Tiny Task #5 - What’s Taking Up Space on Your iPhone? Let’s Go App Hunting

Why Is My iPhone Full? Tiny Task: Clean Up Your Apps

When was the last time you looked at all the apps taking up space on your iPhone—not just the ones you use every day?

Hiding in that list might be an app you haven’t opened in months. Or, as Amanda recently discovered, it could be an app you use regularly that’s quietly holding onto far more storage than you realize.

In Amanda’s case, Apple Music was taking up 16 GB because an automatic download setting had somehow been turned on. She didn’t need to delete the app or remove the songs from her Apple Music library. After investigating what was happening, she changed the setting, deleted the unwanted local downloads, and freed up that storage almost instantly.

For the final Tiny Task in our Why Is My iPhone So Full? series, we’re going app hunting!

In this episode, we talk about:

• How to see which apps are using the most storage on your iPhone

• Why the app itself may not be the actual problem

• How downloads and app settings can quietly consume storage

• Amanda’s surprising 16 GB Apple Music discovery

• The difference between offloading and deleting an app

• How to turn on Offload Unused Apps

• What to consider before deleting an app or its data

• Why Kristi’s Candy Crush discovery did not lead to deleting Candy Crush

• How small digital cleanup habits can prevent future storage emergencies

Tiny Task 1: Investigate Your Apps

Start here:

Settings → General → iPhone Storage

You’ll see an overview of your available storage and a list of your apps, typically ordered by how much space they’re using.

Look through the list and ask:

• Is anything using more storage than I expected?

• Do I still use this app?

• Could the app be storing automatic downloads or offline content?

• Is there a setting I can change instead of deleting the app?

• Is there downloaded content I’m comfortable removing?

Don’t assume that a large app needs to be deleted. Investigate what’s happening inside it first.

Tiny Task 2: Review Offload Unused Apps

To find this setting, go to:

Settings → Apps → App Store → Offload Unused Apps

When this is turned on, your iPhone can automatically remove apps you aren’t using while keeping their documents and data. You can reinstall an offloaded app later, provided it is still available in the App Store.

This setting won’t be the right choice for everyone, so decide whether you prefer automatic offloading or manually managing your apps.

Tiny Task 3: Delete an App You No Longer Want

If you find an app you know you’re ready to remove:

1. Touch and hold the app.

2. Tap Remove App.

3. Choose Delete App.

4. Confirm your decision.

Remember that Remove from Home Screen does not delete the app. It only removes the icon from your Home Screen while leaving the app in your App Library.

Before deleting an app, consider whether it contains saved projects, progress, files, or other information you may want to keep. What happens to that information varies depending on the app and whether the data is connected to an account or stored elsewhere.

Download the Free Checklist

Want a visual guide to help you work through today’s Tiny Tasks?

Download our free iPhone App Cleanup Checklist and use it to:

• Record your five largest apps

• Investigate unexpected storage use

• Review the Offload Unused Apps setting

• Decide which apps you’re ready to remove

• Track how much storage you free up

[DOWNLOAD THE FREE IPHONE APP CLEANUP CHECKLIST]

The Biggest Takeaway

You don’t have to clean up every app today.

Simply open your iPhone Storage settings, look around, and choose one small action. Investigate one app, change one setting, remove one unwanted download, or delete one app you no longer need.

Pick one. Tiny Task it. Call it a win.

Wrapping Up the Series

This episode officially closes out our Why Is My iPhone So Full? Tiny Task series.

