What is Other in iPhone Storage-How to Get Rid of Other Data?

Other taking up space on iPhone

When you try to download an app or a movie, you may receive the note that you’re almost out of storage. Since iPhone 7, users could store iPhone photos as HEIC files by default to reduce files size. Limiting the number of photos, videos, and apps could free up some space, but after tapping “Settings” > “General” > “iPhone Storage” to check iPhone space, the “Other” part still remains.

You must be wondering what “Other” is in iPhone Storage and why “Other” takes up so much in iPhone storage space. Continue reading to find out what Other means and how to get rid of Other data on your iPhone.

What does Other mean in iPhone storage?

The "Other" storage section is usually the gray portion on the right of the iPhone storage graph. For iOS 15 and above, this part is called "System Data". On your iPhone and iPad, the "Other" category stores all of your caches, settings preferences, saved messages, voice memos, some deleted app data, and others. Cached data in apps like Google Maps and Chrome can quickly occupy your iPhone's available storage.

It means nothing if you have enough iPhone storage space. But if you’re running out the space and want to free up iPhone storage, deleting “Other” data could be a workable way to save space. Usually, the “Other” category includes the following data:

Mail attachments

Browser cache

Offline reading list

Notes

Voice memos

Deleted Apps data

How to get rid of Other in iPhone storage

After knowing the meaning of the "Other" category and what types of files are labeled "Other", you could delete some data to free up iPhone space or restore your iPhone from backups. Before you start deleting data from your iPhone to shrink “Other” storage, you’d better make a backup in case you need to recover important iPhone data when accidentally deleted.

Method 1. Clearing Safari caches and the offline reading list

If you often use Safari browse, history and website data in Safari are two culprits that take up “Other” space on your iPhone and iPad. They are useful for quickly accessing websites. You could clean Safari history and website data and the offline reading list to free up iPhone storage.

Step 1. Go to “Settings”. Scroll down to “Safari”.

Step 2. Scroll down to tap “Clear History and Website Data” and confirm.

Closing Safari tabs also could free up storage space and make your iPhone run smoothly. Go to “Settings” > “Safari” > “Close Tabs”, you could set the frequency to close Safari tabs in one day, one week, or one month.

Follow the steps below to remove items from your Safari reading list:

Step 1. Go to “Settings” > “General” > “iPhone Storage” > “Safari”.

Step 2. Swipe left on Offline Reading List and tap “Delete”.

Method 2. Deleting old iMessage and Mail data

When you use the Mail app and send iMessage, your iPhone saves a cache of all the files, photos, and videos you’ve viewed on your device. It could speed up reloading them but not a necessity. You could clear the caches by deleting your email account and then resign. 

For useless photos, videos, and other data in iMessage, you could delete entire conversations to free up space. Moreover, you could set to stop storing texts forever.

Step 1. Go to “Settings” > “Messages”.

Step 2. Scroll down to “Message History” and select “Keep Messages”.

Step 3. There are three options to choose from: 30 Days, 1 Year, and Forever. You could select one on your need.

Method 3. Backup and reset iPhone data to delete Other

If the two methods above don’t work, the files in the “Other” category may be deleted apps data. You couldn’t delete them directly. The easiest way to get rid of “Other” data is to back up the iPhone to a computer and restore your iPhone.

Some users could encounter kinds of errors when using iCloud or iTunes for iPhone backup. Compared with iTunes or iCloud, free iPhone backup software-FoneTool has faster backup and restoring speed and a more stable connection. You could preview and select files via FoneTool.

Notes:✎...

It’s advised to use a lightning charging cable.

Tap “Trust” when “Trust This Computer?” appears on your iPhone.

To avoid deleting your private sensitive data like Health, KeyChain, Activity, etc., you could choose to set a passcode to your backup.

Except for iPhone backup and restore, FoneTool supports iPhone data transfer between iPhone, iPad, and iTouch.

Step 1. Download and install FoneTool on your Windows PC, and connect your iPhone to your computer via a compatible cable.

Step 2. Go to “Phone Backup” on the left panel. Click "Get Started". 

Step 3. Set a backup storage path to save your iPhone backup files and click “Start Backup”. Tips: you can  choose to enable backup encryption or not. 

Step 4. After the backup process completes, go back to the main interface and select "Toolbox" > "iPhone Eraser" to delete everything on iPhone.

Step 5. Your iPhone will be started as a new one. After iPhone settings, connect your iPhone to the computer and launch FoneTool.  Go to "Backup History" and click "Start Restore" to restore your iPhone from backups. The deleted app data stored in “Other” will be deleted automatically.

The bottom line

Hopefully, you have a comprehensive understanding of what Other is in iPhone Storage and get three methods to get rid of Other data on iPhone.

FoneTool not only helps you free up Other space when iPhone storage is full but supports custom backup: Photos, Music, Videos, Contacts, and Messages. It means you don’t have to delete photos, videos, and messages for freeing up iPhone space. Besides, you could easily transfer your iPhone data to computers.