[Full Guide]How to Clean Junk Files on iPhone?

Last Updated Date: Jan 12, 2024

An iPhone beginner has asked the question “How do I clean my iPhone from junk files” on the community of Apple. So many junk files may be downloaded to your phone via mail, web browsing, etc, leading to the pop-up “Run out of your iPhone storage”. What are junk files? How to clean junk files on iPhone? This post has answered them all.

Types of Junk Files on iPhone

Junk files are temporary files that are unnecessary on an iPhone, too much of which may slow your phone’s performance and reduce the amount of storage space available. In the course of normal phone use, they gradually build up on the device. Below are the common types of junk files on iPhones.

📁Types of Junk Files	📝Description
App Caches	Some temporary data of apps and programs that you use for a smoother user experience.
App Cookies	They are text files stored on the program subfolders to record your registered login information, theme selection, preferences, and customization functions.
App Temp Files	iTunes Radio is a great entertainment center, but it will generate a lot of cache files when you use it.
App Crash Logs	If the apps and programs crash frequently, iOS will generate crash logs in the phone to analyze the problems. These data are useless.
Download Temp Files	If you failed to download iTunes, the device would generate temp files also, and this would drag your iPhone down.
Photo Caches	If you use an iPhone browser or Explorer to view pictures, the device will generate photo caches, including photo thumbnails and other information.
iTunes Radio Caches	iTunes Radio is a great entertainment centre, but it will generate a lot of cache files when you use it.
Unneeded Items	There are a lot of unnecessary files on a phone, such as old messages, unnoticed email attachments, browser history, etc.

How to Clean Junk Files on iPhone?

Here are 9 effective methods to help you delete junk files and keep an optimal performance for your iPhone.

👉Use the Built-in Features of the iPhone

Clean iPhone junk files by wiping out App caches

• Step 1: Go to the Settings of your iPhone.

• Step 2: Tap General.

• Step 3: Tap the iPhone Storage and wait for a while.

• Step 4: Select the apps that occupy a large space of storage in your phone, and click it.

• Step 5: Tap Offload App to wipe out all cache.

• Step 6: After all this is done, it will remove the temp files and unnecessary data of the apps.

Erasing browser data to get rid of junk files on iPhone

When you’re browsing web pages, some junk files like Cookies, temporary files, and browser history may inevitably generate. They may have taken up your phone storage without consciousness. Here are the steps to remove these junk files on your iPhone.

• Step 1: Go to the Settings.

• Step 2: Find your web browser, such as Safari > tap it.

• Step 3: At the bottom of the page, you will see the Clear History and Website Data button. Tap it.

• Step 4: A pop-up will show and make sure whether to clear all history and data on your website.

Clean iPhone unused files by offloading unused apps

Sometimes, you may download some software for occasional demand and open it once or twice, then you just forget it and perhaps it takes up more room than everything else in your storage unit.

• Step 1: Go to the Settings on your iPhone.

• Step 2: Tap General.

• Step 3: Click the iPhone Storage button.

• Step 4: You will see a list of apYou’ll see a list of apps arranged by how much space they take up.

• Step 5: Choose and delete unnecessary apps that you want to release the storage space.

Remove old messages to clean junk files on iPhone

Messages are heavy burdens for your iPhone storage space. Every text, video, picture, and attachment you send or receive is stored on your phone device. To remove old messages, do the following steps.

• Step 1: Go to the Settings.

• Step 2: Tap General ->Choose iPhone Storage ->Tap Messages and view each item before removing them.

• Step 3: Delete huge storage items you want to release the space.

Get rid of old photos to clean iPhone memory

Photos are one of the sizable causes of junk files getting bigger. Here, we have different ways to get rid of these we don’t need any more photos. Be careful when you delete these photos, or you may be lost your important ones. 

1️⃣Manual Deletion: 

You can go through albums to view and delete unnecessary photos, which may take a while to complete.

2️⃣Empty “Recently Deleted” Album: 

• Step 1: Go to the Settings.

• Step 2: Tap the Photos app under the iPhone Storage.

• Step 3: You can tap Empty to clear this Recently Deleted album.

3️⃣Merge the Duplicate Photos:

If there are any duplicate photos you have, try this.

• Step 1: Go to the Settings > go to the Photos.

• Step 2: Tap Albums at the bottom.

• Step 3: At the bottom, choose Duplicate.

• Step 4: Tap Merge. > choose the photo you want to merge.

Remove junk files from iPhone by deleting podcasts

If you have subscribed iPhone Podcast app, the app will automatically download new episodes and will keep your old ones. So, clear the Podcast is also very helpful to release your storage space.

• Step 1: Tap on the icon of Podcast.

• Step 2: Tap the podcast you want to delete.

• Step 3: Choose iPhone Storage.

• Step 4: Tap and hold the episode you want to remove.

• Step 5: Tap Remove Downloads so you can get rid of it.

Delete offline videos to free iPhone storage

If you have subscribed to YouTube, VLC player, or another media app, the videos are stored as a part of a consuming cause of storage space, such as cache files, or offline files. Unlucky, the iPhone does not support identifying specific video-consuming storage, so you can not delete a single video on the Settings. If you want to delete videos in the media players on the iPhone, you can go to each app to delete them. Here is how to do it, for example, YouTube.

• Step 1: Go to the YouTube.

• Step 2: Open Library

• Step 3: Go to the Downloads.

• Step 4: Delete the offline videos you want by tapping Delete from downloads.

Perform a factory reset to erase junk files from iPhone

If your iPhone is often stuck or crashed in the process of using due to heavy junk files, here is the last method to utilize. But, this will clear up all your data. It is better to backup your important files and passwords. And do not perform this method harshly. Think twice before you really need to do this. 

• Step 1: Go to the Settings -> General.

• Step 2: Scroll down to find Reset.

• Step 3: Select Erase All Content and Settings.

• Step 4: Wait for a while for the process to end.

After all this is done, you will get a fresh and clean iPhone again.

Using Third-Party File Cleaner

If you want to get rid of all the junk files faster, using a file cleaner can be a quick way. There are many junk file cleaners on the market, and here we have listed three of the more acclaimed software, and compared them from some dimensions such as price, applicable devices, and features, hoping to help you clear the junk files on your iPhone more efficiently.

⚙️Software	💻Compatible Devices	💰Price	🔩Key Features
Clean Doctor	iPhone&iPad	$5.99/Week $11.99/Month $36.99/Year	1) Remove similar images, screenshots, outdated events 2) Remove duplicate contacts and outdated reminders 3) All-in-one depth photo/video cleaning
Nektony-App Cleaner	Mac&iPhone	$11.95/Month $24.95/Year	1) Analyze the media storage and remove the data 2) Completely uninstall apps 3) Disable startup programs 4) Remove browser extensions
Boost Cleaner	iPhone&iPad	$4.99/Week $39.99/Year	1) Duplicate photos cleaner 2) Contact cleaner & organizer

Conclusion

In conclusion, junk files on your iPhone will significantly slow your device, so it is better to clear the junk files from time to time. In this article, we provide a comprehensive tutorial on removing junk files on your iPhone. Contact us if you still have any questions.