iCloud is Apple’s cloud storage service that allows you to store your photos, documents, and other data and access it from all your Apple devices. iCloud provides 5GB of free storage space to all users, with the option to purchase additional storage. So anything you store in iCloud can be accessed from your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac, Apple TV, and on iCloud.com.
What types of data can I store in iCloud?
Here are some of the main types of data you can store and access from iCloud:
Photos and videos
Using the iCloud Photos feature, you can store all your photos and videos in iCloud and access them from any device. This includes photos taken on your iPhone, imported from your computer, or saved from an email or text message. iCloud Photos automatically uploads new photos and videos from your devices and keeps everything up to date.
Documents
You can store documents such as PDFs, images, spreadsheets, presentations, and text files in iCloud Drive. Documents in iCloud Drive stay up to date across all your devices, so you’ll always have the latest version of every file at your fingertips, no matter which device you’re using.
Contacts, calendars, and reminders
Keep your contacts, calendar events, reminders in sync across your devices automatically using iCloud. Any changes you make on one device will update everywhere, so you always have the same up-to-date information across all your devices.
Safari bookmarks and reading list
The bookmarks and reading list you save in the Safari web browser on your Mac are synced to your iPhone, iPad and iPod touch through iCloud, allowing seamless access to favorite websites and saved articles across devices.
Notes
Notes saved through the Notes app are synced via iCloud, allowing you to jot down thoughts, make lists, save links or articles, add photos and access everything on any device logged into your iCloud account.
App data
Many apps use iCloud to sync data across your devices. Things like your game progress, settings, and documents can be stored in iCloud and updated everywhere so you can pick up where you left off.
Backups
You can use iCloud to automatically back up your iOS device each day when it’s charging, connected to Wi-Fi, and has iCloud Backup turned on. This includes information like your photos and videos, documents, contacts, calendars, reminders, and more.
Keychain passwords
The passwords you save in iCloud Keychain are kept up to date across all devices so you don’t have to remember them. Security codes and credit card information can also be stored to autofill on your devices.
How do I access my iCloud data on iOS devices?
There are a couple ways to access your iCloud content on an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch:
Via Apps
Many of Apple’s built-in apps are connected to iCloud, allowing you to access data right within the app. For example open the Photos app to view all your iCloud photos and videos, or open Contacts to see your updated contact list from iCloud.
iCloud Drive App
The iCloud Drive app allows you to browse all your documents stored in iCloud Drive. You can view files, open them in compatible apps, organize files into folders, and share or delete files.
Files App Integration
The Files app provides access to the files stored in iCloud Drive alongside files stored locally on your device and in other cloud services like Dropbox. So you can manage all your files in one place.
How do I access my iCloud data on a Mac?
On a Mac, you have a few options for accessing and managing your iCloud content:
System Preferences
You can manage your iCloud settings and account details in System Preferences under your Apple ID account information. Enable or disable specific iCloud features here.
iCloud Drive
iCloud Drive gets a dedicated folder in Finder allowing you to access all your synced documents. You can organize files, view specific file types, manage storage, and work with your iCloud Drive files alongside local files.
iCloud Apps
Many Apple apps like Photos, Contacts, Calendar, Reminders have iCloud integration built-in. Open the apps to view and manage their synced iCloud data. Non-Apple apps may also have iCloud syncing options in Preferences.
iCloud.com
Go to iCloud.com in any web browser (even on a PC) and login with your Apple ID. Here you can access your photos, files, notes, reminders, calendars and more.
How do I manage my iCloud storage?
Here are some tips for managing your iCloud storage:
Check Usage
Go to Settings > [Your Name] > iCloud to see your current iCloud storage usage. This will show how much space you have available.
Upgrade iCloud Storage
If you need more space, you can upgrade your iCloud storage plan for a monthly fee. Pricing includes:
– 50GB for $0.99 per month
– 200GB for $2.99 per month
– 2TB for $9.99 per month
Optimize iCloud Photos
On your iPhone or iPad, enable Optimize iPhone/iPad Storage in Settings > Your Name > iCloud > Photos. This will keep full resolution photos and videos in iCloud while smaller versions are stored on your device, saving space.
