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iPhone storage full? Free up space from photos and videos

The short answer

If your iPhone storage is full, first check what’s taking up the space in Settings. If it’s photos and videos, use PicWay to compress large videos, clear duplicates and similar shots, and set aside what you don’t want. Set-aside photos stay in your library, and space only frees up once you really delete them.

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How to do it

  1. See what takes up space

    Open Settings on your iPhone, tap General, then tap iPhone Storage. You’ll see how much is left and how much each app uses. If photos and videos aren’t the biggest part, the steps below won’t help much.

  2. Start with large videos

    Scroll down the Memories tab to More ways to tidy, tap View all, then tap Large videos under Smart tidy and go through them one at a time. For any you want to keep but that take too much space, tap Compress.

  3. Clear duplicates

    Tap Duplicate items under Smart tidy, then tap the button to keep one per group. PicWay keeps the one you favorited, or else the earliest, and sets the rest aside.

  4. Choose among similar photos

    Tap Similar photos under Smart tidy, go through them group by group, and set the rest aside.

  5. Delete from Set aside

    Tap Set aside at the top right of the Memories tab, review, and delete. Nothing is deleted until iOS confirms. Compressed videos are here too: delete the original once the new version looks right, and the space is freed.

Why is my iPhone storage still full after deleting?

Set-aside photos are still in your library, and a compressed copy only saves space once you delete the original. After you really delete them, photos and videos go to Recently Deleted in the Photos app and stay there for 30 days (Apple’s guide). To remove them sooner, do it in the Photos app, since PicWay can’t empty it for you.

PicWay adds up the space you’ve freed on the Memories tab.

Are there other ways besides cleaning up?

The iPhone has its own options worth a look:

  • Optimize iPhone Storage: on by default when you use iCloud Photos. Full-resolution photos and videos are stored in iCloud, and your iPhone keeps space-saving versions (Apple’s support article). Your iCloud needs enough space.
  • Move them to a computer: transfer photos and videos you don’t want to keep in iCloud (same article).

These work alongside PicWay. If a photo is in iCloud and not on your iPhone, PicWay can download it when you’re online and then compress it.