To free up storage on Android, first see what’s using it: on a Samsung Galaxy go to Settings → Device care → Storage (on most other phones, Settings → Storage). Then empty the Gallery and Google Photos trash, clear the cache of your biggest apps, remove backed-up photos from the phone, and delete old WhatsApp media and offline downloads.
Tested on:. The steps below follow Samsung’s and Google’s support pages and our own Galaxy. We list them roughly in order of how much space they usually free and how safe they are, so you can stop as soon as you have enough room.
Before you start: see what’s using your storage
Don’t start deleting at random. A minute on the Storage screen tells you whether the problem is photos, videos, apps or something else, and that decides which of the steps below will actually help.
- Open Settings and tap Device care. (Older One UI versions call it Battery and device care.)
- Tap Storage. You’ll see a bar showing space used by Images, Videos, Audio files, Documents, Apps and System.
- Note your starting free space so you can see what each step achieves:.
Back up anything you care about before you delete it. Photos can go to Google Photos or OneDrive (Samsung’s Gallery app can sync with OneDrive), and Samsung Cloud can back up settings and other data. If you’re not sure a photo is backed up, don’t delete it yet.
How to free up storage on Android: 9 steps for Galaxy phones
1. Empty the trash (the quickest win)
Deleting a photo doesn’t free space straight away. Samsung’s Gallery and My Files apps, and Google Photos, move deleted items to a trash folder first, so you can recover mistakes. Google Photos keeps them for 30 days. If you’ve been deleting things and your free space hasn’t moved, this is why.
- Gallery: tap Menu (three lines) → Trash → More options (three dots) → Empty → Delete.
- My Files: scroll down and tap Trash, then empty it.
- Google Photos: tap Collections → Trash → More → Empty trash.
Emptying the trash is permanent, so take a quick look at what’s in it first.
2. Clean up with the Storage screen
From Settings → Device care → Storage, tap a category such as Videos or Images, touch and hold to select files, then tap Delete and Move to Trash. Galaxy phones also suggest groups of files to review, such as duplicates, large files and apps you haven’t used for a while.
Start with Videos. A few minutes of 4K or 8K video can take more space than hundreds of photos, so old clips you’ve already shared or backed up are usually the biggest easy win.
3. Clear app caches (not app data)
The cache is temporary data apps keep so they load faster. Browsers, social media, streaming and map apps can build up a lot of it. Clearing it is safe: the app rebuilds what it needs, and you stay signed in.
- Open Settings → Apps and tap a large app (browsers, TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, Spotify are common culprits).
- Tap Storage → Clear cache.
- Repeat for your next biggest apps.
Don’t tap Clear data unless you want to reset the app. It deletes the app’s settings, downloads and, for some apps, logins and unsynced content.
4. Uninstall or archive apps you don’t use
Touch and hold an app icon and tap Uninstall. Some apps that came with the phone can’t be removed, but you can tap Disable instead. If you reinstall a paid app later, you won’t pay again.
Google Play can also archive apps you rarely use: it removes the app but keeps your data and leaves the icon so you can download it again with one tap. Turn it on in the Play Store → profile picture → Settings → General → Automatically archive apps.
5. Let Google Photos remove backed-up copies
If your photos are backed up to Google Photos, you don’t need a second copy on the phone. Open Google Photos, tap your profile picture and choose Free up space on this device. It shows how much it will free, then deletes only the phone copies of items that are already backed up. Google says photos and videos less than 30 days old may stay on the device.
Your photos stay in your Google account and you can still see them in the app when you’re online. If you use OneDrive with Samsung Gallery instead, check its settings for a similar option.
6. Clean up WhatsApp and other messaging apps
Messaging apps quietly fill phones with forwarded videos, memes and voice notes. In WhatsApp, tap More options (three dots) → Settings → Storage and data → Manage storage. You’ll see total WhatsApp storage, files larger than 5 MB, items forwarded many times, and each chat sorted by size.
Delete what you don’t need, then stop it filling up again: under Storage and data, change Media auto-download so photos, videos and documents only download when you tap them. Samsung Messages can also delete old messages automatically: Messages → More options → Settings → More settings → Delete old messages.
