Reduce Email Storage Space - ICloud Help

Search Reduce email storage space

You can free up iCloud storage space by removing messages from your iCloud email account, either by permanently erasing them or by moving them to your computer. Removing messages with large attachments frees up more space than removing simple text email messages.

Erase messages using iCloud Mail

You can can free up iCloud storage space by permanently erasing messages in iCloud Mail.

1. Select one or more messages, then click the Delete button in the toolbar, press the Delete or Backspace key, or drag them to the Trash in the sidebar.

   

   If you don’t see the Delete button in the toolbar, choose Preferences from the Action pop-up menu , click General, then turn off “Show Archive icon in the toolbar.”

2. To permanently erase all messages in the Trash and free up iCloud storage space, choose Empty Trash from the Action pop-up menu in the iCloud Mail toolbar.

Erase messages using your iOS device

On an iOS device set up for iCloud Mail, you can free up iCloud storage space by permanently erasing iCloud email messages in the Mail app.

1. Delete messages, which moves them to the Trash, by doing any of the following:

   • Delete a message that’s open: Tap .

   • Delete a message without opening it: Swipe from the right to left over the message title in the message list, then tap Trash.

   • Delete multiple messages: While viewing the message list, tap Edit.

2. To permanently erase all messages in the Trash and free up iCloud storage space, tap Trash in the list of iCloud mailboxes, tap Edit, then tap Delete All.

Move messages to your Mac

On a Mac set up for iCloud Mail, you can free up iCloud storage space by moving messages from your iCloud email account to your Mac.

1. In Mail, choose Mailbox > New Mailbox, choose On My Mac from the pop-up menu, then enter a name for the mailbox.

   You don’t have to create a new mailbox if the On My Mac section of the sidebar already has a mailbox that you want to move iCloud email messages to.

2. Select messages in your inbox or another mailbox, then drag them to your new mailbox or choose Message > Move To and choose your new mailbox.

Erase messages using your Mac

On a Mac set up for iCloud Mail, you can free up iCloud storage space by permanently erasing iCloud email messages.

1. In Mail, select messages you want to erase, then click the Delete icon in the Mail toolbar, press the Delete or Backspace key, or drag them to the Trash in the Mail sidebar.

   Mail moves the selected messages to the Trash mailbox, where they remain until they’re permanently erased.

2. To permanently erase all deleted iCloud email messages, choose Mailbox > Erase Deleted Items, then choose your iCloud email account.

Erase messages using your Windows computer

On a Windows computer that has Microsoft Outlook and iCloud Control Panel set up for iCloud Mail, you can free up iCloud storage space by permanently erasing iCloud email messages.

1. Select messages you want to remove, then delete them.

   For detailed instructions, search Outlook Help on your computer.

2. To permanently erase deleted messages from iCloud, do one of the following:

   • Outlook 2007: Choose Edit > Purge, then choose your iCloud account.

   • Outlook 2010 or 2013: Right-click the Deleted Items folder, then choose Empty Folder.

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