How Much Hard Drive Space Does Windows 10 Use

If your PC is running low on free space, you might non exist able to install important Windows updates, and your PC'due south performance may exist affected. Here are some ways to costless up space then you can keep your PC up to appointment and running smoothly. These suggestions are listed in order, then start with the first ane, see if that helps, and so continue to the next one if it doesn't.

To check the total disk infinite left on your Windows 11 device, select File Explorer from the taskbar, so select This PC on the left. The bachelor space on your bulldoze will appear under Devices and drives.

Note:If y'all follow the steps below and continue to accept trouble updating Windows because of low deejay infinite, resetting or reinstalling Windows might help. For more than info, run into Reinstall Windows.

If y'all used Disk Cleanup to free upward space on your device and so run into a Low Disk Infinite error, information technology's possible that your Temp folder is quickly filling up with application (.appx) files that are used by Microsoft Store. For more info, meet Depression Disk Space error due to a full Temp folder.

Storage Sense tin can automatically free up drive space for yous by getting rid of items that you don't need, like temporary files and items in your Recycle Bin. For more info, encounter Manage bulldoze space with Storage Sense.

If your system doesn't have Storage sense, you can use the Deejay Cleanup tool to delete temporary files and system files from your device.

In the search box on the taskbar, type deejay cleanup, then select information technology from the results.
Select the check box side by side to the type of files you want to delete. (To view a clarification of each type of file, select the name.) Past default, Downloaded Programme Files, Temporary Internet Files, and Thumbnails are selected. Be certain to clear those check boxes if you don't want to delete those files.
To costless up fifty-fifty more space, select Clean up arrangement files, and and so select the type of system files you lot want to delete. Disk Cleanup will take a few moments to calculate the amount of space that can be freed upwardly.

Note:If it's been fewer than 10 days since you upgraded to Windows ten, your previous version of Windows will be listed as a system file you can delete. If yous demand to free up drive space, yous tin delete it, just proceed in mind that y'all'll be deleting your Windows.old binder, which contains files that give you the option to go back to your previous version of Windows. If you delete your previous version of Windows, this tin't be undone. (You won't be able to go back to your previous version of Windows.)
After y'all've selected the types of files you desire to delete, select OK, then select Delete files in the confirmation window to starting time the cleanup.

Important:

There's too an pick in Disk Cleanup to Compress your OS drive. Selecting this option compresses the drive on which Windows is installed, helping you gain extra infinite to install of import updates. This action does not delete the contents of this drive, and you shouldn't experience problems opening and saving files from the compressed drive.
After you install the update, y'all can manually decompress the Bone drive at whatsoever time. To exercise this, select File Explorer from the taskbar, and in the left pane, selectThis PC. Correct-click or tap and hold the OS drive (usually disk C), then select Backdrop on the shortcut menu. Clear the Compress this drive to save deejay space bank check box, and so selectApply >OK.

Windows 11 may point that it needs more infinite to get the latest Windows 11 feature update. Y'all can use an external storage device to assistance you consummate the update.

To acquire more, run into Complimentary up infinite for Windows updates.

Annotation:You may need to use a micro-USB adapter if your device doesn't have a standard USB port.

Personal files such equally videos, music, photos, and documents tin take up a lot of infinite on your device. To see which files are using the near space:

Select File Explorer from the taskbar and find the files you want to move.
NetherThis PCin the card on the left, select a folder to run across what files are saved in it. The Videos, Music, Pictures, and Downloads folders usually comprise the largest files that you've saved to your device.
To see the size of the files in a folder, select View > Details. Right-click in the open infinite and then select Sort by > Size to show the largest files at the peak of the list.
If there are files you lot no longer need on your device, you tin can either delete them or move them to an external storage device like a USB drive or an SD card.

Note:If you lot delete any files, remember to empty the Recycle Bin to completely remove them from your device and free up space.

To move photos, music, videos, or other files that you want to proceed but don't use very often, consider saving them to an external storage device like a USB drive or an SD card. You'll still be able to use them when the drive is continued, but they won't take upwards space on your PC.

