Messages taking up so much storage on my phone

Hi there Jonathan,

We'd like to help free up as much storage as possible.

First, let's confirm our understanding of what's happening, along with ruling out some basics:

1. Is this a screenshot of what's showing in your built-in storage, or within iCloud storage?
2. Do you currently have iCloud Messages enabled?
3. If you have multiple long conversations, which may include several photos/videos/etc., this could build up quickly. We suggest deleting any conversation threads you no longer wish to keep within Messages.
4. As you have an iPhone 11, the latest version for it would be iOS 15.2. You can verify this within Settings > General > About. Here's a link that'll show how to first back up, then Update your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch.

Cheers!

Hey Jonathan,

While the decision is up to you, this link has more details regarding how to Use Messages in iCloud.

Updating to the latest iOS version would be the next step. As you mentioned not having enough storage to update it from the iPhone itself, we recommend using a computer. The steps can be found in the same link provided earlier.

Please keep us posted on what occurs after backing up, then updating your iPhone. Take care until then!