Is there an iPhone user who can’t benefit from more storage space? Probably not — especially considering how many apps we consistently download and how seldom we delete old ones (just in case we need them). Figuring out which apps you can and can’t live without can be a trial, and all of those apps add up in terms of storage space and running down your battery power. Some apps are worse offenders than others: a game with intense graphics or social media apps are always going to consume more resources. Your Photos app is the source of myriad large files like high-resolution photos and videos that consume space.
But it’s far more difficult to decide which apps you love and will sacrifice for the greater good of your phone. An easier change you can make right now is deleting preinstalled iPhone apps that aren’t serving you and are only taking up storage space. These apps aren’t the monster storage offenders, but when every little bit helps, they’re worth considering getting rid of.
1. Apple Books
The amount of storage space taken up by Apple Books has a lot to do with the number of books you’ve stored on it and whether the files are large or smaller. An average eBook can take up 1MB to 10MB of storage, while audio books consume more: about 100MB. If you aren’t using this app at all, feel free to delete it. And, if you are using it, make sure you regularly delete old files to keep your storage numbers lower.
2. Podcasts
Similarly to Apple Books, the amount of storage that Podcasts takes up will depend on how you use the app. One podcast episode can take up about 10MB to over 200MB, so consider how many podcasts you download and how often (and remember that many of these download without you even aware of it). You can disable Automatic Downloads to help conserve space and make sure you delete old files, or delete the app if you don’t use it.
3. Stocks
Stocks isn’t a significant consumer of storage space and take up about 50MB to 200MB. Many people don’t use it and rely instead on more sophisticated stocks apps. Check to see how much storage yours takes up before deleting it by going to Settings > General > iPhone Storage > Stocks.
4. Apple Maps
If you have iOS 10 or later, you can delete Apple Maps from your phone. Make sure you have a comparable GPS app that you prefer, like Google Maps or Waze, or that your car comes equipped with similar features on its built-in navigation system.
5. Health
The Health app grabs data from your Apple Watch and other third-party apps to create a record of your steps, sleep, heart rate, and much more. This makes it easy to keep track of these details, as well as share them with healthcare providers. But the app is only as useful as your use of it. If you’ve never even opened it, consider deleting it to save some space.
