Gmail storage often fills up quickly with Drive and Photos files, large attachments, and old emails, preventing new emails from arriving. Storage can be easily freed up by deleting Trash, Spam, and bulky files, clearing promotions, and tracking large data with the Google One Storage Manager. Regular cleaning ensures uninterrupted email delivery.

If you use Gmail, it's crucial to clear its storage periodically, as once the storage is full, new emails stop arriving. Gmail's space is filled not only by emails but also by data from Google Drive and Google Photos. Users often think their inbox is empty, but old attachments, Drive files, and photo backups take up all of their storage. Even deleted emails in Trash and Spam continue to occupy space until they're permanently removed.

Why does Gmail storage fill up quickly?

The biggest reason Gmail's space fills up quickly is that sent emails, drafts, files with large attachments, documents uploaded to Drive, and photo backups all count towards the same storage limit. Therefore, emails from years ago or old video files can quietly fill up your memory. When the account limit is reached, Gmail automatically blocks new emails without you even realizing it.

How to Clear Gmail Storage

To free up storage, permanently emptying the Trash and Spam folders is essential, as emails in these folders also take up space. Afterward, searching for and deleting emails with large attachments is considered the most effective method. Emails larger than 10MB are quickly identified using filters like has:attachment larger:10M in Gmail, which can be deleted in bulk. Promotional and newsletter emails also take up a lot of space; these can be deleted in one go under the Promotions tab. It's also best to unsubscribe from frequent senders.

Google One Storage Manager is also a useful tool that shows you which files are taking up the most space in Gmail, Drive, and Photos. It clearly displays large attachments, old emails, long videos, and unnecessary documents, allowing you to review and delete them from one place.

To avoid running out of storage space again, it's important to periodically delete old attachments, permanently empty your Trash, and share Drive links instead of sending large files via email. A habit of checking your storage every few months also keeps Gmail running smoothly. A little timely cleaning keeps your mail flowing smoothly and prevents missing important emails.