Connect an external storage device like a USB drive or SD card to your PC.
Select File Explorer from the taskbar and get to the folder that contains the files you want to move.
Select the files, then select Cut on the ribbon. Navigate to the location of the external storage device you connected, and so select Paste.

Saving new files to some other bulldoze will help prevent low space bug on that bulldoze in the future, so yous won't accept to move your files to some other drive repeatedly. Instead of saving all your new files to the default drive, y'all can save some of them to a different drive that has more complimentary space.

Select First > Settings > Arrangement > Storage > Advanced storage settings > Where new content is saved.
Open Storage settings
For each content type, select a bulldoze from the drop-down menu. If the bulldoze you want to employ isn't listed there, brand certain information technology's connected to your PC.

Y'all tin can save space by turning on OneDrive Files On-Demand, which stores a smaller placeholder file on your difficult drive instead of the full-size file that's stored in your OneDrive account in the deject. You'll be able to get to your OneDrive files from your PC without having to utilize up hard-drive space downloading full-size versions of them all. See Learn almost OneDrive Files On-Demand for more info.

Sometimes a virus or other malware can consume significant difficult-drive space by corrupting your system files. If yous doubtable your PC is infected with malware, use an antivirus program like Windows Defender to run a virus scan and cleanup. If this doesn't fix the problem, you might need to reset your PC.

If you've followed the instructions here but withal need help freeing up space on your device, you can contact Microsoft support to chat with a back up amanuensis. This is also recommended if your attempts to costless upwardly drive space trigger particular error codes that you need help resolving.

The following questions business low deejay infinite and Windows Update specifically. Larn more about Windows Update.

When there isn't enough complimentary infinite available to install an update, a pop-up notification will prompt y'all that additional space is required to install the update.

When yous select Fix issues, y'all'll be informed about how much additional space is needed. You lot'll besides be notified that you can utilize an external storage device so that you don't need to gratis up quite as much infinite on your organization drive. Larn how to free upwardly space to install Windows updates.

Windows needs more space to update message

The total free disk infinite your device requires to complete an update varies. Typically, feature updates crave 6 GB–xi GB or more of complimentary infinite, while quality updates require 2 GB–3 GB or more. Acquire nearly the difference between a feature update and a quality update.

Yous need disk infinite to download the update, download new versions of any optional features and languages that are currently installed, and to apply the update. Additional infinite is temporarily required to support removal of the update (typically for 10 days). This space tin can exist reclaimed after the update is completed. To do this, Select Showtime > Settings > Organization > Storage > Cleanup recommendations.
Open Storage settings

The update is compressed to reduce download size.

Note:For devices with reserved storage, an update volition commencement employ the reserved storage infinite before using other disk space. For more than info, run across How reserved storage works in Windows.

The infinite required to consummate a characteristic update depends on two factors: which update path is followed and the size of optional content and other updates that utilize to your PC when the characteristic update is installed.

Annotation:For devices with reserved storage, an update volition first use the reserved storage space before using other deejay space. For more info, encounter How reserved storage works in Windows.

Windows follows three different feature update paths, depending on the amount of deejay infinite currently available.

1. For PCs with plenty of free disk space

Windows automatically tries to complete more of the update process in the groundwork while y'all utilise your PC. This significantly reduces the time your PC will be offline (or unusable) during the update, although it might temporarily utilize more than deejay space to consummate the update. Larn more about our efforts to reduce offline fourth dimension during updates (English simply at this time).

two. For PCs with limited free space but still plenty to complete the update automatically

Windows will automatically optimize for reducing the corporeality of free disk space required to install the update. This will effect in a longer offline install time.

3. For PCs that don't have plenty infinite to automatically install the update

Windows volition prompt you to free up disk infinite or use external storage to temporarily extend the storage on your PC. If you use an external storage device, Windows won't need as much costless infinite on the organization drive as information technology temporarily uses your external storage.

