How to Fix iPhone Storage Full Can’t Delete Photos

An iPhone user came for help saying that her iPhone storage was full but she couldn’t delete the photos. She couldn’t find any pictures in the Recently Deleted album. Here’s the note she left on the Apple Community.

This article will analyze the reasons and provide some effective methods to solve the problem. Read on!

Why Can’t I Delete Photos Even if My iPhone Storage Is Full?

First, let’s take a look at the reasons why you can’t delete photos and they keep showing up on your iPhone.

Reasons	Description	How to Solve
Recently Deleted Album	Photos deleted on iPhone move to “Recently Deleted,” retained temporarily before permanent removal.	Manually remove photos from Recently Deleted Album. 👉 Full Guide
System or Cached Data	iOS reserves storage for system files, caches, limiting space even after deleting photos.	Clear system files and caches. 👉 Full Guide
Synchronization with iCloud	Photos in multiple albums might persist even after being deleted from one album.	Cancel iCloud synchronization. 👉 Full Guide
Synchronization via iTunes/Finder	Synced photos from a computer may not be deletable from iPhone.	Cancel iTunes/Finder synchronization 👉 Full Guide
Photos Remain in Other Albums	Photos in multiple albums might persist even after deleting from one album.	Manually remove photos from other albums.

How to Resolve iPhone Storage Full Can’t Delete Photos

Method 1: Clear the Recently Deleted Album

It is a very simple method that allows the iPhone to recover some storage space right away. The 30 days to keep photos in the device is too long to free up the space, and you can do it manually.

✍ Note: Make sure you do not accidentally delete the photo you need. Once it is deleted in this method, you can not get it back, and it will be lost for good.

Step 1: Go to the Photos.

Step 2: Go to the Albums.

Step 3: Scroll down to find the Recently Deleted album.

Step 4: Tap the Select button and choose the photo you want to delete.

Step 5: Tap the icon containing three dots at the bottom right.

Step 6: Select the Delete option.

Method 2: Clear System Cache

Restarting Your iPhone

Restarting your iPhone will clear the cache files of the system and shut down all the running apps. This can be the easiest and worth trying method. Here are the steps to restart your iPhone:

📱 For iPhone X or later, and iPhone with Face ID:

Step 1. Press and hold the Side button along with either the Volume Up or Volume Down button until the slider appears on the screen.

Step 2. Drag the slider to turn off your iPhone.

Step 3. Once the iPhone is completely off, press and hold the Side button again until the Apple logo appears, indicating the device is restarting.

📱 For iPhone 8 and earlier:

Step 1. Press and hold the Side buttons until the slider appears.

Step 2. Drag the slider to power off your iPhone.

Step 3. After the device is completely off, press and hold the Top (or Side) button again until the Apple logo appears, signifying the restart.

📱 Using Siri to Restart iPhone:

Step 1. Activate Siri by pressing and holding the Side button (iPhone X or later) or the Home button (iPhone 8 or earlier), or say “Hey Siri” if the feature is enabled.

Step 2. Say, “Restart my iPhone” or a similar command like “Reboot my phone.”

Step 3. Siri will confirm your request and proceed to restart the device. Wait for the iPhone to completely shut down and then power back on.

After the restart, check if you can now delete photos to free up storage space on your iPhone. If the problem persists, you can proceed to try other methods to resolve the issue of being unable to delete photos due to storage full errors.

Free Up Other System Storage

You can remove the cache files such as Safari, by clearing the cache files, the storage space will be released, and the performance of the device will lift up.

Step 1: Go to the Settings.

Step 2: Scroll down and tap Safari.

Step 3: Choose the Clear History and Website Data option. 

Step 4: Confirm and clear Safari data.

Method 3: Disable iCloud Synchronization

When you activate iCloud, the deleted photos will appear again, that is why you can’t delete photos and your storage space always be occupied by data. Here’s how:

Step 1: Go to the Settings.

Step 2: Tap the account name > go to the iCloud Settings.

Step 3: Go to the iCloud > Photos.

Step 4: Choose Download and Keep Originals.

Step 5: Turn off Sync this iPhone Option.

Method 4: Cancel iTunes/Finder Synchronization

Cancel iTunes and Finder auto synchronization can be easy. Follow these steps:

✨ For iTunes:

Step 1. Connect your iPhone or iPad to your Windows PC or Mac.

