Google Drive Storage is Full But No Files- How To Fix

Google Drive is one of the best cloud platforms offering the freest storage among iCloud, Dropbox, and other platforms. However, there is a caveat to this feature as that 15 GB of storage includes everything from your mail to other things you might have saved on the drive.

Your Google Drive storage might seem full even though you have no data in it. The reason could be anything, but you can fix the issue. Start with checking the total storage on your Drive since it consists of Google Photos, Gmail, etc. Also, make sure the trash is empty, and there are no leftover folders on the drive that has files left with them.

However, sometimes you might notice that your Google Drive is filled even though you haven’t uploaded anything. Don’t worry; this is a common occurrence, and there are several solutions to deal with this. This article details various ways you can fix this issue. Keep reading to find out more. 

Google Drive Storage is Full But No Files- How To Fix

If you have been facing the issue for quite some time now, you can try this fix and check if it works. Here are some of the possible reasons and their solutions.

1. Check the Total Available Storage

As mentioned above, the storage provided in your Google Drive includes everything else, including your emails, photos, and other files that you might have backed up previously.

This is one of the most common reasons: people are unaware that additional items and files have already filled up the 15 GB of storage space.

Head to this website to check the available storage space on your Drive. Here you’ll see how much storage different parts are taking. If you want to free up space for your Drive, you can choose to delete attachments from the emails or remove unnecessary photos and videos from the Google Photos application. 

2. Check the Storage Taken by Google Drive Files 

The process is very simple if you want to find the most extensive files in your Google Drive. Refer to the details given below to do that. 

• Head over to Google Chrome and open a new tab. 
• Type drive.google.com and open Google Drive
• Now, click on the Storage tab on the side menu.

• The space will organize the files they take up on the Drive. 
• You can click the arrow beside the Storage Used to sign on the right side to arrange the items in an ascending or descending order.

This is it. That is all you are expected to do, and you can get the list of all the large files in an order which will also keep your files organized.

Moreover, you can also head over to this link and check for any files that might have been backed up from your computer. If you do not need them any longer, delete them.

However, if those files are currently being synced, then if you delete them from the Drive, they will also be deleted from your laptop. 

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3. Remove Any Left Over Files

Sometimes, when you delete folders from Google Drive, the content within them does not get deleted. You won’t be able to see them directly; you need to type in a specific syntax within the search bar to look for them and then delete them. Refer to the instructions provided below to see how it is done.

• Power on and sign in to your laptop or PC. 
• Open your preferred browser and head over to the Google Drive website. 
• Enter your credentials to log in to the website. 
• Once you’re in, click on the search bar at the top and type in “is: unorganized owner:me” without quotations and enter.

• The files that appear are uncategorized, which is why they do not appear by default. Select these files and delete them or move them to a new folder if you want to keep them. 

4. Ged Rid Of Hidden App Data

There can be a lot of hidden app data if you use your Drive to back up third-party applications, as these files can take up a significant amount of storage depending on how large the backups are. Follow the steps given below to learn how to get rid of it.

• Power on your PC or laptop. 
• Open your preferred browser and head over to the Google Drive website. 
• Enter your details to gain access to the Drive. 
• Now click on the small gear icon at the top right of the window and choose Settings.
• Click on Manage apps from the new window that pops up. 
• Here select any application that you want and click on Options.

• Select Delete hidden app data if you do not need the data within the selected application. 

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5. Empty Trash

As you must know, when you delete files on Google Drive, they’re moved to the trash bin, where they are kept for thirty days before being deleted completely. An overfilled bin can also be the cause of this issue. Refer to the steps given below to learn more.

• Power on your laptop or PC and launch your preferred browser. 
• Head over to the Google Drive website and log in to it.
• From the menu on the left-hand side, click on Bin. 
• Now click on Bin below the search bar and select Empty bin from the dropdown list. 

6. Cross Check With Other Devices

A good way to ensure that the storage status has been updated is to check it on another device. If you did it on a laptop, check it on your phone and vice versa. Furthermore, you can also purchase additional storage if you decide to keep all the files that you have. 

Conclusion

That’s it for this article, folks; now you know why your Google Drive might appear full despite not having any files. You should first check for the available storage in your Google account if you encounter this issue, as it is the most common and overlooked reason for it.

Additionally, do remember to clean the trash periodically, even though it automatically gets deleted after thirty days; emptying the trash bin might be helpful if you need some extra storage.

You may like the following Google Drive tutorials:

• How to Unshare a Folder in Google Drive
• How to Backup WhatsApp to Google Drive
• Can you hide files on Google Drive?
• How to Transfer OneDrive Files to Google Drive
• Stop Files Uploading From Google Drive