For those who have an Apple device and do not want to run out of storage space on iCloud, it is important to be able to empty it: here's how to free space on iCloud.
Knowing how to free space on iCloud for those who own an Apple device of any kind is essential. Just because it is the service "in the clouds" made in Cupertino, useful to back up the same devices, to store or synchronize any type of data, and find your iPhone, iPad or Mac computer in case of theft or loss. All users with an Apple ID immediately have 5GB free, definitely not enough to handle the massive amount of data of the most modern devices on the market. That's why cleaning up your iCloud storage memory is just as important, so you'll never run out of precious space.
ICloud space used up: how to free it
In case you run out of space, which will happen very soon to almost everyone, let's see how to free up iCloud space, one of the most valid options in occasions like these. When memory is lacking, in fact, the choices available to us are four. The first one is the least suitable, and foresees to stop using the service of the bitten apple. The second is to opt for a paid plan according to Apple's price lists, so 0.99 euros per month (11.98 euros per year) for 50 GB, 2.99 euros per month (35.88 euros per year) for 200 GB and 9.99 euros per month (119.88 euros per year) for 2 TB, while the third is to back up to iTunes by connecting iPhone, Mac or iPad to a Wi-Fi network. The fourth, which is to free up space directly from iCloud, is consequently the cheapest one, at virtually no cost. Unfortunately, however, it can't be repeated indefinitely, and in the long run you'll be forced to opt for the alternatives already listed.
To start proceeding, first go to check how much free space you actually have available on your iCloud. The operation is simple and immediate: on iPhone and iPad go to the iOS Settings, tap on the name of your account and then on "iCloud". Once you've done that, you're free to see for yourself which installed apps are taking up the most memory by choosing Manage Space. As a result, you can make an informed decision about which apps you want to keep active on iCloud and which ones you want to deactivate. As you may have already figured out, when you "turn off" an application, the data it has stored will be deleted forever, which makes it crucial to understand which ones to focus on.
Manage Backup and Photos
When figuring out how to free up space on iCloud, there are two applications that should catch your attention more than others: Backup and Photos. The first one, specifically, might be the one that has taken up the most space, considering that it holds the data of all the Apple devices you own or have owned, even the ones you no longer use. Then consider deleting the amount of data you consider unnecessary by tapping on "Manage Space" in the Backup option. Alternatively, the Photos app - which holds photos and videos - tends to eat up a lot of iCloud space. So you can delete individual items manually or use a third-party app that allows for quick deletions
Manage Mail and other apps
Among the apps to monitor is also the one dedicated to @icloud.com mail, the only one on our device that takes up useful iCloud space. In particular, for email messages a good advice is to act by deleting everything in the Junk mail folder and also deleting all attachments. If deleting junk mail is a simple and absolutely intuitive operation, the same can't be said for attachments. On iOS, if you haven't already done so, enable the option to see messages that contain attachments by going to open the mailbox of the operating system, and then tap on the top right of the "Changes" button to make the automatic smart box pop up with the messages that interest us.
While managing space on iCloud, there are also secondary applications that we have installed that can potentially take up a lot of space. Among them, it is impossible not to mention WhatsApp, whose backup takes place directly on iCloud and not on its dedicated servers. Then we have all the documents uploaded to iCloud Drive, but also the iWorks applications. In the latter case, the reference is mainly to Keynote, iMovie, Pages and Numbers, whose files can be very heavy.