TikTok has become hugely popular in recent years, with over 1 billion monthly active users. However, a common complaint among TikTok users is that the app takes up a lot of storage space on their phones.
This is especially frustrating for users who have phones with limited storage. Having lots of large video files stored by TikTok can quickly eat up the available storage, causing other apps to slow down or crash.
In this article, we’ll look at why TikTok uses so much storage and provide some tips to help you reduce the amount of space TikTok takes up on your phone.
Why TikTok Uses So Much Storage
TikTok takes up a significant amount of storage space on your device because it automatically downloads and caches videos to allow for smooth playback as you scroll through your For You feed. This means that even if you just watch a video once, TikTok will save a copy of it on your device to avoid having to re-download it if you come across it again [1].
In addition to downloaded videos, TikTok also stores your video drafts, liked videos, analytics data, cached ads, and more locally on your device. The more active you are on the app, the more storage space TikTok will consume over time. With millions of videos being uploaded daily, TikTok’s storage demands can quickly add up, especially if you don’t routinely clear out old cached videos.
Check Your TikTok Storage Usage
To see how much storage TikTok is taking up on your device, first go to your phone’s Settings app. On iOS, go to General > iPhone Storage. On Android, go to Storage. Here you can see a breakdown of how much space different apps are using.
Look for the TikTok app storage. This shows the app size as well as the amount of documents and data stored by TikTok. The documents and data is where downloaded videos, cached content, and other TikTok files are stored.
According to users on Reddit (https://www.reddit.com/r/Tiktokhelp/comments/lrxuds/tiktok_taking_up_half_my_storage/), TikTok can use up a large amount of an iPhone’s storage, sometimes up to multiple gigabytes. Checking this setting is the first step to understanding TikTok’s storage impact and deciding what needs to be cleared out.
If TikTok is using more space than expected, you can then take steps to reduce the app’s storage footprint on your device.
Adjust Video Download Settings
One way to reduce how much data TikTok uses is to adjust the default video download settings so videos will only download when you’re connected to WiFi. By default, TikTok will download videos over both cellular data and WiFi, which can quickly eat up your mobile data allowance if you watch a lot of videos.
To change the video download setting on iOS, open the TikTok app and tap on the profile icon in the bottom right. Then go to Settings > Cellular Data Use and toggle off “Auto-Download Videos on Cellular Network.” This will prevent videos from downloading when you are not on WiFi.
On Android, open the TikTok app and tap on the profile icon. Go to Settings > Data Usage and toggle off “Auto-download videos on mobile network.” This will also stop videos from downloading on mobile data.
With video auto-download disabled for cellular networks, you can now only download and watch TikTok videos when connected to WiFi. This prevents TikTok from using your cellular data allowance in the background to download videos.
Sources:
How to Turn Off Data on TikTok or Delete the App
How to Watch Videos without Data & WiFi on TikTok
Delete the Cache
One of the main reasons TikTok takes up so much storage space is because it saves a cache of videos you’ve watched previously. When you view videos on TikTok, it downloads them to your device so they will load faster next time you watch them. Over time, this cached data can really add up and eat away at your storage. Here’s how to clear the cached TikTok videos to free up space:
On iPhone, open the TikTok app and tap on your profile icon in the bottom right. Then tap the 3 lines in the top right corner to open the menu. Go to Settings > Clear Cache. This will delete all the cached videos stored locally on your device.1
On Android, open TikTok and tap on your profile icon. Tap the 3 dots menu in the upper right corner. Go to Settings & privacy > Clear cache. Again, this will remove any cached videos taking up space.
Clearing the cache forces TikTok to reload videos from the internet each time instead of using your device’s storage. So it may take slightly longer for videos to load, but they will stream instead of download. This can free up a significant amount of storage space depending on your usage.
Remove Downloaded Videos
One of the biggest causes of TikTok taking up storage space is all the videos you have downloaded. When you download a TikTok video, it gets saved to your phone’s storage. To free up space, you’ll want to delete any downloaded videos you no longer need.
To delete downloaded videos on TikTok:
- Open the TikTok app and tap on your profile icon in the bottom right.
