How to Delete Message Attachments on iPhone and Free Up Space
Messages using gigabytes on your iPhone? Review large attachments, delete photos and videos from chats and set Keep Messages so they stop piling up.
The Messages app quietly keeps every photo, video, voice message and file anyone has sent you, for as long as you keep the conversation. After a few years, that can add up to many gigabytes, and it shows up in iPhone Storage as Messages rather than in Photos.
You do not have to delete whole conversations to get the space back. This guide shows how to find and remove the largest attachments, clear media from a single chat, and change one setting so old messages stop piling up.
See How Much Space Messages Uses
Go to Settings > General > iPhone Storage and tap Messages. The screen breaks down storage by Photos, Videos, GIFs and Stickers, and Other attachments, and it may show a Review Large Attachments recommendation at the top.
If you use Messages in iCloud, your conversations and attachments sync across your Apple devices. Anything you delete on the iPhone is also deleted on your iPad and Mac, so check before you remove something you only have in Messages.
Delete the Largest Attachments First
Large videos are usually the main cause, so start there.
- Go to Settings > General > iPhone Storage > Messages.
- Tap Review Large Attachments, or open Photos, Videos or Other under Documents.
- Tap Edit, select the files you no longer need and tap the trash icon.
- Repeat for the other categories, starting with Videos.
If Review Large Attachments does not appear, the category lists under the same screen still let you sort and delete files. Removing attachments here does not delete the text of your conversations. Deleted messages and attachments stay in Messages' Recently Deleted for up to 30 days, and the space may not be freed until they leave it; you can empty Recently Deleted sooner, but that cannot be undone.
Remove Media From a Single Conversation
For a group chat full of videos, it can be faster to work inside the conversation. Open the chat, tap the contact or group name at the top, then scroll to Photos, Links or Documents. Tap See All, then Select, choose the items to remove and tap Delete.
Save anything you want to keep first: tap and hold a photo or video in the chat and choose Save, so it goes to your Photos library before you delete it from Messages.
Set Messages to Delete Old Conversations Automatically
By default, iPhone keeps messages forever. The Keep Messages setting can remove conversations and their attachments automatically after 30 days or 1 year. On recent iOS versions it is in Settings > Apps > Messages > Keep Messages; on older versions, Settings > Messages > Keep Messages.
Be careful with this one: when you change it, existing messages older than the period you choose are deleted, along with their attachments. Save important photos and videos before you turn it on.
Do Not Forget the Photos Library
Media you saved from chats is now in the Photos library and no longer counts as Messages storage. Saved memes, screenshots of conversations and forwarded videos often pile up there too.
Photos Cleaner - Cleanup Phone finds images saved from messaging apps, duplicates, screenshots and large videos in your Photos library, and lets you review every group before deleting. It cannot delete attachments that exist only inside Messages; use the steps above for those. Deleted photos go to Recently Deleted in Photos, where you can still recover them for up to 30 days.
Delete Large Message Attachments on iPhone
- 1
Open Messages storage
Go to Settings > General > iPhone Storage > Messages.
- 2
Review large attachments
Tap Review Large Attachments or open Videos and Photos.
- 3
Delete what you do not need
Tap Edit, select files and tap the trash icon. Text messages stay.
- 4
Limit future buildup
Optionally set Keep Messages to 1 Year or 30 Days after saving important media.
Clean Up Photos Saved From Chats
Photos Cleaner - Cleanup Phone finds images saved from messaging apps, screenshots, duplicates and large videos in your Photos library, and removes nothing until you approve it.
Frequently asked questions
How do I delete attachments without deleting the messages?▼
Go to Settings > General > iPhone Storage > Messages, open Review Large Attachments or a category like Videos, and delete files there. The text of your conversations stays.
Why is Messages taking up so much storage?▼
Messages keeps every photo, video, voice message and file sent in your conversations for as long as you keep them, which is forever by default.
What happens if I set Keep Messages to 30 days?▼
Messages and attachments older than 30 days are deleted automatically, including existing ones when you change the setting. Save anything important first.
Will deleting attachments on iPhone remove them from my Mac?▼
If you use Messages in iCloud, yes. Deletions sync across devices signed in with the same Apple Account.
Where do photos I saved from Messages go?▼
They go to your Photos library, where they count as Photos storage. Review them separately if you want to free that space.
Sources
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