Beyond each of these update paths, the total amount of gratuitous disk infinite required will vary, depending on the optional content installed and other updates that utilise to your PC. For example:

Optional features. Many optional features available for Windows are pre-installed or acquired on demand by the system, or manually by you. You can meet which ones are installed on your PC by going to Settings > Apps> O ptional features.
Open Optional features settings
These features range in size from less than 1 MB to almost 2 GB for the Windows Mixed Reality portal. You tin reduce the amount of space required to install a feature update on your PC past uninstalling optional features yous aren't using.
Languages installed. Windows is localized into many languages. Although many people just use one linguistic communication at a time, some people switch between two or more languages. You can see which languages are installed on your PC by selecting First > Settings > Time & linguistic communication > Language & region.
Open up Linguistic communication settings
During each update, all language resources and whatever associated typing, text-to-speech, speech-to-text, and handwriting recognition resources must be updated. The content for each language can range from about 175 MB to more than 300 MB. Yous tin can reduce the amount of space required to install a feature update on your PC past uninstalling languages you aren't using.
Driver updates. OEMs and other hardware partners sometimes publish new graphics, networking, sound, and other drivers in conjunction with the new OS update. The size of these drivers can vary significantly, depending on your PC and on which drivers have been updated.
OS quality updates. During a feature update, Windows tries to download and automatically install the latest quality update so that your PC is fully upward to appointment when you showtime using information technology. Shortly subsequently the feature update is released, the quality update for that feature update could be as small as a few hundred MB, simply equally more than quality and security changes are implemented, the quality update tin increment in size to 1 GB or more than. If your PC is short on disk space, you lot tin can download and install the quality update subsequently the feature update is complete.

Finally, Windows Update will temporarily disable hiberfile.sys, pagefile.sys, and other organization files in gild to use the infinite these files typically consume to apply the feature update. Whatsoever files that are disabled to apply the update will be automatically re-enabled when the update is complete. Considering these files vary in size depending on how y'all use your PC and the amount of RAM your PC has, even in cases where 2 unlike PCs have the verbal same OS paradigm, the amount of gratuitous disk space required to complete an update may vary.

The combination of update path and features means there's a wide range of free disk space required to consummate an update. Hither are a few examples for PCs updating to Windows 10 version 1803:

	Optimized for reduced offline time	Optimized for minimal disk infinite	Optimized for minimal disk infinite with external storage
Minimal optional features, languages, and updates	xx GB	5.5 GB+	4.5 GB+
Lots of optional features, languages, and updates	xx GB+	13.75 GB+	7 GB+

To check the total deejay infinite left on your Windows 11 device, select File Explorer from the taskbar, and so select This PC on the left. The bachelor space on your drive will announced under Devices and drives.

File Explorer image of available space on the C drive.

It may be all-time to utilise an external storage device in the post-obit cases:

When admission to the net isn't available.
When you lot need to store large files or a large number of files. In these situations, the files generally take longer to upload and information technology might toll more than to store files.

Generally, nosotros recommend that y'all choose a larger capacity device because your local storage and disk infinite needs may change over time. If you know that y'all won't have many photos, videos, or other files and apps to save to your device, the 32 GB device might exist a good choice for yous. A adept example is a device that you simply utilize to run one small app, or that you just utilise for online content that never gets downloaded to the local difficult bulldoze.

When because what storage hardware to use in your device, don't expect simply at the hardware'due south storage capacity. Oftentimes, the speed of the storage is more important than its size. Devices with slow storage hardware, such as those labeled "HDD" are typically slower to use than those using faster storage hardware, such as those labeled "SSD" or "eMMC."

You don't demand to remove everything from your difficult drive to update your device, but you'll need to gratis upwardly plenty space to complete the update.

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If your PC is running low on free space, yous might not be able to install important Windows updates, and your PC's performance may exist affected. Here are some ways to gratuitous upwardly infinite so you lot can keep your PC upward to date and running smoothly. These suggestions are listed in order, so start with the beginning one, run across if that helps, and and then continue to the next one if it doesn't.

