How to save space on your iPhone by flushing Dropbox caches

Running low on storage? Find out how to free space on your iPhone or iPad by manually clearing the Dropbox app cache.

If you’re a heavy Dropbox user who’s running out of storage space on your device, clearing the app’s cache should be the first order of business. The mobile app keeps a cache of files for efficiency and emergency purposes, aside from doubling as a staging area for downloading and uploading.

Flushing the cache should help free up some storage space on your iOS device.

Note that doing so is likely to cause files to load for longer; however, none of the offline items will be affected.

Related: 50+ tips to save storage space on your iPhone and iPad

Clear caches in the Dropbox mobile app

  1. Open Dropbox on your iPhone or iPad and make sure you’re signed in.
  2. Tap the Account tab at the bottom.
  3. Tap the settings icon in the upper right corner.
  4. Scroll down to the bottom, then tap the Clear Cache option.
  5. Choose Clear Cache from the popup menu. “If you continue, some files may take longer to load. Your offline files won’t be removed,” reads the prompt.
Clear cache in Dropbox app on iPhone

Know that the size of Dropbox’s cache accumulated on your device depends on how you use the app, how many files are stored offline, and a number of other factors.

Unfortunately, the Dropbox app does not provide the option to set a limit on cache size, meaning it’ll use as much free storage space as iOS’s automatic storage management lets it. iOS does manage app caches, temporary files, and other cruft on your device, deleting items automatically, as needed, to free up space.

However, that feature lacks a user-facing interface that would let you adjust how it worked or set a custom size for the Dropbox cache. This is why you’re advised to always use storage management features in your favorite apps.

On a desktop, the Dropbox cache is a hidden folder named “.dropbox.cache” and stored invisibly in your root Dropbox folder. The desktop helper app automatically clears its cache folder every three days, but you can safely delete it manually.

Do you use Dropbox? If so, have you used the app’s cache-clearing option yet? And speaking of storage, is your iPhone low on storage space, anyway? Chime in with your thoughts in the comment section below.

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