WhatsApp Is Ending Complimentary Google Drive Storage for Android Users: Manage Your Data

As of January 2023, WhatsApp is ending its complimentary Google Drive storage for Android users. This means that users will no longer receive free storage space for their WhatsApp backups.

You'll need to find an alternative solution for storing your WhatsApp backups. This change is likely to affect users who rely on the complimentary storage space for their backups.

The complimentary storage space was initially introduced to make it easier for users to store their WhatsApp backups. This change is part of WhatsApp's efforts to optimize its services and reduce storage costs.

Take a look at this: Storage Space in Google Photos

WhatsApp's beta update is ushering users into a new era where Google Drive storage limits will now apply to their backups.

This move signifies a departure from the earlier practice of unlimited backups, where users didn't have to worry about storage space.

The change will start rolling out to WhatsApp Beta users in December 2023, and then to all WhatsApp users on Android from early 2024.

For more insights, see: Whatsapp Image

Each Google account comes with 15GB of free storage shared across Google Drive, Gmail, and Google Photos.

You can check how much storage you have left by opening the Google Drive app on your phone and tapping the three-line menu.

If you've used up more than 75% of the total storage, it's recommended to take corrective actions immediately.

To avoid running out of storage space, consider backing up your WhatsApp messages to Google Drive before the change takes effect.

Each Google account comes with 15GB of free storage shared across Google Drive, Gmail, and Google Photos.

This free storage is already being used up by many users, especially those who regularly back up data on their phone or have automatic backup enabled.

You can check how much storage you have left by opening the Google Drive app on your phone and tapping the three-line menu.

If you've used up more than 75% of the total storage, it's recommended to take corrective actions immediately.

The change in WhatsApp backups counting towards your Google Account storage limit will start rolling out to WhatsApp Beta users in December 2023, and then to all WhatsApp users on Android from early 2024.

Worth a look: Google Account Storage Full

It's essential to manage your WhatsApp backups to avoid exceeding your Google Drive storage limit. Each Google account comes with 15GB of free storage shared across Google Drive, Gmail, and Google Photos.

You can check how much storage you have left by opening the Google Drive app on your phone and tapping the three-line menu. If you've used up more than 75% of the total storage, it's recommended you take corrective actions immediately.

To avoid filling up your Google Drive storage, you can toggle off Include videos in the Chat backup menu. This will help you save space, but keep in mind that videos take up a lot of space, far more than images and text combined.

Consider downloading important videos directly to your device instead of backing them up to the cloud. This way, you can free up space on your Google Drive and still have access to your videos.

You should back up your WhatsApp chats immediately, as the deadline for this change is not yet specified by Google. To be proactive, create backups only once a month and exclude videos from them to make the most of your free storage.