How To Clear Internal Storage On Android In 4 Easy Steps

Nothing’s worse than trying to install an app or perform a system update only to see the “Memory Full” pop-up. Fortunately, Android makes it exceptionally easy to clear your internal storage, and we’ll show you how to do it in a moment.

You don’t have to perform a factory reset to clear the internal storage on your Android. Below are some really simple ways to clean up the memory.

Why is the Internal Storage on Android Full?

Some years back, most Android devices had SD card slots to expand storage capacities. Unfortunately, that isn’t the case anymore. Most newer Android devices work similarly to iOS devices. All your apps, photos, videos, documents, and music get stored on the device’s internal storage.

Understanding your Android’s internal storage makes clearing it much easier. So, before we dive into our tutorials, let’s take a look at what data gets stored and how you can tackle clearing it up.

Note: You can perform a factory reset, but you’ll lose everything on your device. If you prefer to factory reset your Android, click this link for a full tutorial on that.

App Storage

Naturally, your applications take up space in your Android’s internal storage. While most apps won’t cause an issue, too many add up quickly. One solution to clearing internal storage on your Android delete apps.

However, this isn’t the only storage problem you’ll run into. Over time, your apps can take up more and more space. As apps update, they store additional data. Your device also collects cached data as well.

In the sections below, we’ll show you how to clear app data from your internal storage on your Android devices.

Photo Storage

The second most common culprit taking up your Android’s storage is photos and videos. From saving memes to taking pictures of your friends and screenshots of recipes, these add up quickly.

Fortunately, it only takes a few taps to clear your internal storage of photos and videos. And what’s better is you won’t lose any of them.

Documents

If you often download documents and files, they can take up space on our Android devices, but not as much as media files. The good news is you can purge all of these without losing anything. We’ve included a section for our readers who want to save all of their documents while simultaneously clearing their internal storage on an Android.

System Storage

Lastly, you have what’s referred to as System Storage on your Android. Typically this can’t be cleared. It’s your operating system, and you don’t want to remove it. But after years of experience, it’s become clear System Storage isn’t always what it seems.

If you see System Storage taking an excessive amount of internal storage, it’s likely because of app updates. So, we’ll show you how to clean this up below!

Note: A factory reset will correct this problem. But as soon as you restore your last backup, the problem appears again.

How to Clear Apps Internal Storage on Android

You can delete unused or unnecessary apps entirely or clear the cache and data. Here is how to do it.

Step 1: Go to Settings

Swipe down from the top of your screen and select the Settings cog.

Step 2: Tap Apps

Now, tap Apps in the menu.

Note: Older Android versions and some manufacturers still have this option listed as Applications. Whatever app option you see, tap it.

Step 3: Tap Storage

Select the apps you want to clear from your Android’s internal storage. Then, tap Storage.

Note: If you want to remove the app entirely, tap Uninstall on this page.

Step 4: Tap Clear Cache or Clear Data

The app info page has two options at the bottom. Clear Cache to remove cached data. Or tap Clear Data to remove all of the app’s data stored on your Android’s internal storage.

Note: If you select Clear Data, you’ll lose login information, drafts, and anything that isn’t saved inside the app.

How to Clear Photos Internal Storage on Android

Photos and videos are the easiest way to clear your Android’s internal storage. As long as you have the Google Photos app, you can clear your storage of photos and videos in a pinch.

Here’s what to do:

Note: Ensure you’re logged into a Google account you can access later. You don’t want to lose any videos or photos.

Step 1: Open the Google Photos App

Launch the Google Photos App from the Android app drawer.

Step 2: Tap Your Profile Picture

Tap on your profile icon in the upper right corner.

Step 3: Tap Free Up Space

As long as Google Photos is backing up your photos and videos, you’ll see an option to clear your Android’s internal storage. Tap that option.

How to Clear Documents Internal Storage on Android

Next, we’ll show you how to clear documents stored in your Android’s internal memory. We’ll use the Google Drive app to keep our information safe and secure.

This is a two-part process of backing everything up to your Google Drive, then deleting all your documents. Here’s what to do:

Step 1: Tap the + Sign in Google Drive App

Launch the Google Drive app and tap the + sign in the bottom right corner.

Step 2: Tap Upload

A small pop-up window will appear at the bottom of the screen. Tap Upload.

Step 3: Tap the Menu Icon and Select All

Now, tap the three-dot menu icon in the top right corner. Then, tap Select All.

Note: Tap Documents at the top of this screen to filter only your documents.

Step 4: Tap Select

Tap Select at the top to upload all your files to store them all in Google Drive.

Step 5: Open My Files

At this point, you can delete your files from your Android’s internal storage. Open the My Files app. Then, click Documents.

Note: You can find the My Files app in the Android app drawer.

Step 6: Long press and Select All

Select a file and long-press it. Then, tap Select All to highlight all your documents.

Step 7: Tap Delete All

If you’re positive all your documents are safely stored in the Google Drive app, tap Delete all at the bottom of the screen. This will clear all your documents from your Android’s internal storage.

How to Clear ‘Other’ Internal Storage on Android

As we wind down with the steps to clear the internal storage on your Android, it’s crucial to know you can’t really see or clear what’s in the System Storage. If your System Storage always seems full for no apparent reason, try these fixes:

• Perform a system update – This can fix bugs that cause your internal storage to max out.
• Clear app cache – Based on our experience, we can offload a few gigs of System Storage and Other Files storage by clearing the remaining apps’ cache. Unfortunately, this takes a long time to do (see method above).
• Factory reset your device – This will remove everything from your phone. Unfortunately, it seems to be a temporary fix.

Whether you see an ample amount of data in the ‘Other Files’ or ‘System Storage’ section, the steps above should fix it.

Android Internal Storage All Clear

We’ve covered a lot in this article. There are many ways to clear your internal storage. You can offload photos, apps, videos, and documents. In some cases, you can even clear some system storage. For a comprehensive video on clearing storage for android devices, we recommend the following video:

The image featured at the top of this post is ©SvetaZi/Shutterstock.com.