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How to free up space in your Dropbox account
I've unshared many folders, permanently deleted lots of files but dropbox still reports that it is full. How can I free up space? I've already followed dropbox instructions with no results
Permanently deleting files isn't needed to clear space. Simply deleting them is enough. Files in the Deleted Files section do not count against your storage quota.
If Dropbox is saying your account is full, then it's still full. You need to remove enough files to bring your account back below your quota before that message will go away. It could be that you're still a member of a large share that just keeps filling your account as you make more room.
You can verify your storage usage on your Account page. It will show you a breakdown of what's using your storage (regular files, shared files, etc.), which hat may help you identify files that you can remove to free up some more space.
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- Mark
Super User II
If you deleted them from your computer have you given the account time to sync back to a green tick and thus update the online account? - What you mean by Files in the Deleted Files section do not count against your storage quota?
- MarkOnce a file is deleted and you can no longer see it at www.dropbox.com/home Dropbox saves a version of that file for 30 days. Those files no longer count against your quota.
They obviously do, however, if you restore them. I'm having the exact same issue. Ironically, I have been moving files around to free up space. I did not add anything. Now DropBox says that I'm above quota. So, I deleted 15Gb of files from my Dropbox folder on my PC and, at the same time, on the Dropbox home online. It did not help. Dropbox still says the EXACT same amount used. And the **bleep** thing isn't syncing from my PC - because I've used too much space. Agh!
Feel painted into a corner on this one Dropbox.
Same issue. I abandoned dropbox and went with a competitor with better customer support. You should too.
I know I have files and folders in my DropBox but it shows up as empty. How do I clear out folders and files if I can't see them? Is DropBox forcing me to upgrade to see the files to delete them and go below my quota? I don't want to upgrade I just want to delete files and folders.
- Lusil
Dropbox Staff
Hey there JMTrudell13,
You can check if you have any private or shared content taking up space and how much of your storage is available from your Plan tab.
You can also see your deleted files from your deleted files tab and removed shared folders from your Sharing tab.
Finally, please remember that permanently removing already deleted files doesn't free up storage as deleted files and folders don't take up space in your account.
If you see any discrepancy or you have any other questions, please don't hesitate to give me a nudge and I'll make sure to get back to you as soon as possible. Thanks!
I am having this issue, as well! Very frustrating! What is the fix?!?
- Lusil
Hey cmcn2, sorry to hear that you're also having trouble with your storage.
In general, if you're running out of space, have a look at your Plan tab first which will show you what is taking up the majority of your accont's space.
From there, you can follow these instructions if you find that you have shared folders that you want to remove and these steps if you have any unwanted files.
Let me know how it goes or if you have any questions!
Okay, so I see lots of suggestions to look at my plan tab to see what is taking up room. When I look at my plan tab, it shows I have 2.83 of 2.75 GB of shared data taking up space. However, I've deleted every shared folder I have except for one that only has a handful of documents in it. Unfortunately your platform won't show me how much data that folder takes up specifically, but it can't be more than 20 MB. Is it a matter of time so that the system recognizes that I've freed up space by deleting shared folders and files? Or is it actually just impossible to free up space so that I have to purchase a larger data plan?
