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Why is mail taking up 12.8gb of my storage when it is empty of all messages?

Why is i-mail taking up 12.8gb of my storage when it's empty of all messages? It was at 12.5gb when I had over a hunderd messages tired then when I deleted them all and emptied the trash it went up to 12.8gb. is there some setting I can change to correc this?

iPad, iOS 8.4

Posted on Aug 2, 2015 4:06 PM

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3 replies

Aug 2, 2015 6:38 PM in response to Lmknitr

Unfortunately the more you move the mail around (such as moving the items to the trash or other folder) the more space it will use. I've contacted AppleCare about this exact same issue and was told that the Mail application will cache information and that how long it retains that information will vary based on several factors. They advised me that it would eventually remove itself over time.


I was able to remove the mail usage on my device by erasing it from Settings>General>Reset>Erase all content and settings and then re-adding the mail accounts. Thankfully many of the contacts, calendars and notes from my device were saved to one of my mail accounts and returned after re-adding that account. However I did need to download all of my other content (apps, music, etc.)


Another option you can perform would be to restore your device from a backup created before the mail usage issue. This would restore all of your content to that point but still download all of your recent mail content. You cannot restore from a recent backup as it will return the Mail usage to the device.


With either option you choose always remember to check your webmail for your mail account if you are using a POP account. Whenever a POP account is added/re-added to a device it will download all mail from the server and may not be the up to date inbox you have been managing from your device. I hope this information helps and if you find a better solution to this issue please post it.

Why is mail taking up 12.8gb of my storage when it is empty of all messages?

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