How to clear Other storage on iPhone: Essential tips

iPhone insufficient storage space? "Other" storage space is too large? don’t worry! This article will explore in-depth the composition and cleaning methods of iPhone "other" storage space to help you easily free up storage space.

Insufficient iPhone storage space is a common problem faced by many users, and even new iPhones with larger storage space may encounter it. The “Other” storage category is particularly troublesome because it is not as easy to clean up directly like “apps” or “photos.” So, what exactly is the "other" storage space? How to clean up effectively?

Free up iPhone storage space

Insufficient space? Easily remove duplicate photos, blurry photos, screenshots, and more with CleanMy®Phone! Get CleanMy® Phone now on Setapp!

Free trial security test

Detailed explanation of the "Other" storage space of iPhone

iOS system defines "other" storage space as system caches, logs, and other system resources. After iOS 15, Apple changed it to "System Data", but the content remains the same.

The "Other" storage space mainly contains the following contents:

• System Files: Files used by iOS system, but are not part of any specific application, such as new Siri voice or fonts.
• Temporary files: Data temporarily stored in iOS system will be automatically deleted after use.
• Log and website cache: Includes website login information, automatic URL filling and preload website data to speed up browsing.
• Streaming cache: iOS caches streaming content you often watch to ensure smooth playback, which usually takes up a lot of space.

Since the "other" storage space contains various miscellaneous data, it is difficult to manage. But it is not impossible to solve! Let's see how to clean up these unwanted content.

How to view iPhone storage space

Before cleaning up the “other” storage space, it is crucial to understand storage space usage. iOS system provides a clear diagram of storage space usage.

How to view iPhone "other" storage space:

1. Open Settings
2. Click "General" > "iPhone Storage"
3. View a light grey bar chart representing System Data (iOS 15) or Other Storage Spaces (iOS 14 and earlier)

To view exactly the size of the Other storage space, scroll down to the bottom of the app list and click System Data to view its size in GB.

You can also view and manage the storage space of your iOS device through your Mac. In macOS Catalina or later, the storage information is in Finder; in earlier versions, it is in iTunes.

How to view "other" storage space on your iPhone or iPad with your Mac:

1. Connect iPhone or iPad to Mac
2. Start Finder or iTunes
3. Select a device to view the storage bar chart at the bottom of the screen

To automate iOS device management processes and save you time, you can try AnyTrans for iOS - a smart iTunes alternative that features both media downloader and backup manager.

AnyTrans for iOS supports seamless data migration between various devices and provides on-time scheduled instant backups to ensure that your media, files and data are not lost. AnyTrans will keep all devices in sync and it also makes it easy to control your downloads and iCloud content if you have insufficient storage.

How to Clean iPhone "Other" Storage Space

After a careful examination of iPhone storage usage, you may find that "other" storage is too much. Ideally, the size of the "system data" should be between 5 and 15GB, but sometimes it will be out of control, which requires cleaning.

How to clean up iPhone "other" storage space? Unless you are freeing up space for installing the latest software, updating to the latest iOS version may be the best solution.

How to free up "other" storage space by installing iOS updates:

1. Open Settings > General
2. Click "Software Update" to view the latest version
3. Click "Download and Install"

How to Clean iPhone "Other" Storage Space: Reduce Streaming Media Usage

Downloaded videos and audio files are classified as "media" in iPhone storage space. While streaming music or videos, the device uses cache to ensure smooth playback. Since cache files are stored in "system data" and usually take up most of the space, reducing cache can help clean up "other" storage space.

Therefore, reducing or pausing streaming can help when trying to free up device space.

How to reduce iPhone 'other' storage space by deleting large attachments

For most people, removing large attachments is the easiest way to reduce “other” storage space, as they usually take up a considerable portion of the available space in “system data.”

Note: Starting with iOS 15, you can't view all the large attachments, but only the downloaded media.

How to clean iPhone "other" system data by deleting large attachments:

1. Go to Settings > General
2. Select "iPhone Storage"
3. Click "View Large Attachments" or "View Downloaded Videos"
4. Click "Edit" in the upper right corner
5. Select the attachment you want to delete, if your system is iOS 14 or earlier, click the trash icon; if your system is iOS 15 or later, click the red minus sign between each video to delete it

Large attachments take up a lot of storage space, while duplicate files are even more so. So if you want to professionally organize and clean the equipment, try using a duplicate file lookup tool like CleanMy® Phone.

CleanMy® Phone completes a complete device scan in seconds and presents the scan results in a clear way, making it easy for you to quickly select the files you want to delete. No need to worry about deleting files by mistake, as you can easily recover any files!

How to enable automatic deletion in the Information app to clean iPhone "other" storage space

By default, the Information app permanently saves all text history, which can generate a large amount of unwanted caches that take up "other" storage space. Starting with iOS 11, Apple has made it very convenient to automatically delete "information" history.

