Apple Intelligence is now available on iPhone, iPad, and Mac!

Looks like no one’s replied in a while. To start the conversation again, simply ask a new question.

How do i free up space in ipad storage-under on my ipad

Hi, How do i free up space in ipad storage-under on my ipad. Previously i had a movie, but i deleted that. However, it still shows that 2.16 gb is used. Kindly see the screen shot


Posted on Sep 13, 2021 11:34 AM

Reply
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Sep 13, 2021 11:48 AM

You have a much bigger issue!

Your iPad is FULL!

You should never, EVER completely fill up ANY computer or computing device completely full of data!


A 32 GBs storage iPad starts out with approx 30 GBs.,after initial internal flash drive formatting.

Minus approx. 6.5 GBs for iOS/iPadOS leaves between 23-24 GBs.

Minus 3-6GBs, for iOS/iPadOS system operational reserve, that MUST BE MAINTAINED AT ALL TIMES, to ensure/insure normal, expected operation of iOS/iPad OS, leaves approx. between 18-20 GBs of actual, usable data storage space.


Even with 20 GBs of actual, usable internal data storage space in an Apple iOS/iPadOS device,

a 32 GBs data storage devices are, now, more quickly, becoming the “new” low storage 16 GBs internal data storage space devices, today, a 32 GBs Apple iOS/iPadOS device has 3-4 times the internal data storage space of older base model, low internal data storage,16 GBs. internal data storage Apple iOS/iPadOS devices.


In reality and in use, in 2021, a 32 GBs internal data storage device is kind of a joke and of limited usefulness, when up to 2TB of internal data storage ( approx. 1.8 TBs or usable internal data storage ) portable tablet devices exist today.


Purchasing a low storage Apple device, to save on the cost of the device, is a false economy.


All of that stated.

You need to free up free, internal data storage space on that iPad.

You need to start by backing up your iPad to either Apple's iCloud ( you may need to pay for additional, monthly storage space ) or by connecting your iDevice to a computer running the latest iTunes or, if a newer Mac with a much newer macOS, use the macOS Finder to do the device backup and/or some other offsite, “cloud” data storage/backup services, like Google Drive/Photos, BOX, DropBox, Amazon Cloud Drive, Flickr ( for photos/images ), etc.


Then, delete any installed apps that you no longer use or use infrequently enough that they aren't missed (you can always reinstalled any purchased or free apps at some time later, as you need them).

In addition, uninstall any games that appear to be using a sizable chunk of your iPad's internal storage, as well!


( A disclaimer to the immediate advice above. )

If you own a 7-10-year old iPad, you SHOULD ONLY delete apps that you have ever seldom used or no longer use as there is NO WAY now, from 2020 onward, to retrieve these old apps from the iOS App Store, any longer.

( Third party iOS app developers have permanently removed all of their older, legacy apps from Apple's iOS App Store servers forever!

There are, VIRTUALLY, NO more older, useful, popular, third party apps for over 8-10-year old iOS devices, any longer! )



Then, thin out/delete any music/videos/movies/TV shows/podcasts/screen recordings/photos-images/eBooks/

eMagazine/iBooks/audio books/Documents/PDFs, etc.



If you use a POP email account on your iPad, delete/thin out any old saved emails that maybe saved to your iPad.


To permanently delete photos/images off of your iDevice go into the Photos app and find the Recently Deleted folder/album and permanently delete any photos/images stored in that folder/album.


Also, you can check to see what other stuff is eating up all your valuable data storage space by going into the Settings App,,General Settings Panel, in the right hand column, tap Storage & iCloud usage panel ( in iOS 11 and later, it’s now called iPad Storage ), in the top Storage Panel, tap the Manage Storage panel, wait for a list of apps to generate that will tell you how much space each app is taking up on your iDevice.


Then, for older iPad models with a Home button, do a hard reset of your iPad by holding down both the Home and sleep/wake buttons simultaneously until your iPad goes to black and restarts with Apple logo, then release the buttons.


ALL iOS/iPadOS devices need to maintain, at the very least, a minimum of between 3-6 GBs of free data storage space, AT ALL TIMES, to insure normal/nominal functionalities/operation and general overall performance of any iOS device running iOS/iPadOS.



Good Luck to You!

4 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Sep 13, 2021 11:48 AM in response to khajotia

You have a much bigger issue!

Your iPad is FULL!

You should never, EVER completely fill up ANY computer or computing device completely full of data!


A 32 GBs storage iPad starts out with approx 30 GBs.,after initial internal flash drive formatting.

Minus approx. 6.5 GBs for iOS/iPadOS leaves between 23-24 GBs.