Throughout the series, we’ve explored:

• Text message conversations and attachments

• Your Photos Library

• Live Photos

• WhatsApp storage

• Apps, downloads, and app settings

These aren’t one-and-done tasks. Come back to them whenever your storage begins creeping up—or spend five minutes tidying b

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
.3333333333when was the last time you actually looked at all the apps taking up space on your iPhone? Not just the ones you use every day, but all of them.
.665666667Because hiding in that list might be an app you haven't opened in months, or as Amanda recently discovered, an app you use all the time that's quietly hanging onto way more storage than you realize, and in her case, 16 gigabytes worth. 3 00:00:22,96.665666667 --> 00:00:28,786.663666667 So for our final tiny task in the Why Is My iPhone So Full series, we're gonna do one last little digital tidy up. 4 00:00:29,86.663666667 --> 00:00:32,443.228843253 So let's go app hunting Welcome back to Sorted Out. 5 00:00:32,543.228843253 --> 00:00:38,383.228843253 We are Christie and Amanda, childhood best friends turned professional photo organizers, and we are so glad that you're here. 6 00:00:38,913.228843253 --> 00:00:41,743.228843253 This podcast is all about photo organizing made simple. 7 00:00:42,93.228843253 --> 00:00:48,203.228843253 No guilt, no overwhelm, mixed with real life mom moments and everyday lessons we're learning right alongside you. 8 00:00:48,326.562176586 --> 00:00:54,606.562176586 We're moms, we're busy, and life is messy, so around here we're focused on progress, not perfection. 9 00:00:54,786.562176586 --> 00:01:01,276.562176586 And today's a bit of a milestone because we've made it to the final tiny task in your Why Is My iPhone So Full series. 10 00:01:01,706.560176586 --> 00:01:16,426.559176586 We've poked around in your messages, we've explored your photos library, we've talked about live photos, and hopefully along the way, you've not only freed up a little storage, but you've also started to understand your iPhone and some of the sneaky places digital clutter likes to hide a little better. 11 00:01:16,516.555176586 --> 00:01:20,636.561176586 But we have one more place to look before we wrap the series up: your apps. 12 00:01:21,6.560176586 --> 00:01:23,436.561176586 And we're not just talking about deleting a bunch of apps. 13 00:01:23,583.222843253 --> 00:01:25,573.224843253 Sometimes the app itself isn't the problem. 14 00:01:25,633.225843253 --> 00:01:31,923.222843253 As Amanda recently discovered, it might be what's happening inside the app that's quietly eating up your storage. 15 00:01:32,274.91050715 --> 00:01:36,474.90850715 So let's finish this series with one last tiny task, and see what we can find. 16 00:01:36,719.489738443 --> 00:01:41,989.48773844 So like I said, our final task is to tidy up some apps, and we love a good old app cleaning. 17 00:01:42,91.54122658 --> 00:01:47,441.54522658 We suggest starting in settings, And if you've been following along, this is becoming a very familiar place. 18 00:01:47,674.87455992 --> 00:02:00,168.75923162 You're gonna tap in settings, tap general, then tap iPhone storage When you get there, you'll likely see a long list of apps and beside each one, the amount of storage it's using on your iPhone. 19 00:02:00,467.79346425 --> 00:02:07,867.79446425 This gives you a really easy way to view your apps at a glance and start making some decisions about what you actually want or need to keep. 20 00:02:08,21.12679758 --> 00:02:17,31.12779758 It was actually in this section that Amanda discovered that the automatic download setting in her Apple Music app had somehow been turned on and was sucking up her precious storage. 21 00:02:17,114.46113091 --> 00:02:18,564.46213091 And not just a little bit of storage. 22 00:02:18,674.46313091 --> 00:02:22,114.46313091 It was taking up 16 gigabytes of storage. 23 00:02:22,364.46313091 --> 00:02:33,283.10085427 A quick little Google Gemini interaction helped her figure out that Apple Music was downloading songs locally to her device every time she added a new song to her library, which was something she definitely did not want to happen. 