See what's using space

Open Settings > Storage. On Samsung phones it's under Settings > Battery and device care > Storage. You'll see space used by apps, images, videos, audio, documents and the system. Choose Apps to sort apps by size.

Ways to free space, safest first

  1. Delete old downloads. Open the Files app and check the Downloads folder. Old APK installers and PDFs often sit there for months.
  2. Remove offline content you don't need. Downloaded music in Spotify, offline maps in Organic Maps or Google Maps, and downloaded videos can each take several gigabytes. Remove them from inside the app.
  3. Clear the cache of large apps. See how to clear app cache.
  4. Back up and remove photos and videos. Once your photos are backed up, many gallery apps offer to delete the device copies.
  5. Uninstall apps you don't use. See how to uninstall Android apps.

Avoid "cleaner" apps that promise to speed up your phone. Android already manages memory and cache, and many of these apps show heavy advertising.

Why "System" uses so much

The system figure includes Android itself, pre-installed apps and space reserved for updates. You can't reduce it much without removing pre-installed apps, which isn't possible on most phones.