Why does TikTok use so much storage? How to clear TikTok cache & free up space

Some TikTok users have been surprised by how much space the short-form video app is taking up on their devices — here’s how to reduce the size of TikTok and how much storage it uses on your phone.

TikTok is the most popular social media platform out there right now, with countless videos uploaded every day by the app’s millions of active users.

With so many trends and challenges to view and participate in, and endless communities to explore, some people can spend hours every day scrolling through their feed.

However, some have been noticing that the app is taking up a huge amount of space on their devices, sometimes gigabytes worth of storage. If you’re looking to make more space on your device, here’s how to reduce the amount of room TikTok is using on your phone.

TikTok / Unsplash: Tingey Injury Law Firm

TikTok is used by millions of people around the world.

How to reduce the size of TikTok app

It’s not clear why exactly TikTok can take up so much room on people’s devices, but there are several possible reasons, and solutions.

Delete your drafts

TikTok

Uninstalling the app will delete all your drafts.

TikTok allows users to save videos as drafts, and some people can rack up hundreds of videos that all take up space on your device. If you want to clear some space, it may be a good idea to go through all of your drafts and delete the ones you don’t want.

If you decided you just want to get rid of all of your drafts at once, deleting the app will also automatically delete all of your drafts.

Clear TikTok cache

TikTok

Clearing your cache could potentially help free up some space.

Another way to reduce the size of the app is to clear your cache. To do so, simply follow these steps:

1. Open TikTok.
2. Go to the ‘Profile’ tab.
3. Tap the three lines in the top right, then ‘Settings and privacy.’
4. Scroll down to ‘Cache and cellular data,’ then click ‘Clear cache.’

Delete and reinstall the app

Some users have found success by deleting and reinstalling the app entirely. As noted above, deleting the app will also delete any of your saved drafts, so make sure you download any you want to keep before doing this.

Many have found that this helps significantly reduce the amount of space TikTok takes up on their device, so it could be a good option if the size of the app is frustrating you.

If you want to learn more about how to use TikTok, you can check out our other guides here:

How to duet on TikTok | How to Stitch on TikTok | How to go live on TikTok | How to find contacts on TikTok | How to use TikTok Stories | Best time to post on TikTok for more views and likes