To cheque the total disk infinite left on your Windows ten device, select File Explorer from the taskbar, and so select This PC on the left. The bachelor space on your drive will appear under Devices and drives.

Notation:If you follow the steps beneath and continue to have trouble updating Windows because of low disk space, resetting or reinstalling Windows might help. For more info, encounter Reinstall Windows.

If you lot used Deejay Cleanup to free up infinite on your device and then see a Depression Deejay Infinite error, it's possible that your Temp binder is quickly filling upwards with application (.appx) files that are used by Microsoft Store. For more info, see Low Deejay Space error due to a full Temp folder.

Storage Sense can automatically free upward drive infinite for you lot by getting rid of items that yous don't need, like temporary files and items in your Recycle Bin. For more info, meet Manage bulldoze space with Storage Sense.

If your system doesn't take Storage sense, you tin use the Disk Cleanup tool to delete temporary files and system files from your device.

In the search box on the taskbar, blazon disk cleanup, then select it from the results.
Select the check box next to the type of files you want to delete. (To view a clarification of each blazon of file, select the name.) Past default, Downloaded Program Files, Temporary Cyberspace Files, and Thumbnails are selected. Be sure to clear those check boxes if you don't want to delete those files.
To free upward fifty-fifty more infinite, select Make clean up system files, and then select the type of system files yous want to delete. Disk Cleanup will take a few moments to calculate the corporeality of space that tin exist freed up.

Note:If it's been fewer than 10 days since yous upgraded to Windows x, your previous version of Windows will be listed as a organisation file you lot tin delete. If you need to complimentary up drive space, you can delete information technology, but proceed in mind that you'll exist deleting your Windows.former folder, which contains files that give y'all the option to go back to your previous version of Windows. If you lot delete your previous version of Windows, this tin can't exist undone. (You won't be able to go back to your previous version of Windows.)
After y'all've selected the types of files you want to delete, select OK, and then select Delete files in the confirmation window to outset the cleanup.

Of import:

There's also an choice in Disk Cleanup to Compress your OS bulldoze. Selecting this option compresses the bulldoze on which Windows is installed, helping you gain extra infinite to install important updates. This action does not delete the contents of this bulldoze, and you shouldn't experience issues opening and saving files from the compressed drive.
Later you install the update, yous can manually decompress the Os bulldoze at any fourth dimension. To practise this, select File Explorer from the taskbar, and in the left pane, selectThis PC. Right-click or tap and hold the Os drive (usually disk C), and then select Properties on the shortcut menu. Clear the Compress this drive to save disk space bank check box, and so selectApply >OK.

Windows ten may point that it needs more space to get the latest Windows 10 feature update. You tin can use an external storage device to assistance you complete the update.

To larn more, see Gratis upwardly space for Windows updates.

Note:You may need to utilise a micro-USB adapter if your device doesn't have a standard USB port.

Personal files such as videos, music, photos, and documents tin take upwardly a lot of infinite on your device. To see which files are using the most infinite:

Select File Explorer from the taskbar and notice the files you want to move.
NetherThis PCin the bill of fare on the left, select a folder to run across what files are saved in it. The Videos, Music, Pictures, and Downloads folders usually contain the largest files that you lot've saved to your device.
To encounter the size of the files in a folder, select View > Details. Right-click in the open space and then select Sort by > Size to show the largest files at the top of the list.
If there are files you no longer demand on your device, you can either delete them or move them to an external storage device like a USB drive or an SD card.

Note:If yous delete whatever files, think to empty the Recycle Bin to completely remove them from your device and free up space.

To motion photos, music, videos, or other files that you desire to keep simply don't utilize very often, consider saving them to an external storage device like a USB bulldoze or an SD card. Yous'll still be able to use them when the drive is connected, but they won't take upward space on your PC.

