iCloud Storage Full

January 21, 2025

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Few things are more frustrating than receiving the dreaded iCloud storage full notification on your Apple device. This alert is very disruptive as it can interfere with syncing your important files, backing up precious photos, or saving important app data—leaving you scrambling to increase storage space quickly. But don’t worry, as we’re here to help you reclaim your all-important storage so you can get back to what matters.

Before we start:

Running out of iCloud storage doesn’t have to mean hours of manually sorting through and deleting your files. Instead, you can rely on a helper like MacKeeper’s Safe Cleanup to remove any unnecessary files for you. Our automatic cleanup tool ensures no critical files are deleted, making it the perfect solution to keep your devices optimized and fix any iCloud storage limitations you face.

Here’s how to use MacKeeper’s Safe Cleanup to free up storage:
Download MacKeeper.
Open the app, and choose Safe Cleanup.
Press Start Scan and let the tool scan your device.
Look through the findings and tick anything you want removed.
Press Clean Junk Files and then Remove.

In this article you will find the following:

What happens if your iCloud storage is full

If your iCloud storage is full, your device won’t back up to iCloud, and any new photos or videos won’t get uploaded. It also means that your iCloud Drive and other cloud apps won’t sync up, and you’ll also likely face issues sending or receiving emails from your cloud account.

Common causes of iCloud storage being full

Backups from your devices are often the main cause of iCloud storage being full. If your old iPhone automatically uploaded backups, and you never removed them, they’ll quickly take up space. To remove old files, go to Settings, click on Apple ID, then iCloud > Manage Storage.

Advice from our experts:

If iCloud Drive is taking up space on Mac and your Mac is struggling to keep up, you might want to check out our guide—it's packed with useful tips to optimize your account.

How to сheck iCloud storage usage

Unsure how much iCloud storage you have? In your device Settings click on Apple ID > iCloud. The chart represents available space.

To check your iCloud storage, begin opening up Settings on your Apple device. You’ll then want to look for your Apple ID account and click on it. — **Step 1. Open your device Settings and click on Apple ID**

Once you have opened your Apple ID account, you’ll see the iCloud option. Press the icon and wait a few seconds while your iCloud account creates a bar chart to show you all your used and available space. — **Step 2. Navigate to iCloud and look at the bar chart to see available space**

1. How to check iCloud storage usage on iPhone or iPad

To check available iCloud storage on your iPhone or iPad, we recommend the following: open Settings and click on your Apple ID > iCloud. The bar graph shows your storage usage. Tap Manage Storage for a list of apps taking up the most space.

Step 1. Open your iPhone or iPad Settings and click on your Name/ Apple ID Profile

On the Apple ID page you’ll see a list below Subscriptions, this is where you’ll locate iCloud. Press the icon and it’ll open a new tab with a bar chart at the showing showing all your available and used space. — **Step 2. Then click on iCloud and look at the bar chart at the top of the screen**

2. How to check iCloud storage usage on Mac

Across most Apple devices, the steps to check if your iCloud storage is full are similar:

Begin by opening Settings, and press your Name (Apple ID) at the top of the sidebar.
If needed, Sign Into your account to proceed.
Then click iCloud to view your usage.

To check iCloud storage on a Mac, the steps are similar to most Apple devices. You need to begin by opening your Settings. After that, you can access your iCloud account by clicking on your Name in the left sidebar which is your Apple ID account. You may need to Sign In before you can access your iCloud account information. — **In Settings, click on your Apple ID or Sign In if necessary to access your iCloud account**

3. Viewing storage details in iCloud.com

Looking for a quicker way to check if your iCloud storage is full? We recommend accessing your account via the iCloud.com website—giving you a detailed breakdown of your content.

Here’s how:

Visit iCloud.com and sign in with your Apple ID.
This will open your iCloud account.
Click on Storage to see detailed storage usage.