24 00:02:33,409.76652094 --> 00:02:46,19.76752094 So after confirming that the songs would still exist in her Apple Music library and just wouldn't be downloading locally onto her iPhone, she deleted the local downloads and boom, 16 gigabytes of storage freed up almost instantly. 25 00:02:46,213.10185427 --> 00:02:50,783.10085427 And when I did a little app cleanup on my own, I realized that I hadn't used Candy Crush in months. 26 00:02:51,173.10085427 --> 00:02:52,783.10285427 I did not get rid of Candy Crush. 27 00:02:53,3.10285427 --> 00:02:55,403.10285427 I just reminded myself that I wanted to start playing it more. 28 00:02:56,5.41690643 --> 00:02:58,585.41590643 So you really don't know what you're going to find until you look. 29 00:02:58,704.24218947 --> 00:03:08,704.24718947 Many of the apps you'll see in your list, especially those near the top, will probably be apps you use regularly and may legitimately need the amount of storage they're using to serve their purpose. 30 00:03:08,839.55310392 --> 00:03:14,779.55910392 But you may also find apps that no longer serve you at all, and you're perfectly happy to delete and release that dead weight. 31 00:03:15,102.59831892 --> 00:03:23,122.60031892 One simple task you can do to help a smidge with storage is to toggle on a settings called offload unused apps. 32 00:03:23,702.60431892 --> 00:03:30,311.72072509 To do this, you are going to head into settings again, click on apps, then click on app store. 33 00:03:30,871.72472509 --> 00:03:35,921.72372509 Scroll down and make sure that offload unused apps is toggled on. 34 00:03:36,494.68709907 --> 00:03:42,864.68809907 This allows your iPhone to automatically remove apps you're not using while keeping their documents and data. 35 00:03:43,334.68409907 --> 00:03:49,208.40122914 If you reinstall the app later, return with it as long as the app is still available in the app store. 36 00:03:49,589.77333497 --> 00:03:53,659.77333497 Another tiny task could simply be to delete apps you don't want or use anymore. 37 00:03:53,919.77333497 --> 00:04:00,139.77233497 You can always re-download an app in the future if you want it back, but you may not be able to access all of your previously saved information. 38 00:04:00,339.77233497 --> 00:04:03,949.77233497 That varies depending on the app and your account, of course. 39 00:04:04,165.21324427 --> 00:04:07,495.21324427 But if you are ready to delete some apps, this is what you're gonna do. 40 00:04:07,778.4725687 --> 00:04:14,417.29281039 Head to the home screen of your iPhone And long press or long hold any part of the home screen on your iPhone. 41 00:04:14,595.78374695 --> 00:04:17,235.78274695 This will make your apps start to wiggle, which is kinda cute. 42 00:04:17,555.78374695 --> 00:04:22,475.78374695 You'll see that while your apps are wiggling, they now have a minus sign in the top left corner. 43 00:04:22,632.45041361 --> 00:04:28,172.45041361 When you press that minus, you'll be given the option to remove from home screen or delete app. 44 00:04:28,282.45041361 --> 00:04:30,832.45041361 And of course, you can change your mind and just cancel as well. 45 00:04:31,2.44941361 --> 00:04:39,552.45041361 Choosing delete app will free up space, but remember, you want to be absolutely sure you're okay with deleting the app and any data that may be associated with it. 46 00:04:39,685.78374695 --> 00:04:44,515.78374695 Once you've deleted an app or decide to cancel, you'll notice that all your apps are still wiggling. 47 00:04:44,747.11306441 --> 00:04:47,817.11306441 That's so that you can keep deleting or make changes if you want. 48 00:04:47,992.50061218 --> 00:04:51,492.50161218 To stop the wiggling, just tap anywhere on your home screen again. 49 00:04:51,795.83594551 --> 00:04:54,35.83594551 So you may actually have a couple tiny tasks here. 50 00:04:54,289.16927885 --> 00:05:02,895.83694551 Tiny task number one, go into settings, click general, click iPhone storage, and simply look around your apps and see how much storage they're using. 