Delete Apps’ iCloud Data
Many apps store app data like documents or temporary files in iCloud. Deleting this data in Settings > [Your Name] > iCloud > Manage Storage can free up space.
Use iTunes to Manage
Connect your iPhone/iPad to your computer and use iTunes to manage your iCloud backups and delete existing backups you no longer need to make space.
Delete Unneeded Files
Manually browse your iCloud Drive and Photos and look for large files or unnecessary duplicates you can delete to free up space.
How do I access files from both iCloud and other sources?
If you use other cloud storage platforms in addition to iCloud, there are ways to access files stored in different places from one place:
Files App (iOS)
The Files app on iPhone and iPad lets you see files stored locally, in iCloud Drive, and in third-party services like Dropbox and Google Drive all in one view.
Finder (macOS)
On a Mac, you can connect services like Dropbox or Google Drive directly to Finder. Then the files from these services appear alongside your iCloud Drive allowing unified access.
Cloud storage apps
Many cloud storage apps like Dropbox and Google Drive have iOS apps with ‘Open In’ features. This allows you to open an iCloud Drive file into these apps to copy or move files between services.
Third-party file manager apps
Apps like Documents by Readdle bring all your cloud storage services together into a single app. You can view, manage, copy, move, and share files between services like iCloud Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, Google Drive, and more in one place.
Web access
You can access files saved in iCloud Drive and other cloud platforms through each service’s website. Open iCloud.com for iCloud files and the respective websites for other services.
How do I make room for more iCloud storage?
If you’re running out of iCloud storage space, here are some tips to free up room:
Delete old backups
On your iPhone/iPad, go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Manage Storage > Backups and delete old device backups you no longer need. You can also manage backups in iTunes.
Disable iCloud Photos
If your photo library is taking up a lot of iCloud space, you can disable iCloud Photos and keep your photos/videos stored only locally on device.
Review large attachments
Log in to iCloud.com and check the Mail app for any extremely large email attachments you may have saved but no longer need.
Save messages to your computer
You can save more space by keeping only recent email messages on your iCloud mail and moving older messages to your computer’s email client.
Delete unused apps
Uninstall any apps you no longer use that are taking up iCloud Documents & Data space. Their stored files will be removed.
Move files to external storage
Use iCloud Drive on your Mac to copy files to an external drive or another cloud storage service, then delete from iCloud.
Review photos & videos
Browse your iCloud Photos library online and delete screenshots, duplicates, blurred photos, or videos you no longer need.
Upgrade iCloud storage plan
If all else fails, you can pay a monthly fee to upgrade your iCloud storage to 50GB, 200GB, or 2TB.
How do I recover deleted files from iCloud?
If you accidentally deleted an important file in iCloud, here are some recovery options:
Restore from backup
If the file was deleted recently, restoring your device from an iCloud or iTunes backup should recover the deleted file.
iCloud website
Go to iCloud.com and see if the file still appears in Recently Deleted. You can restore it from there.
App data restore
For app data like documents, check if the app has its own “Restore” option to retrieve deleted files.
Email provider
If you deleted an email attachment, try recovering it through your email provider’s website.
Time Machine recovery
On a Mac, you may be able to recover files from a Time Machine or another backup.
Third-party software
A data recovery app may be able to recover deleted documents from your iCloud backup, but with limited success.
Contact Apple support
If no other options work, Apple may be able to help recover the deleted file if you contact them in time.
Conclusion
iCloud provides convenient and seamless access to your photos, documents, contacts, emails, and other data across all your Apple devices. Learn how to manage your iCloud storage, access files stored in both iCloud and other cloud platforms, and recover deleted files. With some time invested upfront in setup and organization, iCloud can be an invaluable tool that gives you freedom and flexibility to work and access your important data from anywhere.