If you are looking for a quicker way to access your iCloud account from any Apple device, you may find it quicker to go straight to iCloud.com to bring up your account info. Go to the web address and log in. — **Step 1. Go to iCloud.com and click Sign In**

After you have logged in, you’ll see your iCloud Account info page. In the blue box, click on Storage. — **Step 2. Once you’ve opened your iCloud account, look for the Manage button**

You will then be taken to a new window where you’ll be shown a full, detailed breakdown of your available and used iCloud storage. — **Step 3. You’ll then be able to see a full breakdown of used and available storage space**

How to free up iCloud storage if it's full

To free up your iCloud storage, we advise optimizing your device’s storage. Here’s what we recommend moving forward:

Delete Unnecessary iCloud backups
Manage and optimize iCloud photos
Remove unused apps and their data
Clear iCloud drive and old documents
Delete old messages and attachments
Upgrade your iCloud storage plan

1. Delete unnecessary iCloud backups

Old or unnecessary iCloud backups often go unnoticed, taking up valuable storage. To start optimizing your account, we saw an improvement by removing unwanted backups.

Here’s how you can delete unnecessary iCloud backups:

On your Mac, open System Settings.
Click on Apple ID > iCloud.
Press the Manage button to bring up backups.
Select the backups you want to remove and click minus (-).

Deleting the accumulation of unnecessary iCloud backups is a great, yet forgotten, method to free up your storage space. You just need to access your iCloud account, from your Settings and look for the Manage button. This will open up a pop-up tab, allowing you to look through and delete any old backups. — **In Settings, navigate to your iCloud account and press Manage to delete unnecessary Backups**

An extra hand from us:

Do you need more help with how to back up Mac to iCloud? Our detailed guide can help with step-by-step solutions to increase any available space.

2. Manage and optimize iCloud photos

Your iCloud Photos can quickly fill up with unnecessary files, taking up valuable space. We recommend removing the Recently Deleted album to free up more space.

Here’s how to optimize iCloud photos:

Open the Photos app on your Apple device.
Search through and remove any unwanted files.
Then go to your Recently Deleted album and tap Delete All.

To manage your images, go to your Photo app and look through any you want to remove. Then a Recently Deleted album will appear that you can delete to remove from your device permanently. — **In the Photos app, delete all old photos and go to the Recently Deleted album to remove all**

3. Remove unused apps and their data

Unused apps are likely the hidden culprit behind stealing your valuable storage. But don’t worry—we’ve got a simple solution to help you reclaim your space.

Here’s how to safely remove your unused apps and their data:

Open Settings, Apple ID >iCloud.
Tap Manage Storage to see a list of apps.
Press Turn Off and Delete from iCloud for your unused apps.

Removing unused apps and their data linked to your iCloud account is a very straightforward process. Begin by opening up your iCloud account through your device Settings. Then click on Manage. — **Step 1. In your iCloud settings, click on Manage Storage and look through installed apps**

From here, you'll be able to browse your list of apps that are linked or connected to your iCloud account. Click on any app you no longer use and press Turn Off and Delete from iCloud button. This should help free up space in no time. — **Step 2. Delete any app and its stored data that you no longer need**

4. Clear iCloud drive and old documents

Let’s face it—your iCloud drive is likely packed with old or unnecessary files, quietly eating up your precious storage. The good news? We can help you clean it up to avoid the nuisance affecting your daily activities any longer.

Here’s how to safely declutter your iCloud drive:

Go to iCloud.com and log in to your account.
Select iCloud Drive from the menu.
Browse through your folders and pick the ones you want to remove.
Press Delete.

To tidy up your iCloud drive and clear old documents you'll first need to log in to your iCloud account online. — **Step 1. Log in to your iCloud account online and access your iCloud Drive**

Once you're logged in, you'll be able to click on iCloud Drive and look though all the installed apps linked to your cloud account. HIghlight any you no longer need, press the Bin icon and then Delete. — **Step 2. Look through your folders and delete any that contain files you no longer need.**

5. Delete old messages and attachments

Still not seeing an improvement in your iCloud storage? It might be time to sort through your old messages and attachments, as they can steal a lot of resources when left unmanaged.

Here’s a quick way to manage messages and attachments to optimize your device:

Open the Messages app.
Sort through messages and Delete any you don’t need.
Then head to Attachments and delete unnecessary files.