Minus 3-6GBs, for iOS/iPadOS system operational reserve, that MUST BE MAINTAINED AT ALL TIMES, to ensure/insure normal, expected operation of iOS/iPad OS, leaves approx. between 18-20 GBs of actual, usable data storage space.


Even with 20 GBs of actual, usable internal data storage space in an Apple iOS/iPadOS device,

a 32 GBs data storage devices are, now, more quickly, becoming the “new” low storage 16 GBs internal data storage space devices, today, a 32 GBs Apple iOS/iPadOS device has 3-4 times the internal data storage space of older base model, low internal data storage,16 GBs. internal data storage Apple iOS/iPadOS devices.


In reality and in use, in 2021, a 32 GBs internal data storage device is kind of a joke and of limited usefulness, when up to 2TB of internal data storage ( approx. 1.8 TBs or usable internal data storage ) portable tablet devices exist today.


Purchasing a low storage Apple device, to save on the cost of the device, is a false economy.


All of that stated.

You need to free up free, internal data storage space on that iPad.

You need to start by backing up your iPad to either Apple's iCloud ( you may need to pay for additional, monthly storage space ) or by connecting your iDevice to a computer running the latest iTunes or, if a newer Mac with a much newer macOS, use the macOS Finder to do the device backup and/or some other offsite, “cloud” data storage/backup services, like Google Drive/Photos, BOX, DropBox, Amazon Cloud Drive, Flickr ( for photos/images ), etc.


Then, delete any installed apps that you no longer use or use infrequently enough that they aren't missed (you can always reinstalled any purchased or free apps at some time later, as you need them).

In addition, uninstall any games that appear to be using a sizable chunk of your iPad's internal storage, as well!


( A disclaimer to the immediate advice above. )

If you own a 7-10-year old iPad, you SHOULD ONLY delete apps that you have ever seldom used or no longer use as there is NO WAY now, from 2020 onward, to retrieve these old apps from the iOS App Store, any longer.

( Third party iOS app developers have permanently removed all of their older, legacy apps from Apple's iOS App Store servers forever!

There are, VIRTUALLY, NO more older, useful, popular, third party apps for over 8-10-year old iOS devices, any longer! )



Then, thin out/delete any music/videos/movies/TV shows/podcasts/screen recordings/photos-images/eBooks/

eMagazine/iBooks/audio books/Documents/PDFs, etc.



If you use a POP email account on your iPad, delete/thin out any old saved emails that maybe saved to your iPad.


To permanently delete photos/images off of your iDevice go into the Photos app and find the Recently Deleted folder/album and permanently delete any photos/images stored in that folder/album.


Also, you can check to see what other stuff is eating up all your valuable data storage space by going into the Settings App,,General Settings Panel, in the right hand column, tap Storage & iCloud usage panel ( in iOS 11 and later, it’s now called iPad Storage ), in the top Storage Panel, tap the Manage Storage panel, wait for a list of apps to generate that will tell you how much space each app is taking up on your iDevice.


Then, for older iPad models with a Home button, do a hard reset of your iPad by holding down both the Home and sleep/wake buttons simultaneously until your iPad goes to black and restarts with Apple logo, then release the buttons.


ALL iOS/iPadOS devices need to maintain, at the very least, a minimum of between 3-6 GBs of free data storage space, AT ALL TIMES, to insure normal/nominal functionalities/operation and general overall performance of any iOS device running iOS/iPadOS.



Good Luck to You!

Sep 13, 2021 12:03 PM in response to MichelPM

Thanks for the detailed info. I bought this first gen ipad back in 2016.

When i upgrade i will definitely take your suggestion for more memory. Also, i have bought a 50 gb icloud plan and all of my 5,000 plus photos are stord there. I am using optimised storage on my ipad, still the low resolution pics are also taking up 2 gb.


Btw before i downloaded a movie from my macbook and it took up the 2gb as i mentioned in the on my ipad. After i deleted the movie the 2 gb should be free, am i correct? My question is why is it still showing even though the movie has been deleted?


once again thanks for the valuable information you provided.


regards,

Khajotia

Sep 13, 2021 12:18 PM in response to khajotia

At the end of the process I outlined, For older iPad models with a Home button, try a simple hard reset of your iPad by holding down both the Home and sleep/wake/power button simultaneously until your iPad goes to black and restarts with Apple logo, then release the buttons, once you have completed everything and gained more internal iPad storage space.

The simple hard reset should restore any free up internal data storage amounts.


How do i free up space in ipad storage-under on my ipad

Welcome to Apple Support Community
A forum where Apple customers help each other with their products. Get started with your Apple Account.