Use Your 15GB Free Storage More Efficiently

Google gives you up to 15GB of free storage for your photos, videos and other files. That storage is shared across Google Drive, Gmail and Google Photos, so it can fill up fast if it’s your main place for digital storage. When that happens, you may see a prompt to upgrade to a Google One plan, but paying for more storage isn’t your only option.

If creating another Google account and moving older files and email feels like more trouble than it’s worth, there are a few simpler ways to clear space first. And honestly, the easiest path is usually not deleting dozens of tiny files. It’s finding the biggest space hogs and getting rid of those first.

It’s also easier to do this on a laptop than on a phone because sorting and reviewing files is less frustrating on a bigger screen. Still, the same cleanup can be done from a mobile device if that’s what you have.

Delete Large Files in Google Drive First

One of the quickest ways to recover space is to sort your Drive storage by file size. That lets you target the biggest files instead of wasting time digging through piles of small documents.

How to Delete Large Google Drive Files on Desktop

To remove the largest files from Google Drive on a computer:

  1. Log in to Google Drive.
  2. Click Storage in the menu on the left.
  3. If your files are not already listed from largest to smallest, click Storage used on the right.
  4. Select the files you want to delete. You can choose multiple files by holding Shift.
  5. Click the trash bin near the top of the screen.

That doesn’t fully clear the storage yet. Files moved to Trash still take up space until you remove them permanently. To finish the cleanup, open Trash from the left-side menu, click Empty Trash, then click Empty Forever.

How to Delete Large Google Drive Files on Mobile

If you’re using the Google Drive app, the process is a little different but still straightforward:

  1. Open the Google Drive app and sign in.
  2. Tap Files in the bottom-right corner.
  3. Tap Name under My Drive near the top.
  4. Tap Storage used to sort files from largest to smallest.
  5. Tap the three dots next to a file.
  6. Tap Remove, then Move to trash.

If you want the space back right away, go further and empty the trash:

  1. Tap the hamburger menu in the top-left corner.
  2. Tap Trash.
  3. Tap the three dots in the top-right corner.
  4. Tap Empty trash.

If you leave files there, Google says items in Trash are automatically deleted forever after 30 days.

Clear Out Large Email Attachments in Gmail

Gmail is part of the same shared 15GB storage pool, which means bulky attachments can quietly eat into your available space. If your inbox is full of older messages with large files attached, deleting those can make a real dent.

How to Find and Delete Large Gmail Attachments on Desktop

A simple search can surface the biggest messages in your account:

  1. Log in to Gmail.
  2. In the search bar, type has:attachment larger:10MB and run the search.
  3. Select the emails you want to delete by checking the boxes beside them.
  4. Click the Trash icon at the top of the screen.
  5. Open Trash from the left menu. If you don’t see it, click More.
  6. Click Empty trash now.

This search format can also be used with other file sizes, not just 10MB.

How to Delete Large Gmail Attachments on Mobile

You can do the same thing in the Gmail app:

  1. Open Gmail and sign in.
  2. Type has:attachment larger:10MB in the search bar and run the search.
  3. Open the email you want to remove.
  4. Tap the trash bin icon at the top.
  5. Tap < in the top-left corner.
  6. Tap the hamburger menu next to Search in mail.
  7. Tap Trash.
  8. Tap Empty trash now.

Emails in Trash are also automatically deleted after 30 days if you don’t empty the folder yourself.

Empty Your Spam Folder to Reclaim Gmail Storage

Spam is easy to ignore. That’s kind of the problem. It can pile up and take space in your Gmail account for no good reason. Emptying spam, along with social or promotions folders, is another quick cleanup move when storage starts running low.

Empty Spam in Gmail on Desktop

To clear your spam folder on a computer:

  1. Log in to Gmail.
  2. Click Spam in the left menu. If it’s hidden, click More first.
  3. Click Delete all spam messages now.
  4. Confirm by clicking OK.

