Not having enough storage space on your Android device is a common problem. You probably don’t realize you don’t have enough storage until you try to update an app and can’t. The solution to not having enough storage isn’t always buying a new phone.
You might have to make some tough decision on what you’ll need to erase to increase storage on your phone. But, doing some “Spring Cleaning” on your phone will give you that fresh start that will fix the not enough storage problem.
Uninstall Apps You Don’t Use Anymore
It’s easy to get carried away when you see so many fun apps on Google Play. You try one after the other but probably forget to uninstall them or just leave them, even if they’re not that great.
The problem with that is that some apps take up space that could be used for something more important. You can uninstall all those unnecessary apps either through Google Play or directly from your Android device.
To uninstall apps from Google Play, tap on the hamburger icon at the top left and tap on My apps & games. Select the Installed tab and browse through the apps.
If you tap on the uneven lines, you can organize your apps either in alphabetical order, last updated, last used, or size. Choose whatever makes the process easier for you. Tap on the app you want to install and then on the Uninstall button.
To uninstall the app from your phone go to “Settings” > “Applications” or “Apps” > “Application manager” and tap on the apps you want to uninstall.
Eliminate Apps That Use Too Much Memory
Some apps hardly use memory and others that use too much of it. If you don’t want to uninstall certain apps, you can try uninstalling the ones that use too much of your phone’s memory. Follow the steps previously mentioned on how you can organize the apps and choose Size. Simply uninstall the ones that use too much memory.
Follow the steps previously mentioned on how you can organize the apps and choose Size. Simply uninstall the ones that use too much memory.
To see the amount of memory an app is using go to “Settings” > “Applications” or “Apps” > “Application manager” . Right below each app is the amount of memory it takes up.
Save Your Files in the Cloud
Pictures may not take up too much space but videos surely can. Depending on your financial circumstances you can either opt for a paid account, or you can use a free account. One great way to save storage on your Android device is to take advantage of the Google Photos option.
Open the app and tap on the hamburger icon. Tap on the Free up space option and the app will tell you how much storage it can free up for you. Confirm, and it will start erasing everything it has saved for you.
Eliminate the Cache Files
Erasing the cache files on your Android device can help you resolve the insufficient storage problem. You can either do this through a third-party app or directly from your phone.
An app you can try is App Cache Cleaner – 1Tap Clean. It has 10 million downloads and counting. It’s easy to use and it literally only takes one tap to clean the cache files.
To clear the cache files from your Android phone go to “Settings” > “Storage” > “Internal Storage” > “Cached Data” > “Delete”.
Download: Cache Cleaner – 1Tap Clean (Free)
Transfer Files to the SD Card
You can also save space on your Android device by moving certain apps to your phone’s SD card. The only downside to this is that not all apps can be moved, but there are others that can.
To move an app to the SD card go to “Settings” > “Applications” or “Apps” > “Application Manager” > Tap the app to move > “Storage” > “Change” > “SD card“.
Buy an SD Card with a Larger Capacity
Not all phones have the ability to swap SD cards for one with a bigger capacity. If you have a phone that allows you to do this, then this is the solution to your problem.
Before you buy the SD cards, there are some things to consider. When shopping for a memory card don’t forget about the class, X rating, storage, and size. It’s a good idea to do some research on these four things and make sure that the card is compatible with your phone.
Still Don’t Know What’s Taking up So Much Space?
If you think that you’ve tried everything and you still can’t figure out what taking up so much space, you can always try a storage analyzer app. It analyzes everything on your phone and displays everything that takes up storage, not matter how small it is.
As soon as you install the app, it starts to analyze your phone and then displays your phone’s storage in different colors. Now, you can see why it’s so difficult to save space on your Android device.
A popular app that you can try is DiskUsage. It’s free, and it does all the work for you.
Download: DiskUsage (Free)
Transfer Files to an External Storage Device
Last but not least you can always transfer files you can’t erase onto an external storage device. It’s up to you whether it’s a USB drive or a hard drive, but it’s a great option to have files you need to save but don’t have room for on your phone.
Conclusion
With the above tips, you will surely have the extra space you need. You won’t have to deal with that annoying insufficient error message anymore. Did I miss a tip you use? Leave a comment and share your thoughts.
