Storage Guide

Check How Much Storage
You Actually Use

Before choosing a vault, find out how much data you have across your devices and cloud accounts. Your vault needs to last 3 years — so you need the full picture.

1. 1Open Settings
2. 2Tap Storage (or Battery and device care → Storage)
3. 3View 'Used' and 'Available' at the top
4. 4Tap categories to see what's taking space

💡 Check both internal storage and any SD card separately.

1. 1Open Settings → General → iPhone Storage
2. 2Wait for the bar chart to load — it shows usage by category
3. 3Scroll down to see per-app storage
4. 4Note the total 'Used' figure at the top

💡 Photos and Messages are usually the biggest consumers.

1. 1Open Settings → System → Storage
2. 2View the usage bar for your main drive (C:)
3. 3Click 'Show more categories' for a full breakdown
4. 4Check additional drives in 'View storage usage on other drives'

💡 Don't forget to check the Downloads and Desktop folders — they grow fast.

1. 1Click the Apple menu → About This Mac
2. 2Click Storage (or More Info → Storage on newer macOS)
3. 3View the coloured bar showing what's using space
4. 4Hover over each section for exact figures

💡 System Data can be large — it includes caches and Time Machine snapshots.

1. 1Connect the drive to your computer
2. 2Windows: Open File Explorer → right-click the drive → Properties
3. 3Mac: Open Finder → right-click the drive → Get Info
4. 4Note the 'Used' value

💡 Check every external drive, USB stick, and NAS you use for backups.

1. 1Go to dropbox.com and sign in
2. 2Click your avatar → Settings → Plan
3. 3View 'Space used' at the top of the page

💡 If you use Dropbox on multiple devices, check for 'Smart Sync' files that only exist in the cloud.

1. 1iPhone/iPad: Settings → [Your Name] → iCloud → Manage Account Storage
2. 2Mac: System Settings → Apple ID → iCloud → Manage
3. 3View the coloured bar and per-app breakdown

💡 iCloud backups of your devices can be surprisingly large.

1. 1Go to drive.google.com
2. 2Click the Storage link in the left sidebar (or visit one.google.com/storage)
3. 3View your total usage across Drive, Gmail, and Google Photos

💡 Google Photos in 'Original quality' count against your quota.

1. 1Go to onedrive.com and sign in
2. 2Click the gear icon → OneDrive Settings → More settings
3. 3View 'Storage metrics' showing used vs available

💡 If you use Microsoft 365, check both personal and work OneDrive accounts.