Connect an external storage device like a USB drive or SD card to your PC.
Select File Explorer from the taskbar and go to the folder that contains the files you want to move.
Select the files, select the Home tab, and so select Move to > Choose location.
Select the external storage device you connected in the location list, and then select Move.

Saving new files to another drive will help forbid low space issues on that drive in the future, so yous won't have to move your files to another drive repeatedly. Instead of saving all your new files to the default drive, you tin can salve some of them to a unlike drive that has more complimentary space.

Select Start > Settings > Organisation > Storage .
Open Storage settings
Under More storage settings, select Modify where new content is saved.
For each content type, select a drive from the drop-downwardly menu. If the drive you want to utilise isn't listed there, make sure it's continued to your PC.

Notation:OneDrive Files On-Demand requires Windows 10 version 1709 or subsequently and OneDrive client version 17.iii.7064.1005 or afterward. To see which version of Windows you lot're running, select Start > Settings > System > Almost . To see which version of the OneDrive customer you take installed, see Which version of OneDrive am I using?
Open About settings

You tin save space by turning on OneDrive Files On-Demand, which stores a smaller placeholder file on your hard bulldoze instead of the total-size file that's stored in your OneDrive account in the cloud. You'll be able to get to your OneDrive files from your PC without having to use up hard-drive space downloading full-size versions of them all. Encounter Learn about OneDrive Files On-Demand for more info.

Sometimes a virus or other malware tin consume significant hard-drive space by corrupting your organisation files. If you lot suspect your PC is infected with malware, use an antivirus program like Windows Defender to run a virus scan and cleanup. If this doesn't ready the trouble, y'all might demand to reset your PC.

If you've followed the instructions hither but still need assist freeing upward infinite on your device, yous can contact Microsoft back up to chat with a support amanuensis. This is besides recommended if your attempts to free up drive space trigger particular mistake codes that you need assistance resolving.

The post-obit questions concern low deejay space and Windows Update specifically. Learn more about Windows Update.

When at that place isn't plenty gratuitous space available to install an update, a pop-upwards notification will prompt you lot that additional space is required to install the update.

When you select Fix issues, y'all'll be informed about how much additional infinite is needed. Y'all'll also be notified that you can utilise an external storage device so that you don't need to complimentary up quite as much space on your system drive. Learn how to gratuitous up space to install Windows updates.

Windows needs more space to update message

The total complimentary disk space your device requires to complete an update varies. Typically, feature updates require vi GB–11 GB or more of free space, while quality updates require 2 GB–three GB or more. Larn about the difference between a feature update and a quality update.

Y'all need disk infinite to download the update, download new versions of whatsoever optional features and languages that are currently installed, and to apply the update. Additional space is temporarily required to back up removal of the update (typically for 10 days). This infinite can exist reclaimed later the update is completed. To do this, Select Starting time > Settings > System > Storage > Gratuitous up space now.
Open Storage settings

The update is compressed to reduce download size.

Notation:For devices with reserved storage, an update will first use the reserved storage infinite earlier using other disk space. For more info, see How reserved storage works in Windows.

The space required to complete a feature update depends on two factors: which update path is followed and the size of optional content and other updates that utilise to your PC when the feature update is installed.

Note:For devices with reserved storage, an update will showtime use the reserved storage space before using other disk space. For more than info, see How reserved storage works in Windows.

Windows follows three different characteristic update paths, depending on the amount of disk space currently available.

1. For PCs with enough of complimentary deejay space

Windows automatically tries to consummate more than of the update process in the background while you employ your PC. This significantly reduces the time your PC will be offline (or unusable) during the update, although it might temporarily use more deejay space to consummate the update. Larn more than well-nigh our efforts to reduce offline time during updates (English only at this time).

2. For PCs with limited costless space simply however plenty to consummate the update automatically

Windows will automatically optimize for reducing the amount of gratuitous disk space required to install the update. This will issue in a longer offline install time.

