Thread by @Logical_Girll

MY FRIEND IS STILL PAYING FOR GMAIL STORAGE.

I told him to do this before.
He went from 14.9/15 GB to 6 GB in a single afternoon.

Hope this helps you ↓

1. Find the real space hogs in Gmail

First, check Gmail’s storage breakdown:

Go to drive.google.com/settings/stora…

Check what is using space in Gmail, Drive, and Photos

Click on “Gmail” to see the main culprits

Then, in the Gmail search bar, type:

has:attachment larger:10M (finds emails larger than 10 MB)

Sort by size, select several, and delete what you don’t need

Try larger:5M or larger:3M for a more aggressive cleanup

Just deleting large attachments can instantly free up gigabytes of space.

2. Delete entire categories in bulk

Gmail automatically sorts emails — use this to clean up quickly:

Search: category:promotions (all promotional emails)

Search: category:social (Facebook, LinkedIn, etc. notifications)

Search: category:updates (receipts, confirmations)

Check the box → “Select all conversations that match this search”

Delete everything at once

These categories build up over years, and most of them can be safely deleted.

3. Target recurring spam senders

A single newsletter or store can take up gigabytes over time:

Search: from:[e-mail]

Or: from:notifications@

Select all → delete

While you’re there, click “Unsubscribe” from 5–10 senders you always ignore

This cleans up the past and prevents future clutter.

4. Clean up by age

Older emails are often safe to delete:

Search: older_than:3y (everything older than 3 years)

Combine with size: older_than:2y larger:5M

Quickly review the first page

If it’s outdated, select all and delete

Start conservatively (5+ years) if you’re unsure, then move forward gradually.

5. Empty the Trash and Spam folders

Deleted emails still count toward storage for 30 days:

Go to the Trash folder

Click “Empty Trash now”

Go to the Spam folder

Click “Delete all spam messages now”

This frees up space immediately, without waiting 30 days.

6. Clean up the “Sent” folder too

Sent emails with attachments also take up space:

Click Sent in the sidebar

Search: has:attachment larger:5M

Delete old client files, outdated presentations, or large videos that were only sent once

Many people forget this folder, and it can contain several gigabytes.

7. Check Google Drive and Photos too

Gmail shares the same 15 GB of storage with Drive and Photos — not just email:

Go to drive.google.com/settings/stora…

Sort Drive files by “Storage used”

Delete old backups, large videos, and forgotten files

In Google Photos, remove screenshots, duplicates, and blurry pictures

Often, the real problem is Drive or Photos — not Gmail.

8. Set up prevention for the future

Avoid clutter before it starts:

Create filters that automatically delete or archive certain senders

Example filter: has:attachment larger:5M category:promotions → Skip Inbox + delete after 30 days

Unsubscribe from 10 newsletters you never read

Maintenance is better than a one-time cleanup.

The result:

These steps can free up 5–20+ GB in less than an hour.

Your Gmail can breathe again — without needing to pay for extra storage.