“iPhone Storage Full” can strike at the worst moment. Start by finding out what is taking the space.

Step 1: look at the storage screen

Open Settings > General > iPhone Storage. It shows a bar of what is using space and a list of apps, sorted by size, with suggestions at the top.

Step 2: take the quick wins

• Offload unused apps. Look for the suggestion, or tap an app and choose Offload App. It removes the app but keeps its data, so a reinstall brings everything back.
• Review large attachments in Messages and delete the ones you do not need.
• Delete apps you do not use.

Step 3: tame photos and videos

Photos and videos are usually the biggest part.

1. Open Photos and look at Albums > Utilities for Duplicates and Screenshots, and delete what you do not need.
2. Delete large videos you no longer want, or save them to a computer first.
3. Empty Recently Deleted. Photos stay there for around 30 days and still use space until you clear them.
4. If you use iCloud, look in Settings > Photos for Optimize iPhone Storage, which keeps smaller copies on the phone.

Step 4: clear browser data

In Settings, look for Apps > Safari (or Safari on older versions) and choose Clear History and Website Data. This also signs you out of sites. More in how to clear cache on Android and iPhone.

Step 5: watch the chat apps

WhatsApp keeps photos and videos. In WhatsApp, look in Settings > Storage and data > Manage storage and delete large files. Back up first: see how to back up your WhatsApp chats.

What is “System Data”?

It is a mix of caches and temporary files the iPhone manages itself. It can grow and shrink. A restart and an update sometimes reduce it.

If you are still short

Back up the phone and move older photos to a computer or the cloud, or see how to switch phones without losing anything. A general checklist is in phone storage full: how to free up space.