There are plenty of cloud storage services in the market today, such as Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive, and so on. Apple has their own cloud storage in the form of iCloud which allows users to backup their iOS and macOS devices. This makes it easier when they want to restore their devices without having to turn to third-party solutions.
Now, as with all storage mediums, eventually you will run out of space, and here’s how you can better manage your iCloud storage on your iPhone, iPad, macOS, and Windows.
How To Manage iCloud Storage On iPhone And iPad
Your iCloud storage on your iPhone and iPad by default is essentially a mirror of your device. This means that if you have 50GB worth of photos and videos, by default your iCloud storage will mirror that amount as well. However, if you’d rather not backup everything to iCloud, here’s how you can choose what gets backed up and stored in the cloud.
- Go to Settings and tap your Apple ID name at the top
- Select iCloud. This will show you how much storage is being used at the moment, how much space you have free, and which apps are being backed up to the cloud. You can tap on any of the toggles if you’d like an app to stop using iCloud.
- Select Manage Storage. This will show you exactly how much data is being used by apps backing up to your iCloud.
- Tap on any of the apps and you will be given the option to delete them from iCloud. Note that this only deletes the cloud version of your data, and that it will still continue to exist on your iPhone and iPad (unless you’re coming from a fresh install)
Note that over time as you use your phone and install and delete apps that your iCloud storage will start to get full. This is because while apps are deleted, their data might still exist in the cloud (such as game progression, save files, and so on). This method is a good way to clean up your iCloud from apps that you no longer need or use.
How To Manage iCloud Storage On Mac
iCloud storage preferences are built into macOS and you won’t need to download any additional applications. If you’re a Mac user, here’s how you can manage your iCloud storage.
- Launch iCloud (Command + Space and type in iCloud)
- If you wish to manage your photos storage, click the Options button next to Photos
- If you want to manage other apps, click the Manage button at the button right corner of the app
- Select the apps to the left side of the window, click Delete Documents and Data if you want those apps to stop using your iCloud storage
How To Manage iCloud Storage On Windows
Unlike macOS that comes with iCloud already built into it, Windows users will need to download and install iCloud manually. You can find the download at Apple’s website and once you’ve completed the installation and signed with your Apple ID, here’s how you can manage your iCloud storage in Windows.
- Launch iCloud
- In this window you will be able to manage your photos storage by clicking Options
- If you want to manage other apps using your iCloud, click the Storage button
- This will bring up all the apps that are currently using your iCloud storage.
- Click Delete Documents and Data if you wish to delete them
How To Get More iCloud Storage
By default with every Apple account, you will get 5GB worth of iCloud storage for free. However, 5GB is but a pittance if you plan on using iCloud to backup your photos and videos, so if you’re looking to increase the amount of iCloud storage, here’s how you do that.
- Go to Settings and tap your Apple ID name at the top
- Select iCloud > Manage Storage > Change Storage Plan
- You will be presented with four different options:
- 5GB – This is the free and default storage that every iCloud account
- 50GB – This is the second tier for iCloud storage and it costs $0.99 a month
- 200GB – This is the third tier and it costs $2.99 a month
- 2TB – This is the fourth and highest tier being offered at the moment and it costs $9.99 a month
- Tap on any of the options and sign in with your Apple ID to confirm the subscription. This will be billed on a monthly basis until you stop.
In the event that you have reached the maximum capacity for your iCloud storage or if you’ve downgraded and you’re out of space, what happens is that your device will stop backing up to iCloud which means that newer photos, videos, text messages, and notes will no longer be saved to the cloud. In the event that you get a new iPhone or iPad, you won’t be able to pull the latest content from your previous device to the new one.
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