How to Delete Old Backups on iCloud Storage Easily

Making a backup in iCloud is a good idea so that you will not lose your data. However, it is not always good, especially when your devices do not have enough storage anymore. In this case, you might consider to delete the old backups. Here is everything that you need to know about deleting the old backups in iCloud storage.

If you want to delete iCloud backups on Mac, please follow these instructions:

  • First thing first, launch the System Preferences from the dock, your Finder, or by clicking the Apple icon located on the top left of your screen.
  • Then, click your Apple ID and sign in if asked.
  • The next thing that you will need to do is to click Manage… which is able to be found in the bottom right corner of the window.

click Manage… which is able to be found in the bottom right corner of the window

  • After that, click Backups located in the menu on the left.
  • The fifth step is to click the backup that you want to delete.

click the backup that you want to delete.

  • Then, click the remove icon on the bottom left the pane, which resembles a minus icon.
  • When it is done, click Delete in the pop up.
  • Lastly, click Done or repeat the steps 5 to 7 if you want another backup.

click Done or repeat the steps 5 to 7 if you want another backup

In order to delete the iCloud backups on iPhone or iPad, here are all the steps that you should follow:

  • The first thing that you will need to do is to launch the Settings app on either your iPhone or iPad.
  • Then, tap on the Apple ID right at the top. This one should be the name that you used to register for an Apple ID.
  • In the next step, tap on iCloud.
  • Afterward, tap Manage Storage, which is under iCloud.

tap Manage Storage, which is under iCloud.

  • When the Manage Storage is tapped, tap Backup.
  • Please tap the device whose backup you want to delete.

tap the device whose backup you want to delete

  • After doing so, tap Delete Backup at the bottom.
  • In the end, you can tap Turn Off & Delete.

you can tap Turn Off & Delete

iCloud backup information

iCloud will automatically back up each data stored on your iPhone or iPad each day, as long as your device is connected to Wi-Fi, turned on, locked, and connected to a power source. It is really easy to restore the device if you want to wipe it or set up a new iPhone with the data that you have from the old one.

Here is the list of all the things that get backed up to iCloud:

  • App data
  • Ringtones
  • Health data
  • iTunes purchase history
  • HomeKit configuration
  • Home screen and app organization
  • Photos and videos, unless you have iCloud Photo Library installed on your device
  • iMessage, MMS messages, text messages (if restoring, the SIM card that used during the backup is needed)
  • Visual Voicemail password (if restoring, the SIM card that used during the backup is needed)

It can be a lot of data, which might take a good size of your iCloud storage.

Reason why keeping your iCloud backups is good

Keeping the iCloud backups means you are able to take the data virtually anywhere, with the ability to process and restore the data from your iPhone or iPad from just about anywhere as well. It is really useful for those who have multiple devices, especially the ones who rely on Accessibility settings, since you do not need to manually set everything up for a certain time.

Making a backup is really important because all the previous content is stored on it. If something bad happens to you, such as your device is lost or you break it, all the data is gone and usually cannot be recovered. Once again, maintaining a recent backup of your device at all times is a must. The most recommended way to backup your data is with iCloud Storage.

Reason why it is OK to delete iCloud backups

You might be surprised when someone recommends you to delete an iCloud backup. Keep calm! Deleting an iCloud backup is fine because you have your device backed up on the Mac or Windows computer. for those who have not backed up your data, it is time for you to get an iTunes backup of your iPhone or iPad, and then you have a backup of your backup, just in case you need something. Another thing to remember is that when you turn the iCloud backup on again, your device will still be backed up the moment you are connected to Wi-Fi, the device is locked, turned on, and connected to power.

Storing backups in iCloud is a good idea in case something bad happens like your iPhone, iPad, or Mac gets reset for no particular reason. No one wants to lose any important photos, files, or app data, but each backup does take space. Backing up your device is good but doing it a lot could lead to running out of space in your iCloud storage, especially when you only have the 5GB that is given by Apple for free. The newest generation of iPhone comes with 512GB of maximum internal storage, yet they only give you 5GB of iCloud storage for free. The case is the same even for the most expensive iPhone available today. That little amount of storage barely stores anything and it is clearly too little to save your contents of the whole iPhone online. Even when you try the data in iCloud, you will get a notification saying that you are running out of storage on the iCloud account. In this kind of situation, you will have to upgrade to a paid iCloud plan that gives you the additional storage space.

The thing is, not everyone has enough bucks to pay for the extra storage space. Fortunately, there is something that you can do to free some space without having to spend any. You are able to delete the old backups, so you will not have the unnecessary and old data in your storage.

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