Another solution to help increase your iCloud storage and speed up your activities is to manage your messages and large attachments as they are a hidden culprit behind low space. Just open your Message app and delete any chats or conversations you don’t need anymore. — **Step 1. In your Messages app, delete any old conversations or chats you don’t need to keep**

Once you’re optimized your messages, head to your Attachments as there any bound to be plenty of large files in there you can delete to free up even more space to help iCloud run smoothly. — **Step 2. Then sort through your Attachments for anything you can purge from your device**

6. Upgrade your iCloud storage plan

Sometimes, no amount of cleanup is enough when your cloud storage is still full. If you’re low on space we think it could be time you look into upgrading your iCloud storage plan.

Here’s how you can check alternative storage plans for your iCloud content:

Open your Settings.
Go to iCloud.
Click Manage Storage > Change Storage Plan.

If you don't think your efforts of freeing up storage in iCloud have helped much you may want to upgrade your iCloud storage plan. To do this, go to your iCloud account via your Settings and click on Manage. Then you'll see the option to Change Storage Plan. — **Step 1. In your device Settings, open your iCloud account and click on Manage Storage**

You can now look through the best upgrade options based on your needs. When you've decided on which plan you'd like to change to, highlight and press Upgrade to iCloud+. Then follow the on-screen prompts. — **Step 2. Then press Change Storage Plan and look through the upgrade options**

How to prevent iCloud storage from filling up again

Preventing your iCloud storage from filling up can be simple when you adopt smart habits. Below, we’ll guide you through how to:

Optimize iCloud settings to save space
Regularly clean and monitor your iCloud storage
Use alternative storage options

1. Optimize iCloud settings to save space

It’s important to stay on top of your storage to stop future clutter. We recommend adjusting your iCloud settings to help optimize space. Here’s how:

Open your iCloud Settings.
Turn On Optimize Mac Storage for your Cloud content to be sorted automatically.

After you've reduced your iCloud files to free up space, it's equally important to Optimize iCloud settings to keep that new space free. The quickest way to do this is to first open your iCloud Settings. — **Step 1. Open your iCloud account Settings**

Under the Manage button, you'll be able to turn on Optimise Mac Storage. This will help sort out all of your content cross your Apple device to avoid accumulation. — **Step 2. Turn On Optimize Mac Storage to keep your iCloud content on your device organized**

2. Regularly clean and monitor your iCloud storage

Keeping an eye on your iCloud storage is crucial to avoid clutter. As a reminder, we showed you earlier how to check your storage for Mac, iPhone, iPad and via your online account—feel free to go back to this as a reminder to ensure your iCloud storage isn’t full.

An extra hand from us:

If you’re looking for more details, check out our full guide on how to manage iCloud storage on Mac for more tips and tricks to optimize your storage.

3. Use alternative storage options

If you’re still struggling to manage or free up iCloud storage, you might want to consider using alternative storage solutions. Here are some of our top recommendations:

Third-party storage app	External storage devices
Google Drive DropBox OneDrive	External SSD drive Plug-in USB

Whilst these solutions can help increase storage, keep in mind they may come with additional costs and limitations.

A hint from the MacKeeper team:

Don’t want multiple apps cluttering your device? We get it! Check out our guide on how to free up space on Mac. It’s packed with methods to reclaim space, declutter efficiently, and boost your Mac performance.

Keeping your iCloud storage organized with MacKeeper

When your iCloud storage is full it can lead to frustrating issues. Luckily, apps like MacKeeper’s Safe Cleanup can help clear up space by removing unnecessary files and backups.

Here’s a reminder of how to use the tool:

Launch MacKeeper and select Safe Cleanup.
Press Start Scan.
Once complete, tick the files and apps to delete.
Click Clean Junk Files to remove.

Keeping your iCloud storage organized with MacKeeper is easier than ever. Just open the MacKeeper app and go to the Safe Cleanup feature. Then press Start Scan. — **Step 1. Open the MacKeeper app, head to the Safe Cleanup tool, and click Start Scan**

After your scan is complete, you'll be able to look though for specific app-related cache and logs or Check All and press clean Junk Files. — **Step 2. After the scan is complete, tick anything you want to remove, and choose Clean Junk Files**

You can come back and follow our steps anytime you need a reminder of how to regain control of your storage. This will keep your Apple device running smoothly.

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