- Go to the menu and select “Settings and privacy.”
- Tap “Storage and data.”
- Under “Downloaded videos,” tap “Delete.”
- This will give you the option to delete all downloaded videos. Tap “Delete” to confirm.
Deleting old downloads is an easy way to free up significant storage space used by TikTok. You can always download your favorite videos again later if needed. But removing the buildup of downloaded videos you’re no longer watching can make a big difference.
For more tips on managing your TikTok storage, check out this helpful guide: https://www.tiktok.com/discover/how-to-delete-downloaded-tiktok-videos
Use TikTok Lite
One way to reduce the storage that TikTok takes up is to use the TikTok Lite app instead of the regular TikTok app. TikTok Lite is a lightweight version of TikTok that takes up much less space on your device. According to TikTok vs TikTok Lite: What’s Best for You?, the regular TikTok app can take up over 100MB when you factor in the app data and cache, whereas TikTok Lite clocks in around 30MB.
The main benefit of TikTok Lite is that it has a smaller file size, so it won’t eat up as much of your phone’s storage. This makes it a good option if you are really pressed for space. The downside is that TikTok Lite lacks some features of the full TikTok app. But if you just want an easy way to consume TikTok videos without taking up much room, TikTok Lite does the trick.
Uninstall and Reinstall TikTok
Uninstalling and reinstalling the TikTok app is an effective way to clear all cached data from the app and free up storage space. When you uninstall TikTok, all of the app data stored on your device gets deleted. This includes the cache as well as your draft videos, downloaded videos, and more. According to wikiHow, reinstalling TikTok is like getting a brand new version of the app, with none of the old data.
To uninstall and reinstall TikTok on an iPhone, go to the Home screen and find the TikTok app icon. Press and hold the icon until the icons start to shake. Tap the small “X” that appears on the top left corner of the TikTok icon. Tap “Delete” to confirm uninstalling. Then open the App Store, search for TikTok, and reinstall a fresh version of the app. On Android, go to Settings > Apps > TikTok and tap “Uninstall.” Then go to the Play Store to download TikTok again.
Reinstalling TikTok removes all cached videos, images, temporary files, and data related to your account from the phone storage. Once you log back into your account, the videos you posted will still be there on TikTok’s servers. However, any downloaded videos, drafts, messages, and other local data will be gone. So uninstall and reinstall TikTok if you really need to free up space, but be prepared to lose any unsaved draft videos or downloads.
Get More Storage
If clearing the cache, uninstalling, and adjusting settings still doesn’t free up enough space, you may need to directly add more storage capacity to your iPhone. Here are a few options to expand your phone’s storage:
Upgrade to a model with more internal storage. When purchasing a new iPhone, opt for a model with greater base storage, like 128GB or 256GB instead of 64GB or 32GB models. This will provide you with more onboard storage capacity from the start. Check iPhone storage options at the Apple Store to compare models.
Use external storage. Attach an external drive like the SanDisk iXpand Flash Drive1 or a wireless SSD like the SanDisk Connect Wireless Stick2 to add more storage for photos, videos, and other files. This allows you to free up space on your iPhone by storing files externally.
Upgrade your iCloud storage plan. Paying for a higher-tier iCloud plan like 200GB or 2TB can provide more cloud storage to backup your photos, videos, and other iPhone data. This may help compensate for limited onboard iPhone storage capacity.
Use cloud storage services. In addition to iCloud, services like Google Drive, Dropbox, and Box offer free storage tiers that you can utilize to store files off your iPhone. Upload photos, videos, and documents to the cloud rather than keeping them all on your device.
Summary
TikTok is a popular social media app that can quickly take up storage on your device. Here are the main ways to reduce the amount of space TikTok uses:
– Adjust your in-app video download settings to only save videos when connected to Wi-Fi or never.
– Clear the app cache and delete any downloaded videos you no longer need.
– Consider using TikTok Lite, which is a smaller version of the app.
– Uninstall and reinstall TikTok to clear out any cached data.
– Free up overall device storage by deleting unused apps, photos, etc. or upgrading your phone.
Implementing some of these tips should help get TikTok’s storage usage down and free up space on your phone or tablet.
