5 easy ways to free up storage space on an Android phone or tablet

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It's easy to free up space on an Android device.
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  • To free up space on your Android phone or tablet, you can start by clearing your cache and deleting any apps you don't need.
  • You should also delete unwanted files and photos, or transfer them to another device, like an SD card or USB drive.
  • Freeing up space on an Android device can help it run faster, extend battery life, and prevent crashes.
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Has your Android device become slow, glitchy, or just generally performs poorly? It's possible that your device is running out of storage space.

Running out of memory can negatively impact your device in numerous ways — at its worst, you might not even be able to open apps.

How to free up space on an Android phone or tablet

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To get your phone or tablet back up to speed, you'll need to clear some space. Here are five ways to do just that.

Clear your Android's cache

Android lets you clear the cache for specific apps, or all at once.
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Clearing your Android's cache removes temporary cookie files, which can take up a lot of digital real estate. It's also one of the fastest and easiest ways to improve your Android device's speed and performance.

For more information, check out Business Insider's article on how to clear the cache on an Android device.

Delete unwanted apps, photos, or files

Delete pre-installed apps that you never use.
Chrissy Montelli/Business Insider

This is probably the most obvious solution.

Many Android devices come pre-packaged with loads of apps you'll probably never use. And that picture of last night's dinner doesn't really have a purpose after you've uploaded it to Instagram, does it?

Consider it an act of digital decluttering. Does this app bring you joy? If not, move it into the trash.

Delete the files located in your Downloads folder

Make sure you aren't hoarding downloads.
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You might not realize this, but everything you download onto your Android — whether it's an email attachment, a picture, or a PDF you found on the internet — gets saved into a folder called "Downloads" or "My Files" (the actual name varies depending on your device).

If you frequently download a lot of files, it's possible that your Downloads folder is bloated and slowing the rest of your Android down.

Go into your Downloads folder from the app menu and delete whatever you don't need.

Transfer your apps to your Android's Micro-SD card

You can store your Android's data in various places.
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Some Android devices are compatible with micro-SD cards, which allow you to save additional data without taking up too much memory on your actual device.

If your Android device can use a micro-SD card and you've installed it into your device, you can select which apps you'd like to transfer via the Applications Manager in your device's Settings.

Chrissy Montelli is a writer and content creator originally from Long Island, NY. She is the author of two poetry chapbooks, Heart Float (Bottlecap Press) and Going to Ithaca (Ghost City Press), as well as various online publications. Read more from her at chrissymontelli.wordpress.com.

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