Empty Spam in Gmail on Mobile

To do the same thing in the app:

  1. Open Gmail and sign in.
  2. Tap the hamburger menu in the top-left corner.
  3. Tap Spam.
  4. Tap Delete all spam messages now or Empty spam now.

It’s a small step, but when you’re trying to squeeze more room out of limited storage, these small wins matter.

Remove Old and Duplicate Photos in Google Photos

Google Photos also uses the same 15GB free storage allowance. And this is where things can get heavy fast. Photos and videos usually take up more room than text files, especially if you’ve got a lot of high-quality media stored there.

Unlike Google Drive and Gmail, Google Photos doesn’t give you a way to sort everything by largest size first. So this cleanup is more manual. You’ll need to review items yourself and decide what can go.

How to Delete Photos and Videos in Google Photos on Desktop

To remove files from Google Photos on a computer:

  1. Open Google Photos and sign in.
  2. Hover over the photos or videos you want to delete and click the gray checkmark in the top-left corner of each item.
  3. Click the trash icon in the top-right corner.
  4. Click Move to trash.
  5. Open Trash from the left menu.
  6. Click Empty trash near the top-right corner.
  7. Click Empty trash again to confirm.

If you want to check how much storage an item uses before deleting it, select the file and click the i for information in the top menu.

How to Delete Photos and Videos in Google Photos on Mobile

In the Google Photos app:

  1. Open Google Photos and sign in.
  2. Tap the photo or video you want to delete.
  3. Tap the trash can icon in the bottom-right corner.
  4. Tap Delete.
  5. Tap Library in the bottom-right corner.
  6. Tap Trash.
  7. Tap the three dots in the top-right corner.
  8. Tap Empty trash.
  9. Tap Delete.

If you don’t empty the trash manually, deleted photos and videos are automatically removed after 60 days.

Important Note for Apple Users

There’s one detail here that can catch people off guard. If your Gmail is linked to your iCloud account, those storage spaces may also be linked. When Backup & Sync is enabled in Google Photos, local photos on your iPhone can sync to Google Photos.

That means if you delete a photo from Google Photos, the local version on your iPhone can also be deleted. After the local file is removed, it won’t appear in iCloud either. When this applies, Google Photos shows a pop-up warning that the image is about to be deleted from both places.

That’s worth slowing down for. Really.

Bonus Option: Reduce File Size in Google Photos

You can also reduce the file size of some photos and videos in Google Photos to recover storage. The tradeoff is simple: you regain space, but the media quality is reduced.

Download Files to Your Computer Before Deleting Them

Sometimes you’re out of easy choices. You need more space, but you’re not ready to permanently part with your files, emails or photos. In that case, downloading your content to your computer or another hard drive gives you a fallback.

Download Google Drive or Google Photos Files on Desktop

To save files locally before deleting them online:

  1. Open Google Drive or Google Photos on your desktop and sign in.
  2. Select the files or photos you want to download.
  3. Click the three stacked dots in the upper-right corner.
  4. Click Download.
  5. After the files are saved to your hard drive, delete them from your account and empty the trash.

Download Gmail Messages on Desktop

Gmail works in a similar way, but there’s a catch: emails must be downloaded one at a time.

  1. Open Gmail on your desktop and sign in.
  2. Open the email you want to download.
  3. Click the three stacked dots in the upper-right corner.
  4. Click Download.
  5. Move the downloaded file to your hard drive, then delete the email from your account and empty the trash.

Gmail downloads messages as .eml files, so the process is possible, just a bit more tedious.

Smart Ways to Stretch Free Google Storage Without Paying

If you want to keep your free storage going as long as possible, the most practical moves are pretty clear:

  • Delete the largest files in Google Drive first
  • Search Gmail for emails with large attachments
  • Empty Trash and Spam instead of leaving items there
  • Review Google Photos for old and duplicate media
  • Download files locally before deleting anything you still want to keep

When storage gets tight, it’s usually not one giant problem. It’s a bunch of unnoticed files spread across three services. Once you clean up Drive, Gmail and Photos together, you can usually reclaim more space than you expected.