3 Ways to Fix iCloud Drive Taking Up Too Much Space on iPhone

Quick Tips

• Tap and hold a file in iCloud Drive, and tap on Remove Download to delete the local copy of the backed-up file.
• Select files and folders in iCloud Drive, and tap on Delete to delete them from both your iPhone and iCloud.
• Alternatively, go to iCloud settings on your iPhone, and select iCloud Drive > Manage Storage to delete files.

Method 1: Delete Local Copies of iCloud Drive Files From iPhone

Files and folders stored in iCloud Drive are backed up to iCloud, and some may be stored on the local storage on your iPhone too.

Go to iCloud Drive in the Files, tap and hold on a file or a folder, and select Remove Download.

This stores the file safely on iCloud but deletes the local copy present on your iPhone.

Method 2: Delete iCloud Drive Files – From Both iPhone and iCloud

Here’s how you can delete files and folders from iCloud Drive. Doing this deletes the file from your iPhone, and the backed-up version on iCloud as well.

Step 1: Open the Files app on your iPhone. Select the iCloud Drive folder.

Step 2: Tap the three-dots menu at the top-right corner, select the folders and files, and tap Delete.

After you delete files and folders, the system sends them to the Recently Deleted folder. You need to delete these files to stop iCloud Drive from taking up space.

Launch the Files app. Go to the Recently Deleted folder, long-press on a file or folder, and hit Delete.

Method 3: Manage iCloud Drive Storage in Settings

Apple also offers a detailed iCloud Drive storage breakdown from Settings. You can manage iCloud Drive storage and apps syncing to iCloud Drive using the steps below.

Open the Settings app, tap on your username, and select iCloud > iCloud Drive.

• Tap Manage Storage. Check the amount of iCloud Drive space. Tap Delete from iCloud to remove such files.

• You can also return to Apps Syncing to iCloud Drive and disable apps taking up space on iCloud Drive.

• After deleting files, if you don’t want to use iCloud Drive on your iPhone anymore – you can turn off Sync this iPhone.

If iCloud Drive consumes storage even after deleting files, try restarting your iPhone. Moreover, deleting files from iCloud Drive requires an internet connection — so ensure no problems with network connectivity.