Free up space on WhatsApp: Step-by-step guide to manage your storage issue

Do you find yourself struggling with a full WhatsApp storage alert every time you want to send or receive media? Those endless photos and videos piling up can be a headache!

WhatsApp is fantastic for sharing messages, photos, videos, GIFs, voice notes, and links with friends, family, and colleagues. But all that sharing comes at a cost. Your device’s storage can fill up faster than you think!

But don’t worry, WhatsApp recently released an amazing update that informs users about which chats are consuming the most storage. Many users are unaware of how much storage they have on WhatsApp or the hidden hacks that could compromise their accounts. Fortunately, you’ve come to the right place to learn how to fix this issue. In this blog, we will tell you how you can free up storage space on WhatsApp.

Quick Steps to Analyze Your WhatsApp Storage Space

Follow this simple guide to find out who you’ve sent the most messages to and how much space they’ve used:

• Start WhatsApp and go to the menu by tapping the three dots.
• Select “Storage and Data” from the “Settings” menu.
• Tap “Manage Storage,” then delete unnecessary items, documents, and more to maximize storage.

Review & Delete Items

You can save up storage space by removing large or often forwarded items. Items can also be deleted per chat.

• Select Settings from the menu that appears on the Chats tab.
• To manage storage, go to Storage > Data & Storage.
• Pick a specific chat.
• To sort by most recent, most old, or largest, just touch the sort icon.
  • In the upper right corner of the item, you can see the file size.
• To review an item, tap on it. In addition, you have the option.
  • See which chat the message came from and when it was sent: Click on “more options” > Show within the chat.
  • To star or not star an item, tap it.

Now Delete Items

The next step is to remove the selected files from an Android device. Remember that when you delete something, it may still be saved on your device even though it will not be in your WhatsApp media library. In order to make room for new files, you’ll need to delete all the copies of an item that you have saved on your device or in different chats.

To delete an item, follow these steps:

• Launch the WhatsApp Messenger or Business app.
• In the Chats tab, tap More Options, then Settings.
• Select Manage Storage from the Storage and Data menu.
• You can select “larger than 5MB” or pick a specific chat to look over.
• To remove certain objects from your device, simply tap and hold on them. If you want to delete more than one thing at once, you can pick more items.
• If you want to delete everything, select All.
• To erase all starred items, choose Delete Starred items.
• Select Delete Any Copies to remove all copies of an item.
• After you’ve made choices, hit the Delete button.

What quickly fills up WhatsApp Business’s storage?

WhatsApp storage gets full faster with photos, videos, GIFs, and other media than with texts alone. An important part of what makes WhatsApp so famous is messages with pictures and videos. However, they can quickly fill up your device’s storage and make it hard for WhatsApp Business to work properly.

How can I get more space on my WhatsApp Business account?

You should regularly check your WhatsApp Business storage and delete any large files that are taking up too much space. Here are some settings that you might want to change to best utilize your WhatsApp Business storage.

Stop Automatic Photo Saving to Free Up Storage

When you get pictures and videos through WhatsApp, your Android or iOS device will download and save them immediately if you don’t change the app’s settings.

It’s likely that you don’t need to see every GIF, picture, or video that someone sends you through WhatsApp outside of the app. If you don’t change this setting, your camera roll will quickly fill up with memes and other media that you don’t know.

To stop photos and videos from saving to your phone’s camera roll on their own, do the following:

• Open WhatsApp Messenger or Business.
• Navigate to Settings, then Chats.
• On Android, disable Media Visibility.
• On iPhone, turn off the Save to Camera Roll option.

Disable Automatic Download of Videos

To save more space on your device, you can stop WhatsApp from automatically saving media messages. If you want to view or open files later, you can download them manually.

If you don’t change anything, WhatsApp will let your device receive photos over mobile data and videos over Wi-Fi.

Simply go to the Data and Storage section of your WhatsApp options to see the choices for automatic downloads. There will be different settings that let you decide whether to let your gadget download media over Wi-Fi, mobile data, or never. If you have an Android device, you can also stop automatic downloads while you’re traveling.

WhatsApp will only download media in certain ways, so you’ll have to tap on photos and videos to watch or download them. But this can help you save mobile data and keep these kinds of media from taking up room on your device without your permission.

Upcoming Features and Updates for WhatsApp

In addition, Meta has announced plans to launch a feature in 2027 that will allow third-party video and voice chats, prioritizing user privacy and security. The company is committed to ensuring that any third-party integrations meet stringent security standards to protect user data.

According to reports, once the feature is live, Meta-owned WhatsApp will also inform users to change the app’s settings.

Furthermore, WhatsApp is preparing to release several other significant updates to enhance user experience.