Mike Oberholtzer says
I am learning that this is the new norm.. Not being able to move or store games and apps on sd card..which is total b.s. they allows you to put videos or pictures or music or personal files on the sd card.. Which thats what dropbox or onedrive are for.. not why most people want to have extra storage space.. I just got the samsung a21, the lg stylo 5, and the samsung galaxy tab a7..all three wont let you move apps or games to sd card..i had a samsung s3 and a samsung Galaxy tab 10.1. They were great and allowed you to use them like you wantrd too.. Isnt that the point of getting a better phone.. More memory and storage space..? F…ed up part is nobody is saying anything about it online or at your phone store..why is android doing this is beyond me..just wanted to tell people that have no storage space after removing all your apps.. The only way i have been able to fix that.. Is by resetting your phone back to factory. Back up your data but when you set the phone up again.. Dont reinstall anything but the basics..contacts and email..then you can install apps untill all the updates or your couple of downloads take up all your space.. I am looking for a old phone.. The hell with all these junky new phones.. Goodluck
Ali says
Thanks so much so many days i found disk usage now and my 9 gb space back.
Ariel Sripasert says
So I have a tablet the LG G Pad X 8.0 and I deleted all of my apps except for 2 and I have 0 files and picture and videos and stuff and that’s it and it says I have 99 storage full so what do I do?
BJ Sullivan says
Why are none of the questions above answered? My phone has no ability to download because I have used almost all the room on the phone. I can’t find a solution anywhere, every page I look on tells me to download something to fix the problem but I cannot download anything and I have gotten rid of all the apps I can.
Lynsy says
I have a Samsung Galaxy tab a6 but every time I try to download apps it says I have no space I deleted every picture I have eveno all the games I had a sd card of 512gb but it still says no space please help what should I do😭
Ruby says
I deleted most of my chase but only a second later its back from o to the other percentage. Why? deleted almost all my apps appearing on my phone plus in app storage. Also deleted texts and messages yet phone keeps saying i haven’t any space, plus it says i need to remove bubbles and over lapping apps. How did i get those?
How do i remove them?
Michael Smith says
I have an Android version 7.1.1 Model number Z839. A ZTE phone. i deleted almost all my pictures and i only have 2 apps, which are not big apps, it keeps telling me that i have no storage. i have no idea what is going on and it it starting to make me upset bc ive been dealing with this for about 4 months now. please help!!!
Holly Olsen says
I have NO downloaded apps on my phone but when I do try to download any apps it’s telling me that I don’t have enough space. How the frick is this possible? I don’t have any type of recorded videos, barely any pictures, I erasr my call list EVERY DAY and same thing with text messages, I keep those deleted daily. Not to mention i have an sd card!!
Aaron says
Well for my Galaxy Note10+, i can’t move game apps (e.g. Goat Simulator) to SD card, even i bought a bigger than ever 128GB card. “not enough storage space”??? It wasn’t a problem with my old Galaxy S8.
Kevinbiyrie14 says
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Ric says
So, I’ve deleted every app and file, and my phone still says 15.4 gb out of 16 being used. Where are these hidden files taking up all my space?
Mutari Ahmed says
please my android phone is having a small internal memory how can i make it large
Cougar Lind says
Under My Files, Folder:Android. SubFolder: DATA. 5+ GB of folder including com.sec or com.sa*XYZ* folders. Can I delete?
I do cache clearing on storage settings.
Have a huge SD card where I store all photos and only a dozen apps that do not add up to 1/4 of total 16GB on phone so was wondering where all the hidden GB are as I am at 15.9 GB used.
Will download the disk usage app to try and find where all these suckers are hiding.
Michelle says
I was wondering why I don’t have enough space to update an app already on my phone? Do the apps just get bigger and bigger? Wanted to just try deleting it and reinstalling it, but I can’t delete or disable this app that came on my phone.
Pork says
Android one storage options seem very misleading to me. Bought a Nokia and thought I could use a sd card to boost storage but hang..on no you can’t really as even after making some hidden changes the settings it still says there is not enough storage space when I am trying to move a 258mb map app to the SD which has 28gb left on it!?…Making the only option go out and spend more money on a phone with bigger memory..hmmm…seems a bit fishy to me.
Jon says
This is an issue that is infuriating for owners of Android phones. The inability of the OS to make proper use of an SD card without jumping through a gazillion hoops and learning how to code or hack is just the dumbest thing. My wife’s Moto-G (v2; Lollipop) has a 32-gig SD card which is perpetually unused; the OS refuses to save anything to it (except perhaps WhatsApp media) while internal storage is maxed out. I’ve been scouring Android forums for over a year looking for a solution, but no-go. Dumb, dumb, dumb. My iPhone is only a 16-gig and can’t take SD expansion, but at least it’s smart enough to swap files up to the iCloud invisibly and without leaving me with a useless brick in my hand.
Julia says
I was trying to see if I could transfer files to my SD card, but there is no word “Storage” in the Apps section when I follow your instructions under that section. There is only a list of my apps.