particular attention should be paid to iCloud Photos sectionwhich often takes up most of the available space and is used to keep videos and photos up to date on all devices associated with your Apple account. Before proceeding, consider making a local backup of the images and videos you want to keep. Once safe, you can delete unwanted content in the following ways.

On iPhone

1. Open the app Photo.
2. Select the tab All and then press the button Select (top right).
3. Touch the contents to delete, press on the symbol dustbin and press on the voice Delete X photos/videos.

On Mac

1. Open the application Photo.
2. Select the photo hey video that you want to delete.
3. Press the key Del on the keyboard

Delete large files and folders from iCloud Drive

Last but not least, the management of iCloud Drive represents another way to recover precious space on your Apple account. This service allows you to store files and folders accessible from all your Apple devices but, since bulky documents can quickly saturate the available space, delete heavy files and folders from iCloud Drive This is another thing you might consider doing.

On iPhone

1. Open the app File and select the item Browse.
2. Press on the voice iCloud Drivewhich is located in the section Positions.
3. Go to the location where the file or folder to be deleted is present, make a long tap on it icon and select Delete.

On Mac

1. Open the Finder.
2. Go to the folder iCloud Drive.
3. Drag the file or folder you want to delete into Basket (or possibly in another folder on your Mac).

On Windows

If you have a PC with on board iCloud for Windowsyou can manage iCloud Drive files using theExplorerfollowing these steps:

1. Open iCloud for Windows and log in to your Apple account.
2. Activate iCloud Drive and access the folder iCloud Drive.
3. Select file And folders you want to remove and click Delete.