What is Documents and Data on iPhone? How to Delete it

What is Documents and Data on iPhone? – How to Clear Documents and Data on iphone:

Apple iPhones are popular for their amazing features and data security. Every iPhone comes with internal storage only. They do not support storage expansion by memory card. Therefore, some iPhones with limited storage may have low storage problem. Most of storage is acquired by media files as well as documents and data of some apps.

Shortage of Storage mostly happens with 16 GB and 32 GB iPhones. All iPhones provide smooth and fast user experience with its iOS. You will not face any issue in regular phone usage until the internal storage is almost full. The iPhone functions may become slower due to low storage. To find its solution, you should understand everything about documents and data on iPhone.

What is Documents and Data on iPhone?

Documents and Data is collection of database files and cache of pictures & videos. It also includes your login details, browser history, cookies and temporary files. These documents and data is accumulated by several apps on iPhone. The documents and data increases as much as you use such apps on iPhone for several months.

For Example: When you play a video in your Facebook App on iPhone, it will stream and consume necessary internet data. In addition, it will add the video cache in Documents and Data of Facebook App. So the video cache will take some of your storage space on iPhone.

Why does iPhone Operating System (iOS) store so much documents and data?

You may have the question why iPhone iOS allows apps to store so much documents and data. The answer is simple, it wants to improve your user experience. When you search something in Safari Browser, it saves your searched words. You will see these words as a suggestion when you open the browser to search something. As a result, it will save your time and you will complete the task faster.

What is Documents and Data in iCloud Storage of iPhone?

The iCloud is an online web storage available for all Apple device users. Documents and Data is generally associated with some apps of iPhone. These documents and data take space in internal storage and in iCloud Drive. The files in documents and data are related with apps but they are stored in iCloud Storage. So you will find some apps which have documents and data in phone storage as well as iCloud Storage.

Do Documents and Data include media files on iPhone?

This is an important question for all iPhone users. Because people keep their pictures and videos in their phone storage. So they don’t want to face any data loss while deleting Documents and Data on iPhone. Well, documents and data include cache of photos, videos and online viewed/opened files. They also include your browsing history, search history and login information in apps.

Thus, documents and data of an app does not include media files. But the documents & data of Photos and Camera App may contain your pictures and videos. You should take a backup of your media files to avoid data loss in future.

How to Delete Documents and Data on iPhone

You need to delete the Documents and Data when your iPhone is running out of storage. Another reason for deleting documents and data is that they contain unnecessary cache files. You can boost the iOS System by cleaning up the documents and data on your iPhone. You need to read below instructions before we discuss various methods to delete documents and data on iPhone.

• Check Media Storage Status on your iPhone to know how much space is acquired by pictures, videos, movies and message attachments.
• Take backup of important files, contacts and other information to other device. It will help to avoid any accidental data loss during the process of deleting documents and data.
• Check that Restricted Mode is Off or Disabled on your iPhone. If this mode is Active, it can prevent you from downloading some apps from the iTunes App Store.

Methods to Delete Documents and Data on iPhone

You can delete documents and data on iPhone by various methods. These methods are so simple that any person using iPhone can apply them. You don’t have to be much technical person to learn how to delete documents and data on your iPhone. Here we provide some easy methods as follows:

01. Delete Documents and Data on iPhone from Apps Settings

Some iPhone Apps have built-in cache cleaning feature. So you can clear cookies and cache right from the app settings. This cache contains many documents and data stored by apps in past few months. Such apps include Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Safari Browser and many more. When you remove documents and data with this method, you don’t have any data loss. Let’s check how to delete cache and history from some apps on iPhone.

• Facebook App has “Clean Space” option in settings. You should use this feature to clean the space retained by the app cache.
• YouTube App has various options like “Delete Search History, Delete Watch History.” You can also Pause the Search and Watch History on YouTube App.
• Safari Browser App has options to delete history, clear cookies & cache and remove temp files. It will free up enough space if you clear all of them on a regular basis. You can apply the same cleaning process for Chrome Browser App on your iPhone.

02. Delete Apps to Delete Documents and Data on iPhone

Some Apps have option for cache cleaning in its settings, but what about other apps. Apple company has developed iOS to provide smooth user interface on iPhones. But there is no specific option to delete documents and data. As a user, you cannot delete all apps documents and data at once. Furthermore, you cannot delete only documents and data of any app.

When you come to know that an app has eaten huge space as documents and data, you have only one option. You have to Delete the App i.e. Uninstall the App to Delete its documents and data from your iPhone. This process will free up the storage, but you will lose your saved login details, cache files and some other data. So back up all important data before you remove app to delete documents and data on iPhone.

Steps to Delete Documents and Data on iPhone

In order to explain the simple steps to , we will consider one app as an example. You can apply these steps on iPhone 4S, iPhone 5/5S/5C, iPhone 6delete documents and data of an app on iPhone, 6 Plus, iPhone 7, 7 Plus, iPhone 8, iPhone X, XR, XS and iPhone XS Max. Here we provide the steps and procedure as follows:

01. Unlock your iPhone Screen and go to Settings (phone settings).

02. Select “General” to open General iPhone Settings.

03. Now select “iPhone Storage.”

04. Click on “Manage Storage” option to open apps list with storage info.

05. Select the App which has acquired huge storage. Here we will consider “WhatsApp” as example.

06. Click on WhatsApp to open its details i.e. App Size and Documents & Data.

07. Click on “Delete App” option given in red color.

08. Confirm App Deletion Request to complete the process.

The WhatsApp and all its documents & data will be deleted from your iPhone.

Steps to Reinstall an App on iPhone

After completion of Deleting App with its Documents & Data, you can install it again from App Store.

