How to Manage and Delete Files from Google Drive Effectively

Managing files on Google Drive can be overwhelming, especially when you need to delete some to free up space.

You can delete files from Google Drive by selecting them and clicking the "Trash" button, but this doesn't actually remove the files from your account.

Deleting files from Google Drive permanently removes them from your account.

You can delete files from Google Drive permanently by going to your trash folder and selecting "Delete forever" from the three vertical dots. This will remove the file from Google Drive and prevent it from being accessible to Google.

To delete files from your trash, you can either select each file individually and choose "Delete forever" or empty the entire trash folder by clicking on the "Empty trash" option. Mehvish, a tech expert, recommends this method to ensure your files are completely removed from Google Drive.

If you want to delete multiple files at once, you can select them by holding down Ctrl on Windows or Command on Mac while clicking on each file. Then, right-click on the selected files and choose "Move to trash" from the menu.

Here are the steps to delete files by type in Google Drive:

This method allows you to quickly delete files of a specific type, such as all PDFs or spreadsheets.

You can delete files from Google Drive permanently by going to your trash folder and selecting "Delete forever" on your desktop. This will remove the files from Google Drive entirely.

To access your trash folder on your desktop, right-click or left-click the three vertical dots and select "Delete forever". Alternatively, you can select "Empty trash" in the top right to remove all files at once.

In the Android and iPhone Google Drive apps, go to the trash folder by clicking on the three horizontal lines in the top right (also called a "hamburger menu") and then selecting "Trash". From there, you can either "Empty trash" or go file-by-file by tapping on the three vertical dots and selecting "Delete forever".

To delete files from Google Drive from your browser, simply go to the folder the files are in and select the ones you want to delete. Then, right-click on the file or left-click on the three vertical dots and select "Move to trash" from the menu.

If you're using an iPhone or Android device, you can delete a file by choosing "Remove" from the menu. A confirmation pop-up will appear, and you can tap on "Move to Trash" to allow Google Drive to delete the file.

Here are the steps to delete a file from Google Drive on your iPhone or Android device:

Deleting files by type in Google Drive can be a bit tricky, but it's actually quite easy once you know the trick.

To delete files by type, you'll need to use the advanced search feature in Google Drive.

First, open the Google Drive website or mobile app.

You can then tap on the search bar at the top and enter "type:[file type]." For example, if you want to delete all your PDF files, you'd type "type:pdf."

This will list all the PDF files in your Drive, making it easy to select and delete them.

You can use this method to delete files of any type, from spreadsheets to images.

To find orphaned files in Google Drive, you can search for "is:unorganized owner:me" in the search field on mobile or PC.

This search term specifically looks for files that have lost their parent folder, which is how they become orphaned in the first place.

Entering this search term will show you any and all orphaned files in your Google Drive account.

Deleting files on mobile devices can be a bit tricky, but don't worry, I've got you covered.

To delete files from Google Drive on mobile, you can use the Google Drive app. Simply go to the folder where the file is located, tap the three vertical dots to the right, and scroll down to select Remove. This will move the file to the trash.

If you want to delete files permanently, you'll need to go to the trash folder. On Android, tap the three-line menu at the top left of the Google Drive app, then select Trash. On iPhone, tap the hamburger menu in the upper left corner, then select the Bin tab from the sidebar.

Once you're in the trash folder, you can either empty it to delete all files at once or delete them individually. To delete a file permanently, tap the three-dot menu to the right of the file, then select Delete Forever.

Here's a quick rundown of the steps:

Remember, deleting files permanently means they're gone for good, so make sure you really want to get rid of them before you do!

Deleting multiple files from Google Drive is a breeze. You can select multiple files by holding down the first file to enable multiple selection mode, then tapping on other files to select them.

On your PC, this process is easy. Simply touch and hold the first file, then tap on other files to select them. The selected files will be deleted and sent to the Bin folder.

If you're using the Android or iPhone Google Drive app, the process is similar. Go to the trash folder by clicking on the three horizontal lines in the top right, then select Trash. From there, you can delete multiple files by tapping on the three vertical dots and selecting Delete forever.

To make deleting multiple files even easier, you can also use the Empty trash option in the top right corner. This will remove all files at once, but be careful - this action is permanent and can't be undone.

If you're looking to permanently delete files from Google Drive on your computer, the process is relatively straightforward. To start, go to Google Drive's left pane and select Bin.

To confirm the deletion, find the file you removed and right-click it to select Delete forever. Google Drive will ask for confirmation.

When you're ready to finalize the deletion, tap on "Delete Forever" in the pop-up.

You can delete files from Google Drive on your computer, but it's not a permanent deletion right away. When you delete a file, it gets moved to the trash can in your Google Drive, where it will stay for 30 days until it gets deleted permanently.

You can only delete the files that you own, so if you've shared a file with someone and delete it, they will lose the ability to access the file. If you want to remove the file from your account without deleting it, transfer ownership of the file.

If you manually delete a file from the trash, you lose it forever. However, if you made copies of the file or shared and collaborated on it with third parties who made copies, you can continue accessing those copies.

Files you're invited to collaborate on appear in the Shared With Me menu and do not go in the trash after deletion because you do not own them. Instead, removing them hides them from your view, preventing you from accessing them.

Old Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms, Drawings, and certain Google Photos files you created or backed up before June 1, 2021, don't add to the storage count if you don't open or edit them again.

Deleting files from Google Drive on your computer is a straightforward process. You can't delete files directly from your computer, but rather, they get moved to the trash can in your Google Drive.

The files stay in the trash for 30 days before they're permanently deleted. This gives you plenty of time to restore them if needed.

To permanently delete a file, you'll need to move it to the trash and then delete it from there. You can do this by selecting the file and right-clicking to select "Delete forever."

Here's a step-by-step guide to permanently deleting a file from Google Drive on your computer:

Remember, deleting files from Google Drive on your computer doesn't actually delete them from your computer. They're still stored in the trash for 30 days before they're permanently deleted.

Google Drive files take up space, including PDF files, videos, images, and Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms, and Drawings.

Everything you put in Google Drive will take up space, so be mindful of what you upload.

Videos, images, and Google Docs files are all space hogs in Google Drive.

You can also consider the Google Drive Trash folder, which counts toward the Drive storage, as mentioned in Example 5.

Here's a list of what takes up storage in Google Drive:

Note that your Google storage is shared across Google Drive, Gmail, and Google Photos, so if you're running low on storage, it's not just Google Drive to blame.