It’s easy to fill up your smartphone’s memory with apps, music, and photos without even thinking about it. That’s part of the reason you have it, right? Unfortunately storage capacity on our devices, while substantial, is not unlimited. After a while, you may find yourself unable to save any more pictures or download new apps because there’s simply nowhere left to store them.
Fortunately, there are a few quick and easy ways to clear out the clutter and free up significant storage space. Each of the tips listed here can usually be tackled and completed in just a few minutes—a small investment for a big payoff!
Tip #1: Clear the Cache. Your cellphone’s browser stores images and other data to help you navigate the Internet. While this gives you a barely noticeable increase in your browsing speed, it also eats up plenty of precious storage. Periodically clear these files by following these steps:
- On an Android phone, open Settings, then go to Apps. Select Chrome. Tap Storage, and then tap the “Clear Cache” button.
- On an iPhone, open Settings, then go to Tap “Clear History and Website Data”, and confirm.
Tip #2: Add an SD card. These are portable memory cards that can be inserted into an Android smartphone to expand its storage capacity. Many devices support 32GB or more of additional storage. It’s simply a matter of sliding one into the appropriate slot on your phone.
Tip #3: Use Cloud Storage. By storing your files to a cloud storage option like Google Photos or iCloud, you’ll be able to access them whenever you want without keeping them stored on your phone.
Tip #4: Clean Out Your Text Messages. All those text messages you’re storing gobble up memory, especially if you have photos or videos attached to them. Get rid of the ones you don’t need to keep. Here’s how:
- On an Android phone, open Messages, then touch and hold any conversation. Select “Delete Messages” when it appears, or tap the Trash To save time in the future, set a limit for conversations saved to the device by opening Settings, then Applications, and then Messages. Select the “Delete Old Messages” option.
- On an iPhone, delete messages manually by swiping to the left. To save time in the future, open Settings, then Messages, and select “Keep Messages” under “Message History”. Set it to 30 days. Older messages will automatically be deleted.
In the time it takes to make your way through the grocery store checkout line, or brew a pot of coffee, you could be clearing out enough storage in your cellphone’s memory to keep it humming along quite nicely. Make a habit of doing these things regularly; you’ll enjoy better cellphone performance, and never have to worry about running out of memory again!
I have an SD card but I do not get the option to store anything on it??
Thank you for posting, Susan. I reviewed your account, and I see that you’re using our Samsung Galaxy J3 smartphone. If you would like to move pictures, music or other files to your SD card, just follow these steps. Start by opening your Settings app, then going to Storage. Select Internal Storage, then Explore. From there you’ll see a series of folders, and you’ll want to select the one containing the files you’d like to move. Press and hold those files, and a menu will appear. Select More, then Move and choose SD card. Select a folder in the SD card, then tap Done. That’s it! And of course, we’re happy to help walk you through it over the phone at 888-345-5509 if you need any help. We appreciate you taking the time to comment, and we hope you have a great day!
Thanks for the information….makes a lot of sense to me.
We’re so glad you found these tips to be helpful, John!
Thanks for the tips
Before I came across your tips, it was a very complicated and confused thing for me to free up storage space in my phone. But now your TIPS have made it as easy as, ABC….. THANKS!
We’re so glad you found them to be helpful, Bryant!
Do you have a physical outlet in NY State?
Thanks for asking, Dave. We don’t have physical stores, but you can find our products at your local Target stores and other retail locations. To find the store nearest you, just visit our Store Locator here. That way, you can get what you need close to home! We’re also happy to answer any other questions you may have over the phone at 888-345-5509 if you like. We appreciate you posting today!
What is the SIM unlock code?
Thanks for posting, Patsy! We’re happy to help you with this over the phone at 888-345-5509. Depending on your device, we may need to walk you through a few steps. We appreciate you posting, and we look forward to speaking with you soon!
I am still using my original Motorola Moto G that I bought from you guys when I started using your service…I believe that was 2013. I bought an SD card to upgrade my memory but when I opened up the back I didn’t see a place to put it. Is that phone up-gradable?
Thank you for posting, Susanne. I verified that the original Moto G device does not have a slot for an SD card. However, there are still many cloud storage options that you may find useful. Google Photos is a free app that allows you to store your photos on the cloud, but still access them from your phone. We’re happy to talk with you about some additional options at 888-345-5509 if you like. We appreciate you taking the time to reach out to us today!
I have the Motorola Moto G EXT that I added an sd card to but I can’t seem to move anything to it. Can you help?
I’m happy to help with that, Richard. If your SD card is already installed, you’ll want to start by opening your Settings app, then going to Storage & USB. From there, tap on Internal Storage, and find the folder containing the files you would like to move (such as your pictures or music). Press and hold to select the file, and then tap the menu in the upper right corner. You can choose to Select All, or individually choose instead. Tap the menu in the upper right corner again, then select Copy to and select SD card. Then tap Copy, and those files will be moved to your SD card. If you run into any issues, we’re happy to help you over the phone at 888-345-5509. Thank you for posting!