{"id":13272,"date":"2026-06-16T15:16:10","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T15:16:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/advisorator.com\/members\/?p=13272"},"modified":"2026-06-16T15:28:47","modified_gmt":"2026-06-16T15:28:47","slug":"get-some-google-storage-back","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/advisorator.com\/members\/2026\/06\/16\/get-some-google-storage-back\/","title":{"rendered":"Get some Google storage back"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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How I freed up Google storage space<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Plus: Apple’s next updates, Google’s speech-to-text app, and searching without AI.<\/h3>\n\n\n
Jared Newman<\/span><\/span>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>June 16, 2026<\/span><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n
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Hey there! I’m Jared Newman, a longtime tech journalist, and you’re reading the free edition of Advisorator, my weekly tech advice newsletter.<\/em> Did someone share this newsletter with you? Sign up<\/a> to get it every Tuesday.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

After writing about freeing up your phone’s storage space<\/a> last week, and about reclaiming Mac or PC storage<\/a> the week before, I’ve got one more entry in the series.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This time, it’s a guide to getting your Google storage back<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Remember when Google said you’d never have to file or delete a message in Gmail<\/a> because of how much free storage you get? Or when it promised that you could save “a lifetime of memories … for free<\/a>” in Google Photos? Times change, Google breaks promises, and now you have to periodically figure out what’s really worth saving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My guide walks through the most efficient ways to clear out clutter in Gmail, Google Photos, and Google Drive, so you can stave off whatever paid tier Google is pushing you toward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Get your Google storage back \u2192<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

(And for the iCloud users among us, here’s a column from the archives on what to do when your iCloud storage runs low<\/a>.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This guide is exclusively for Advisorator members. Sign up for $5 per month<\/a> or $50 per year<\/a> to get more in-depth advice each week, including guides and feature stories not included in the free edition. Learn more here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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News in brief<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Spotify closes the gift card loophole:<\/strong> Sadly, Best Buy has stopped selling its $99 one-year Spotify Individual gift cards. I’d been recommending these cards as a way to save $57 annually over Spotify’s regular $13 per month price, but it seems that Spotify has caught on. (Thanks to Danita B.<\/strong> for pointing this out.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the bright side, I’ve noticed that Spotify is getting more aggressive with comeback deals on my lapsed accounts. (It keeps offering me two months for $7, for instance.) It also has a hidden “Basic” tier without audiobooks<\/a> that becomes available when you attempt to cancel. These are part of the many ways you can save money on streaming music<\/a>, even if one of the best loopholes is now closed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More notable news and reads:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n