Archive · 25 Aug 2026
Photos and App Cache Drive Most Phone Storage Problems
A phone can run out of space for several common reasons.
The biggest reason is having lots of photos and videos.
The second biggest reason is temporary files that apps save in the background.
Together, these two causes made up 83% of the poll responses.
Downloaded movies, music, and podcasts also use space.
Old games can take up several gigabytes each.
You can move full-quality photos to cloud storage and keep smaller versions on your phone.
You can also clear app cache, remove unwanted downloads, and delete games you no longer play.
Some cloud accounts can save your game progress so you can reinstall games later.
Tom’s Guide’s reader poll found that photos caused 42% of storage problems and app cache caused 41%.
Together, photos and hidden app cache accounted for 83% of respondents’ storage complaints.
Offline media downloads represented 9% of problems, including files saved by Netflix, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify.
Old mobile games accounted for 8% of storage problems, with some games using 2GB to 5GB each.
Cloud photo optimization, cache clearing, download management, and removing unused games can reclaim space without deleting everything.
- Who
- Tom’s Guide readers and smartphone users experiencing storage shortages.
- What
- A reader poll identified the main causes of phone storage problems and suggested ways to free space.
- When
- The article does not specify when the poll was conducted.
- Where
- On iPhone and Android smartphones.
- Why
- Photos, app cache, downloaded media, and old games gradually consume available storage.
- Photos
- 42% of poll respondents blamed large photo collections for storage problems.
- App cache
- 41% pointed to hidden cache accumulating in the background.
- Combined share
- Photos and app cache together accounted for 83% of responses.
- Offline media
- Downloaded media accounted for 9% of storage problems.
- Old games
- Abandoned mobile games accounted for 8% of problems.
- Game size
- Some mobile games occupy between 2GB and 5GB each.
- Photo solution
- iPhone and Google Photos offer options to keep lighter phone copies while storing originals in the cloud.