1. Enable Cellular Data or WiFi on your iPhone.
2. Go to App Store and tap on Search Bar.
3. Type the App Name that you want to search e.g. WhatsApp.
4. Select your desired App (WhatsApp) to view its information.
5. Download and Install the WhatsApp on your iPhone.
6. Open the WhatsApp and Login with your Email/Phone Number and Password.
7. Check Settings>General>Storage and iCloud Usage>Manage Storage>WhatsApp>App Size and Documents & Data.

After reinstalling the app, you should see in storage section of settings. You will be surprised that the App Size is same, but the documents & data has been decreased a lot.

The above steps are useful to Delete Documents and Data of any app on iPhone. You should check each and every app to know its acquired space in your phone storage. Thereafter, delete the apps with large storage and reinstall them from iTunes App Store.

03. Delete Documents and Data from iCloud Storage on iPhone

There are two types of Documents and Data on your iPhone. These documents and data are different based on its storage locations. First one takes up space in your phone storage, while the second one takes up space in iCloud Storage. You should delete documents and data from iCloud to free up some storage in iCloud Drive. You can delete documents and data in iCloud without deleting the app from iPhone.

Steps to Delete Documents and Data in iCloud Storage on iPhone

Here we provide some simple steps to delete documents and data from iCloud on iPhone as under:

01. Open iPhone Settings App and tap on your name or Apple ID, iCloud, iTunes & App Store.

02. Select “Storage & iCloud Usage” OR directly select your User Profile in settings.

03. Now select “iCloud” section and click on “Manage Storage” to open apps list.

04. Tap on the App which has acquired large portion of iCloud Storage e.g. WhatsApp.

06. Click on “Delete Data” option provided in red color.

07. Confirm the request to delete documents and data from iCloud Storage.

08. Repeat above process on every app with large storage in iCloud on your iPhone.

Please note that the above action will delete documents and data of a particular app from iCloud Storage. This data will be removed from all connected devices with same iCloud account. Moreover, the documents and data will be deleted on permanent basis, so you cannot recover the data in future. Therefore it is advisable to check the data in iCloud Drive before you delete them from your iPhone.

What is “Offload App” feature? How to use it

With iOS Operating System, Apple Inc. provides many amazing features. The “Offload App” feature is introduced with iOS 11 on iPhone, iPad, iPod and other devices. If you are using an iPhone with older iOS then you may not find “Offload App” feature in your iPhone settings. You need to update your iPhone iOS and then see the Offload App option in phone settings.

How to Use “Offload App” feature on iPhone

Apple iPhone contains this special feature to remove an app. This “Offload App” feature allows you to remove app and free up your iPhone Storage. When you offload an app from iPhone, it does not delete its data. The app is removed and some storage space is freed on your iPhone. You need to follow the steps given below to offload any app.

01. Go to iPhone Settings.

02. Select “General” section to open General Settings.

03. Navigate to “iPhone Storage” and select it.

04. Select the App that has acquired huge storage on your iPhone.

05. For example: WhatsApp is that app for you.

06. Select “WhatsApp” and find “Offload App” option.

07. Click on “Offload App” and Confirm with Yes/OK option.

08. WhatsApp has been offloaded on your iPhone.

You can apply the above steps to offload any app on your iPhone. Please note that Offloading does not delete entire app data. It keeps the app data for you. When you reinstall the app on your iPhone, it will restore the data on that app.

Is “Offload App” option helpful to manage Documents and Data on iPhone?

When you offload an app, it deletes the app from your iPhone. But it keeps the documents and data. The offloading process empties some space from your iPhone, but it does not delete all data. Therefore, “Offload App” feature is helpful to free up some space and it doesn’t delete documents and data on iPhone. You have to choose “Delete App” option to remove the app and delete all documents and data.

Important Note about Documents and Data on iPhone

There are two types of files that take up space in iPhone i.e. media files and cache files. The media files include your captured pictures and recorded videos. The cache files and history are saved as documents and data by individual apps. These apps include Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, WhatsApp Messenger, YouTube and many others.

If your iPhone Storage is accumulated by your recorded videos, movies and pictures then check its memory status. Because documents and data are cache files and you can’t free up much space by deleting them. You should transfer your media files to computer, laptop or other device. This will also help you free up so much space on your iPhone.

Delete Documents and Data on iPhone without Deleting the App [Not Recommended]

In method 2 above, you have seen the process. First you need to delete the app to delete its documents and data. Thereafter, you need to install the app again from App Store. You may be thinking “Is there any other way to delete documents and data on iPhone without deleting the app?” The answer to your question is YES.

There is a method that allows you to clean cache of apps one by one. But your iPhone has to go through jailbreaking. Here Jailbreaking means disable the restrictions put by Apple on iPhone operating system. Thereafter you need install cache cleaner that will add an option in your iPhone settings.

This may help you in some tasks, but it can create typical problems for you. That’ why it is Not Recommended to perform jailbreaking on your iPhone. We strictly advice the iPhone Users to follow any of above ethical methods to delete documents and data on iPhone.

Important Tips to Prevent Apps Documents and Data to Eat Huge Storage on iPhone

Every iPhone user wants to experience the smooth and fast iOS for long time. The iPhone System gets slowed down when some apps acquire large space as documents and data. Is there any way to prevent iOS apps to eat huge storage on iPhone? The answer is No. There are no specific tips or guideline to prevent this process. But you should Enable “Offload Unused Apps” option to automatically offload such apps. This will keep your iPhone running smooth for longer time.

Final Words:

All the information given above about “What is Documents and Data on iPhone? How to Delete it” is true and fair. For more queries regarding how to delete documents and data on iPhone and iCloud Storage, you should contact Apple Helpline at at 1-800-MY-APPLE (800-692-7753) or visit Apple Support Website at support.apple.com.