How to reduce iPhone "other" storage space by enabling automatic deletion in the Information app:

1. Go to Settings
2. Select "Information"
3. Scroll down and click "Keep Information"
4. Select "1 year" or "30 days"

The Mail app is also configured to save caches of all documents, photos, and videos you have viewed so that it can reload faster the next time you open it. Simply log out of your account and log in again to clear the email cache.

Organizing "Memos" and "Voice Memos" can also help clean up "other" iPhone storage space, because every time you save or open a memo or voice memo associated with your iCloud account, it takes up storage space. In this case, you can also use the CleanMy® Phone to quickly scan duplicate or similar files in your device and delete them.

How to delete associated third-party accounts to reduce iPhone "other" storage space

Apple simplifies bringing Google or Yahoo! If you are linking third-party accounts to iPhone operations, this has become a convenient feature in daily life. But sometimes, these accounts can accumulate a lot of caches and store them on your device, increasing the size of "other" storage space.

How to delete the "other" storage space of iPhone by deleting the associated third-party account:

1. Go to Settings > Mail, Address Book, Calendar
2. Click on the third-party account you want to delete
3. Click "Delete Account"

How to delete iPhone 'other' storage space by clearing app cache and uninstalling unused apps

Below the main chart of iPhone storage space, you will see the list of apps and its space it takes: the app itself and its associated data. The app at the top of the list is the one that takes up the most space.

While the app itself may be moderately sized, its cache can become very large, so clearing the cache once a month can avoid the problem of "other" over-occupation of storage space. If this option exists in the app settings, you can go to the app settings to clear its cache.

Otherwise, delete the app cache and clean the iPhone "other" storage by deleting the app itself. The method is as follows:

1. Go to Settings > General > iPhone Storage
2. Click on the app you want to delete
3. Select Delete App
4. Go to the App Store to reinstall deleted apps

If an app itself is very large but uses very little data, it would be better to uninstall the app instead of clearing its cache. The uninstalled app will be removed from the device, but its cached data will be retained. This way, when you reinstall the app, you can continue to use it as if it was never deleted.

How to delete iPhone "other" storage space by automatically uninstalling unused apps:

1. Open Settings, if you are using iOS 15 or later, click App Store, otherwise go to General > iPhone Storage
2. Enable "Uninstall Unused Apps"

To further prevent "other" storage space from accumulating, you can turn off the app's background refresh feature and limit the iPhone's location service. Both of these features can be disabled in the Settings app.

How to clear the Safari cache (if the iPhone "other" storage space is too large)

Safari cache makes it easier for you to access the Internet with faster and more personalized browsing experience, but it is not essential for device operation. So if you need to clean up your iPhone "other" storage to make room for more important projects, you can first clear the Safari cache.

Website cache is easy to clean up, but it may grow to 1GB or even larger if you clear it off regularly. So, here is how to clean up iPhone "other" storage space by deleting website data in Safari and deleting offline reading lists:

1. Go to Settings > General
2. Select "iPhone Storage"
3. Scroll down and select "Safari" from the app list
4. Click "Website Data"
5. Select "Remove all website data"
6. Swipe left to the "Offline Reading List"
7. Click "Delete"

Note: Clearing the website cache will cause you to log out of the currently logged-in website.

How to delete iPhone 'other' storage space by restoring from backup

All of the above methods of reducing iPhone "other" storage space work well in most cases and will help control the storage space occupancy of the "other" category. However, if you want to significantly reduce its size, you need to back up your iPhone and reset it. While this isn't the fastest way, it can reduce the size of "other" storage to 1 or 2GB.

How to delete iPhone "other" storage space by backing up and restoring your device:

1. Connect your iPhone or iPad to your Mac to perform a backup
2. Open Finder or iTunes and select your device
3. Go to "General" > "Back up all data on iPhone to this Mac"
4. Check the "Encrypt local backup" check box
5. Click "Backup Now" and wait for the backup to complete
6. Disconnect the device and turn on Settings
7. Go to General > Reset iPhone
8. Select "Erase all content and settings"
9. Click "Continue" and follow the prompts to complete the operation
10. Reconnect iOS device to Mac
11. Open Finder or iTunes and select iPhone or iPad
12. Go to General > Restore Backup
13. Select the latest backup you created and click Restore

Quickly clean iPhone "other" storage space

Master these practical tips and with the help of various apps in Setapp, a platform that offers over 240 top-notch iOS and macOS applications, you will no longer have to worry about "other" storage space on your iPhone!

Monitor your iOS device from your Mac easily and comfortably with AnyTrans, and CleanMy® Phone will help you better manage your device's storage space by quickly finding and deleting duplicate files.

Good news! CleanMy® Phone and Setapp offers more top-notch apps for you to use for free. Try any Setapp app for a week for free and you will fall in love with it!

The above is the detailed content of How to clear Other storage on iPhone: Essential tips. For more information, please follow other related articles on the PHP Chinese website!