3. For PCs that don't have enough infinite to automatically install the update

Windows will prompt y'all to free upwardly disk space or use external storage to temporarily extend the storage on your PC. If y'all employ an external storage device, Windows won't need equally much complimentary space on the system bulldoze every bit it temporarily uses your external storage.

Across each of these update paths, the full corporeality of complimentary disk space required volition vary, depending on the optional content installed and other updates that apply to your PC. For case:

Optional features. Many optional features available for Windows are pre-installed or acquired on demand past the system, or manually past y'all. You can meet which ones are installed on your PC by going to Settings > Apps > Apps & features > Manage optional features.
Open up Optional features settings
These features range in size from less than 1 MB to almost 2 GB for the Windows Mixed Reality portal. You can reduce the corporeality of space required to install a feature update on your PC by uninstalling optional features you lot aren't using.
Languages installed. Windows is localized into many languages. Although many people only use one language at a fourth dimension, some people switch between two or more languages. You tin see which languages are installed on your PC by selecting First > Settings > Time & Language > Language .
Open up Language settings
During each update, all language resource and any associated typing, text-to-speech, speech communication-to-text, and handwriting recognition resources must be updated. The content for each language can range from about 175 MB to more than 300 MB. Yous can reduce the amount of space required to install a feature update on your PC past uninstalling languages you aren't using.
Driver updates. OEMs and other hardware partners sometimes publish new graphics, networking, sound, and other drivers in conjunction with the new OS update. The size of these drivers tin vary significantly, depending on your PC and on which drivers accept been updated.
Os quality updates. During a feature update, Windows tries to download and automatically install the latest quality update and so that your PC is fully upward to date when you lot start using it. Soon later the feature update is released, the quality update for that feature update could be as modest as a few hundred MB, simply as more quality and security changes are implemented, the quality update can increase in size to 1 GB or more. If your PC is short on disk space, y'all can download and install the quality update after the feature update is complete.

Finally, Windows Update will temporarily disable hiberfile.sys, pagefile.sys, and other system files in order to use the infinite these files typically consume to apply the characteristic update. Any files that are disabled to apply the update will be automatically re-enabled when the update is complete. Considering these files vary in size depending on how you employ your PC and the corporeality of RAM your PC has, fifty-fifty in cases where 2 unlike PCs have the verbal aforementioned OS image, the corporeality of free disk infinite required to complete an update may vary.

The combination of update path and features ways there's a broad range of costless disk space required to complete an update. Hither are a few examples for PCs updating to Windows version 1803:

	Optimized for reduced offline time	Optimized for minimal disk infinite	Optimized for minimal disk space with external storage
Minimal optional features, languages, and updates	twenty GB	v.v GB+	4.5 GB+
Lots of optional features, languages, and updates	20 GB+	13.75 GB+	7 GB+

To check the total disk space left on your Windows ten device, select File Explorer from the taskbar, and so select This PC on the left. The available infinite on your drive will announced nether Devices and drives.

File Explorer image of available space on the C drive.

Information technology may be best to utilize an external storage device in the post-obit cases:

When access to the internet isn't available.
When yous need to store large files or a large number of files. In these situations, the files generally take longer to upload and it might toll more to shop files.

Windows Update automatically offers updates to eligible devices. To double check that your device is up to date, select Get-go > Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update , and then select Check for updates.
Check for updates

Learn more almost Windows Update.

More often than not, we recommend that y'all choose a larger capacity device because your local storage and deejay infinite needs may modify over time. If you know that yous won't have many photos, videos, or other files and apps to relieve to your device, the 32 GB device might be a expert selection for you. A practiced instance is a device that you simply use to run i small app, or that you lot but use for online content that never gets downloaded to the local difficult drive.

When because what storage hardware to use in your device, don't look only at the hardware's storage capacity. Often, the speed of the storage is more important than its size. Devices with slow storage hardware, such as those labeled "HDD" are typically slower to apply than those using faster storage hardware, such as those labeled "SSD" or "eMMC."

You lot don't need to remove everything from your hard drive to update your device, but you'll need to free up enough space to consummate the update.