How to Manage iCloud Storage to Back Up Your Device

Almost everybody has gotten the dreaded “Not Enough iCloud Storage” notification. Most of the time, we ignore it, press the “Close” button, and carry on with whatever we are doing. The amount of space in your iCloud drive is usually not something to worry about until you have no room left to take a picture or download a song to your music library. Plus, if your phone isn’t backed up while being damaged, lost, or stolen, you could risk losing thousands of pictures, videos, and messages — not to mention a ton of other extremely sensitive data. Don’t wait until it is too late. Follow this outline to manage iCloud storage before backing up your device.

Free Up iCloud Storage to Safely Back Up Your Device

Every Apple ID account comes with five gigabytes (GB) of free storage on iCloud. However, that is not nearly enough to entirely back up your iPhone, iPad, or other Apple device. Follow these steps to back up your data with more iCloud storage.

1. Check Your iCloud Storage Space

The first step is to see how much cloud storage you currently have on your device. To check your storage space, sign in to your Apple ID through Settings, go to iCloud, and then “Manage Storage.” Then, select “Backups,” which will show the list of iOS devices backed up on your iCloud and how much memory (GB) each is using. Feel free to remove device backups that you no longer need but, be cautious as you will lose this data once deleted.

2. Select Your Device

When you select your current device, you will see the date of your last backup and the size of the memory that it is using. You will also be able to see the amount of storage needed for your next backup.

In this next step, you’ll have your chance to free up space. Select “Choose Data To Back Up” under the “Next Backup Size” option on the screen. From here, select which apps that you would like to back up data from. You can browse through different apps and programs and decide what you use the least. It is unlikely that you will be able to reduce your app data to under 5GB, but it should lower your amount enough to reduce the time it will take to back up your device.

3. Choosing Backup Option

Before you back up your device, make sure your iPhone is updated. Now that you have selected the data you want to back up, it is time to determine which iCloud backup method you will use. Assuming you need way more than the 5GB of storage given to all iCloud accounts, there are two options to consider.

• Buying Storage

  Since you are only given 5GB of storage, you can always purchase more iCloud storage. Apple allows you to increase your iCloud storage plan from 5GB to 50GB for just $.99 a month. We understand that paying an additional fee on top of how much you pay for your Apple devices is not ideal. However, spending roughly $12 a year to have a secure backup of your current device will pay off if an accident ever occurs and keep you from having to delete photos.

• Back Up to MacOS Catalina (or iTunes)

  We understand that not everyone wants to buy more storage. There is a more old-school way to back your device. If you have an older Mac or Windows PC, you may be able to still back up your device on iTunes. However, Apple is slowly doing away with iTunes and bringing in MacOS Catalina in its place. To back up on either platform, just plug your phone into your laptop, and select the “Devices” tab, and choose “Back Up Now.”

It is vital to back up your iPhone as much as possible to ensure that you have your data if your device breaks. If your device is currently damaged, make sure you get it repaired to prevent further damage and data loss. Reach out to a CPR Cell Phone Repair store near you for a free quote on your iPhone, Mac, or other Apple Device.