How to Free Up Space on Google Drive

If you're an avid user of Google Photos and Google Drive like me, you may have encountered the dreaded “Google storage full” error. With only 15 GB of free storage shared between Gmail, Google Drive, and Google Photos, it's easy to run out of space quickly. But before you consider buying extra storage or creating a new Google account, there are ways to free up space by removing unnecessary files and attachments.

Pinpoint the Problem

To identify what's taking up your Google Drive storage, visit this link. This page displays a breakdown of the storage used by Gmail, Google Photos, and Google Drive. For example, in my case, Google Photos and Drive were taking up over 12 GB of storage.

Step 1: Delete Social & Promotional Emails

Start by cleaning up your Gmail. Begin with the social folder, which you can find under Categories. Select all the emails in the social folder and delete them. Repeat the process for the Promotions folder to remove junk messages.

Step 2: Delete Large Attachments

Attachments also take up a significant amount of storage space. Use the search bar in Gmail to filter emails with large attachments. Delete the emails that you don't need, starting with those larger than 10 MB.

Step 3: Clear Trash

After cleaning up your mailbox, don't forget to clear the Trash folder. Deleted emails are moved to the Trash bin and are held there for 30 days before being permanently deleted. To free up space immediately, select all conversations in the Trash folder and click on the “Delete forever” button.

Step 4: Delete Large Files on Google Drive

Next, focus on Google Drive. Delete larger files to reclaim storage space. Visit this link to sort your Google Drive files by size. Remember to also clear out files from the Trash folder.

Step 5: Delete by Faces on Google Photos

Google Photos often occupies the most storage space due to the backup of photos and videos from your smartphone. Delete unnecessary media files, especially videos. Go to the “People & Pets” album and clear photos based on people's faces. You can also delete photos based on objects and phototypes in the “Things” album.

Step 6: Increase Compression

Compressing photos already uploaded to your Google account can significantly reduce their size without compromising quality. Head to the Settings menu in Google Photos and click on “Upload Size for Photos & Videos.” Then, click on the “Recover Storage” button to compress your photos.

Step 7: Clear Third-party App Data

If you use third-party apps that frequently upload and download files from Google Drive, they can consume a significant amount of storage. To clear app data, go to Google Drive, click on the gear icon, and select “Settings.” Under “Manage Apps,” delete hidden app data to free up space.

Step 8: Delete Backups

If you use Google Drive to backup your mobile data or Windows files, old backups can take up a lot of space. Visit this link to delete older Android or Windows backups that you no longer need.

By following these steps, I was able to free up nearly 12 GB of storage on my Google Drive. Give it a try and let me know about your experience in the comments below. For more tips and tricks, check out our article on the 10 Best Google Drive Tips and Tricks for Beginners and Pros.