Google Photos storage full? 5 easy tricks to free up space without paying

Google provides 15 GB of free storage per account, shared between Google Photos, Gmail and Google Drive. Many users reach the limit sooner than expected. Before upgrading to a paid storage plan, these simple tricks can help free up a significant amount of space.

1. Delete Old Screenshots And Blurry Photos

Most people have hundreds of screenshots, blurry pictures and forgotten images stored in Google Photos. The Manage Storage section automatically highlights these files, making them easier to find.

During the first cleanup, users may discover years-old screenshots and low-quality photos they no longer need. Removing these unnecessary files can potentially free up several gigabytes of storage.

2. Remove Large Photos And Videos

Large videos can quickly consume your Google storage. A single 2-minute 4K video can take up around 400MB to 500MB, while some longer or larger files can occupy 2GB or more.

To find them, open Google Photos, tap your profile picture, select Manage Storage, and then go to Large Photos and Videos. Sort the files by size and start with the largest ones. Delete unwanted videos and photos, and remember to empty the trash to actually reclaim the storage space.

3. Empty The Trash To Free Up Storage Immediately

One commonly overlooked step is permanently deleting files from the Google Photos trash. Deleted photos remain there for 60 days and continue to count toward your storage limit during that period.

To reclaim the space immediately, open Google Photos > Library > Trash and permanently delete the unwanted photos and videos. This can instantly free up the storage they were occupying. Google's storage management guide

4. Clean Up Gmail And Google Drive

Your Google Photos storage is not separate from the rest of your account. Photos, Gmail and Drive all share the same 15 GB storage limit.

Large Gmail attachments, unnecessary emails and old files stored in Google Drive can quietly consume space. Cleaning out unwanted emails with large attachments and permanently deleting files from the Drive trash can free up storage across your entire Google account.

5. Stop Unnecessary Phone Folders From Backing Up

Google Photos may automatically back up more folders on your phone than you realise. These can include WhatsApp downloads, memes, reaction videos and other app-generated images.

To prevent unnecessary files from being uploaded, go to Photos Settings > Backup > Manage Device Folders. From there, you can choose which folders should be backed up. Turning off backup for folders filled with unwanted or duplicate images can prevent hundreds of unnecessary files from taking up cloud storage.