How To Fix Youtube App Taking Up Most Of Storage
The YouTube app can sometimes consume a significant amount of storage on your device, particularly if you frequently watch videos or download content for offline viewing. Here’s how you can manage and reduce the storage space used by the YouTube app.
Understanding Why YouTube App Takes Up Storage
The YouTube app stores various types of data, including cached videos, watch history, and downloaded content. Over time, these can accumulate and take up substantial storage space. Here are some key factors contributing to this issue:
- Cached Videos: The app caches videos to improve playback performance, but this cache can grow large.
- Watch History: Your viewing history is stored locally, which can also consume storage.
- Downloaded Content: If you download videos for offline viewing, these files can take up a lot of space.
Clearing Cache on Android Devices
For Android users, clearing the cache is relatively straightforward:
- Open Settings: Go to your device's Settings app.
- Navigate to Apps: Tap on "Apps" or "Application Manager."
- Select YouTube: Find and select the YouTube app from the list.
- Clear Cache: Tap on "Storage & cache" and then select "Clear cache" to remove the cached data.
Clearing Cache on iOS Devices
On iOS devices, there is no direct "Clear Cache" option within the YouTube app. However, you can clear the cache by uninstalling and reinstalling the app:
- Delete the App: Go to your home screen, press and hold the YouTube app icon until it starts to jiggle, and then tap the "X" to delete it.
- Reinstall the App: Open the App Store, search for YouTube, and reinstall the app. Sign back into your Google account to restore your settings.
Managing Downloaded Content
If you have downloaded videos for offline viewing, these can take up a significant amount of storage. Here’s how to manage them:
- Check Downloaded Videos: Open the YouTube app, go to your profile, and navigate to "Library" or "Downloads."
- Delete Unwanted Videos: Select the videos you no longer need and delete them to free up space.
- Use Third-Party Tools: If you need to manage multiple files at once, consider using tools like EaseUS MobiMover to transfer or delete files in bulk.
Additional Tips
- Regularly Clear Watch History: Go to the YouTube app settings, select "Storage," and then choose "Clear watch history" and "Clear search history" to remove stored data.
- Avoid Downloading High-Resolution Videos: If possible, download videos in lower resolutions to save storage space.
- Monitor App Size: Regularly check the storage usage of the YouTube app in your device's settings to ensure it doesn’t grow too large.
By following these steps, you can effectively manage the storage space used by the YouTube app and keep your device running smoothly.
I deleted the app, but now it’s taking an exorbitant amount of time to reinstall it. I still haven’t reinstalled it.
Excellent article. What about playlists like “Watch later”? Are these also deleted like the history, cache, and search when the app is deleted and then reinstalled? Thanks.
While clearing the cache is a simple solution it doesn’t negate the fact YouTube is using way too much data. Several other media apps like Vudu (Fandango), Crunchyroll and several others basically does what YouTube does in terms of Watch history. Content watched ect. yet manages to keep the storage cache low. I think there’s more going on.