If you’re an Android user, you may want to keep an eye on your Google storage space. As of July 7, all of the data included in your backups count toward your cap (whether you have 15GB for free or pay for more via Google One). However, Google is also giving users more granular control over what’s backed up and what isn’t, so you can prevent redundant or unnecessary data from pushing you over.
Google’s updated storage policies
As Android Police describes, Android backups include app data, call history, contacts, device settings, and SMS and MMS data, among other things. Previously, only images and videos uploaded to Google Photos and MMS counted toward your Google storage quota, but all of the data in your Android backup settings will now apply.
This isn’t the only recent update to Google’s storage. In May, Google began testing a new policy that caps some new Gmail users at just 5GB of free cloud storage—compared to the 15GB that has been available since 2013—unless you link a phone number to your Google account. While the initial test appeared to affect sign-ups mostly in African countries, it is possible that users in the future may be required to be on paid tiers to access more storage. Google’s own support page states that each Google account includes “up to 15 GB of storage” in describing what counts toward your quota.
Manage your Android backups to clear up storage space
According to Google, Android backups should only increase by 40MB under the new settings, so most users likely won’t have to worry much about this pushing them over the limit if they weren’t already close. But if you need to manage space, Google is also allowing users to exclude SMS/MMS messages, call history, device settings, and/or app data from backups.
On your Pixel, you’ll find these toggles under Settings > Accounts and backup > Google backup > Other device data. Simply toggle off anything you don’t want or need backed up. Alternatively, you can search “backup” in your device settings.
There are a few other considerations when it comes to Google storage limits. In February, Google announced that it would start copying and uploading local files from your Android Downloads folder to Google Drive and is now rolling out a Documents backup feature covering file types like .DOC, .PPT, .XLS, and .PDF. If you don’t want this to eat up space, you can change your preferences in your device settings.
Finally, if you’re close to running out of storage, Google has a support page for cleaning up space and troubleshooting storage issues. I also wrote a guide to creating a comprehensive backup plan that doesn’t rely solely on a single storage method.