51 00:05:03,32.50361218 --> 00:05:10,812.50161218 Peruse in and out of those apps as you wish and get a better understanding of what's actually taking up space, like Amanda discovered with her Music app. 52 00:05:10,912.50661218 --> 00:05:13,472.50761218 You may realize that you don't need to delete the app at all. 53 00:05:13,552.50761218 --> 00:05:16,672.50561218 You may simply wanna change the settings within the app. 54 00:05:16,842.50461218 --> 00:05:22,362.50261218 You can also head into your App Store settings to toggle offload unused apps if that makes more sense to you. 55 00:05:22,669.51769677 --> 00:05:28,229.51669677 Tiny task number two, take a look around your home screen and delete any apps you know you no longer want or use. 56 00:05:28,619.51469677 --> 00:05:29,369.51869677 That's it. 57 00:05:29,519.51669677 --> 00:05:36,669.51469677 A couple tiny tasks to help you better understand why your iPhone may be full and how managing your apps can help, with some of those storage challenges. 58 00:05:36,896.18336344 --> 00:05:43,446.18536344 Feel the freedom of managing the digital clutter and the empowerment that comes from understanding your tech just a little bit more. 59 00:05:43,636.84703011 --> 00:05:48,806.84703011 So before we officially close out this Tiny Task series, here's your super quick recap for today. 60 00:05:48,940.18036344 --> 00:05:51,980.18036344 Head into iPhone storage and see which apps are using your space. 61 00:05:52,76.1489548 --> 00:05:53,496.1489548 Look for anything surprising. 62 00:05:53,673.96449236 --> 00:05:58,13.96349236 Check whether an app's settings, not necessarily the app itself, might be the culprit. 63 00:05:58,177.2968257 --> 00:06:04,183.96449236 Turn on offload unused apps if that works for you, and delete any apps you know you're ready to let go of. 64 00:06:04,320.63015903 --> 00:06:05,710.63115903 You don't have to do all of it. 65 00:06:05,940.63115903 --> 00:06:08,590.63115903 Pick one, tiny task it, and call it a win. 66 00:06:08,757.2968257 --> 00:06:14,187.2968257 And with that, we have officially made it to the end of our Why Is My iPhone So Full? Tiny Task series. 67 00:06:14,327.2948257 --> 00:06:26,783.96049236 Hopefully you freed up some space along the way, but we also hope you gained something even more useful, a better understanding of why your iPhone gets full, and a few simple habits you can come back to whenever that storage starts creeping up again. 68 00:06:27,293.96249236 --> 00:06:29,643.96149236 And remember, these aren't one and done tasks. 69 00:06:29,903.95949236 --> 00:06:30,843.95949236 Come back to them. 70 00:06:31,263.96049236 --> 00:06:32,673.96049236 Tidy up a few messages. 71 00:06:32,863.96249236 --> 00:06:34,253.96149236 Check your photos library. 72 00:06:34,583.95949236 --> 00:06:36,653.95949236 Be intentional with live photos. 73 00:06:36,983.96149236 --> 00:06:38,253.96449236 Take a peek at your apps. 74 00:06:38,513.96449236 --> 00:06:41,593.96449236 Five minutes here and there can make a huge difference. 75 00:06:41,763.96349236 --> 00:06:49,363.96149236 And if you'd like a visual to help you with today's app cleanup, we'll likely have a free Tiny Task app cleanup checklist waiting for you in the show notes. 76 00:06:49,497.67504565 --> 00:06:53,457.67504565 If you've been following along with this entire series, we'd love to hear how you did. 77 00:06:53,657.67104565 --> 00:06:59,684.34271232 Did you free up storage? Did you find something completely unexpected taking up space? Leave us a comment and let us know. 78 00:06:59,794.34571232 --> 00:07:15,954.34371232 And if you're enjoying Sorted Out, make sure you follow or subscribe wherever you're listening so you don't miss what's coming up because we're moving on from why is my iPhone so full to another big iPhone question, how do I find? Find what exactly? Well, we're still sorting that part out. 79 00:07:16,147.68204565 --> 00:07:22,947.68304565 But finding things on your iPhone, and especially finding the photos and information you know are somewhere in there, is where we're heading next. 80 00:07:23,227.67704565 --> 00:07:29,657.67804565 And in two weeks, Amanda and I will finally be back together again for that one with lots to catch up on and so much to talk about. 81 00:07:29,854.33571232 --> 00:07:38,674.35171232 So until then, free the phone, free the digital clutter, free the mental clutter, take what fits, leave what doesn't, and we'll see you next time on Sorted Out.