Step 2. Launch iTunes on your computer (it might open automatically after connecting your device).

Step 3. Click on the Device button located at the top of the iTunes window.

Step 4. On the device information screen, select iCloud from the backup options and then click the blue Done button.

Step 5. When prompted to apply the changes, click on the blue Apply button.

✨ For Finder:

Step 1. Connect your iPhone or iPad to your Mac.

Step 2. Locate your device in the Finder sidebar.

Step 3. In the General section, select the checkbox for “Back up your most important data on your iPhone/iPad to iCloud.”

Step 4. Hit the Apply button to confirm the changes.

Bonus Tips: More Solutions to Fix iPhone Storage Full Can’t Delete Photos

Method 1: Remove Unused Applications

If there are too many unused apps on your device, they will occupy a lot of storage space. We suggest you delete these unused apps to free up space.

Step 1: Hold the app icon.

Step 2: Tap Remove App to delete the app. Repeat the process to delete all the unused apps.

Step 3: Restart your phone to see if this problem has been solved.

Method 2: Update Your iOS System

The iOS on your device may have some problems that cause this issue. So, we suggest you update your device to the latest version to patch bugs and glitches.

Step 1: Go to the Settings.

Step 2: Go to the General > Software Update.

Step 3: Go to the Automatic Updates > enable all the options 

Step 4: Back to the previous page > tap Download and Install.

Method 3: Optimize Photo Storage

This method can replace photos with full resolution to smaller versions so that the storage space will be released.

Step 1: Go to the Settings.

Step 2: Tap the account name > go to the Apple ID Settings.

Step 3: Go to the iCloud > Photos.

Step 4: Select the Optimize iPhone Storage Option.

Method 4: Contact Apple Support

Contacting Apple customer service is also a way to solve this issue.

Step 1: Go to Apple’s support page > get in touch with a representative.

Step 2: Provide all the information, including the device model, iOS version, and your Apple ID, etc. 

Method 5: Reset the computer device.

If none of the above methods can help you solve the problem and you do not want to contact customer service either. You can reset the computer device. This will reset all your settings to default. Remember to back up important files when doing this.

Step 1: Go to the Settings.

Step 2: Tap General.

Step 3: Tap on Transfer or Reset iPhone.

Step 4: Tap Reset.

Step 5: Tap Reset All Settings. > Enter your passcode if needed> Tap Reset All settings again to confirm.

Step 6: Restart the phone.

Method 6: Manually Change the Date and Time

The deleted photos on your iPhone and videos will go back as hidden files for some reason. 

Step 1: Go to the Settings.

Step 2: Go to the General > Date and Time.

Step 3: Disable the Set Automatically. 

Step 4: change data back to a year ago.

Elements of iPhone Storage

iPhone includes not only photos and videos in the storage space, and other elements.

Element	Description	Can be deleted?
System Files	These are some temp files for users to have a better experience, including some log files, preferences, settings, etc.	No
App Caches	These are some temp or unused files like offline videos, offline music, and unnecessary app download files.	Yes
iCloud Drive	These are some temp or unused files like offline videos, offline music, and unnecessary app download files.	Yes
Offloaded Apps	These are some temp or unused files like offline videos, offline music, and unnecessary apps download files.	Yes

Why “Deleted” Doesn’t Mean Gone

There are three reasons for this issue. 

The 30 days of keeping the deleted photos. 

Deletion of the photos does not mean they are deleted immediately. The photos probably are moved to the Recently Deleted folder, staying in there for like 30 days. 

iCloud Syncing

If you turn on the iCloud Photos, the photos you delete from your phone will disappear from any device. But, there are still 30 days to keep the deleted photos. And the photos will probably be downloaded from iCloud to the phone automatically.

Residual deleted data linger

When you delete apps on your phone, there is always some residual data that is kept on your device.

Last words

To help you fix the issue, this guide presents diverse methods, from clearing the “Recently Deleted” album to adjusting synchronization settings and handling system caches. By employing these strategies and comprehending the intricate elements impacting iPhone storage, users can effectively manage undeletable photos, ensuring a smoother device experience and optimal storage utilization.