How to Increase Google Photos Storage Free and Manage Your Space

Google Photos offers 15GB of free storage, which can fill up quickly if you have a large collection of photos and videos. You can easily run out of space if you don't manage it.

To increase your Google Photos storage free, you need to understand how it works. Google Photos uses a combination of algorithms and machine learning to compress and store your photos and videos.

One way to free up space is to delete large files, such as videos, which can take up a lot of storage. Consider deleting any videos that are no longer important or that you've already uploaded to other services.

Another way to free up space is to enable Google Photos' automatic compression feature, which can reduce the file size of your photos. This feature can help save up to 50% of your storage space.

Intriguing read: Storage Space for Google Photos

You can still store about three years of content with your free 15GB of Google Photos storage, which is more than 80% of current users.

Google will notify you in the app and by email when you're getting close to hitting your 15GB limit, so you can take action to free up space.

If you need more storage space, you can create a secondary Google account to back up your remaining media files.

You can also use Google's paid storage plan if you need more space.

To manage your storage, check your backup quality in the Photos app by going to Settings > Back up & sync.

Google Photos will surface photos or videos that you might want to delete, like blurry photos or large videos, to help you manage your storage.

By using the storage saver feature, you can reduce the total size of your images and videos, freeing up more space in your Google Photos account.

You can estimate how long your free storage may last based on how frequently you back up photos and videos to your Google Account.

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You can free up storage space in Google Photos by using the "Free up space" tool, which automatically removes local copies of photos that have a safely backed-up copy in the cloud.

To use this tool, go to the Library tab in the Google Photos app, tap Utilities, and then tap Free up space. From there, hit Free up… to delete local copies of photos.

The deletion process can take as little as three seconds or ten minutes, depending on how much is being deleted.

Google Photos will only delete photos that have a copy in the cloud, so local-only photos will be safe where they are.

If you're running low on storage space, you can also create a secondary Google account to back up your remaining media files.

To manage your Google Photos storage, go to Settings > Back up & sync in the Photos app, and check your backup quality.

Expand your knowledge: Backing up Files on Google Drive

You can also find a personalized estimate for how long your free storage may last, based on how frequently you back up photos and videos to your Google Account.

Here are some tips to help you manage your storage space:

More than 80% of current Google Photos users can still store about three years of content with their free 15GB storage.

Google will notify you in the app and by email once you get close to hitting your 15GB limit. You can also find a personalized estimate for how long your free storage may last, based on how frequently you back up photos and videos to your Google Account.

To manage your storage effectively, Google has added a new tool in the Photos app that surfaces photos or videos that you might want to delete, like photos that are blurry or screenshots, or videos that are large.

Here are the three Google services that share your 15GB free storage allocation:

If you have a Google Pixel phone, you're exempt from any Google Photos limits, so you can upload as many photos and videos as you want without a cap.

More than 4 trillion photos are stored in Google Photos, with 28 billion new photos and videos uploaded each week.

That's a staggering amount of content, and it's no wonder Google Photos can handle it all, especially if you're using a Google Pixel phone.

If this caught your attention, see: How Much Storage Does a Google Pixel 7 Have

Google One is a subscription service that includes all of Google's cloud storage services. Everyone who creates a Google account receives 15GB of storage for free, which is shared across Google Drive, Gmail, and Google Photos.

To add more storage, you can perform Google's recommended security steps, which will give you an additional 2GB, bringing your total allocation to 17GB. This is a great option if you want to free up space without paying extra.

Google also increases your storage quota if you purchase a Google smartphone, Chromebook, or other Google device. This is a nice bonus if you're already invested in the Google ecosystem.

Your Google One storage allocation includes three Google services: Gmail, Google Drive, and Google Photos. Google Drive is a great place to store images, videos, PDFs, and zip files, while Google Photos is perfect for backing up your photos and videos.

Here's a breakdown of the services included in your Google One storage allocation:

If you're running low on storage, you can always upgrade to a Google One plan, which starts at 100GB or more, depending on your needs. This will give you more space to store your files and photos, and you'll also get extra member benefits and access to support from Google experts.

Adjusting Backup Settings can make a huge difference in how much storage space you have available on your device. You can find these settings in Google Photos by hitting your profile picture and tapping Photos settings.

To ensure your photos are backing up to the cloud, make sure the toggle is set to "on" and you're properly signed into the Google Account you want your images to backup to. This is especially important if you pay for extra storage with Google One.

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You can adjust the amount of compression taking place when photos are backed up by changing the Backup quality setting. This will help you balance storage space with image quality.

If you take a lot of screenshots but don't want them taking up cloud space, you can turn off the folder for screenshots. You can also do this for documents, downloaded images, and images received in Google Messages or other messaging apps.

Here are the options you can adjust in the Backup settings:

Note that if you delete an image in Google Photos that isn't backed up to the cloud, that photo only has a limited time before it's no longer recoverable.