7. Remove offline downloads
Downloaded music, podcasts, films and maps are easy to forget and can take several gigabytes. Delete them from inside each app:
- YouTube Music: profile photo → Settings → Downloads & storage → Clear downloads.
- Google TV: Library → tap Downloaded next to a film → Remove.
- Spotify, Netflix, Prime Video and podcast apps: open the app’s Downloads section and delete what you’ve finished with.
- Google Maps: profile picture → Offline maps, then delete areas you no longer need.
8. Delete old downloads and screenshots
Open My Files and tap Downloads under Categories. Old PDFs, installers and attachments pile up here. Select what you don’t need and tap Delete. In Gallery, the Screenshots album is another easy place to clear out. Remember to empty the trash afterwards (step 1).
9. Move files to a microSD card, if your phone has one
Galaxy S flagships haven’t had a microSD slot since the Galaxy S21, but some Galaxy A models still do. If yours has one, open My Files, touch and hold the files, tap Move, choose SD card and tap Move here. Most apps can’t be moved to the card, so this works best for photos, videos and music.
Files by Google, Google’s free file manager, has a Clean section that suggests junk files, duplicates, large files and old screenshots. It works on Galaxy phones too and is a safe alternative to the “cleaner” apps in the Play Store.
Samsung storage full but nothing on the phone?
This is one of the most common complaints, and there are usually three explanations.
- The trash is full. Deleted photos and files still count until the trash is emptied or they expire. See step 1.
- “System” is large. It includes Android, Samsung’s software and space reserved for updates. You can’t delete it directly, but installing any pending update and restarting the phone can let temporary update files clear.
- Apps are hiding data. Check Settings → Apps, sort by size if your phone offers it, and look at each big app’s Storage screen. Messaging, browser and streaming apps are the usual suspects.
If space disappears again within days, something is auto-downloading. Check WhatsApp’s media auto-download settings, streaming apps’ automatic downloads, and whether your camera is set to save very large video formats.
If it still doesn’t work
- Restart the phone. Storage figures sometimes update only after a restart.
- Finish pending updates. A downloaded but uninstalled update takes space. Go to Settings → Software update and install it. Updates also need free space, which matters with One UI 9 rolling out now.
- Move big files to a computer. Connect the phone with a USB cable, copy videos to the PC, check they open, then delete them from the phone.
- Consider more cloud storage. If photos are the problem and you want to keep them all, a larger Google One or OneDrive plan may be easier than constant cleanup.
Our take
On most phones, the biggest wins are videos, the trash folders and messaging apps, not app caches. Check the Storage screen first, deal with the largest category, and then switch off the auto-downloads that filled it.
Setting up a new phone instead? Our guide on how to set up a new Android phone covers the storage and backup settings to choose from day one. If your Galaxy just updated, see what’s new in One UI 9, or browse more guides on our Android hub.
FAQ
Is it safe to clear cache on Android?
Yes. Cache is temporary data the app can rebuild, so you won’t lose logins, photos or messages. Clear data (called Clear storage on some phones) is different: it resets the app and deletes its data.
How do I free up storage on a Samsung phone without deleting anything?
Move photos and videos to Google Photos or OneDrive and remove the phone copies, move files to a microSD card or computer, and archive unused apps in the Play Store, which keeps their data.
Why is System using so much storage?
System includes Android, Samsung’s software and space for updates. You can’t delete it directly, but installing pending updates and restarting can reduce it.
Does clearing cache delete photos?
No. Clearing an app’s cache doesn’t touch your Gallery photos or videos. Only deleting the files themselves, or clearing an app’s data, removes content.
Do storage cleaner apps help?
Mostly no. Many are full of ads and do nothing the built-in tools can’t. Samsung’s Device care and Google’s Files by Google do the same job safely.
Sources
- Free up storage space on your Samsung phone or tablet — Samsung US Support
- Keep your Galaxy phone or tablet from slowing down with Device Care — Samsung US Support
- Free up storage on your Android device — Android Help
- Free up space on your device — Google Photos Help
- Delete photos & videos — Google Photos Help
- How to free up storage on WhatsApp — WhatsApp Help Center
