WhatsApp backups are stored on Google Drive, and if they become too large, they quickly consume your limited cloud storage. Since WhatsApp is set to back up nearly everything you receive, you likely have a lot of unnecessary data inflating your file size. Follow these simple steps to significantly reduce the size of your backup.
Exclude Videos and Clear Large Files
The quickest way to reduce your backup size is to exclude videos. Videos are often the largest files and are frequently shared just for fun. You can easily stop backing them up by going to WhatsApp Settings → Chats → Chat backup, and then disabling the Include videos option. The change will take effect during your next scheduled backup.
Next, you can use WhatsApp’s built-in Storage Manager to clean out other bulky files like photos, audio, and PDFs. Navigate to Settings → Storage and data → Manage storage. Here, WhatsApp groups files larger than 5MB and allows you to view and delete data on a per-chat basis, focusing your cleanup where it’s needed most. Deleting this data will both reduce the backup file size and free up storage on your phone.
Manage Data Location and Backup Account
For large, important files you want to keep, it’s best to manually move them out of WhatsApp’s folder so they aren’t included in the backup. Using a file manager app, go to Internal storage → Android → media → com.whatsapp → WhatsApp → Media, find the files, and move them to a different, safe location like another cloud service or an SD card.
If your primary Google Drive is simply too full, you can use a dedicated Google Account just for your WhatsApp backup. In WhatsApp Settings → Chats → Chat backup, you can select a secondary Google account or create a new one with plenty of free space, saving your main Drive account for other services.
Finally, to maintain a small backup size over time, consider using a dedicated WhatsApp cleaner app like Cleaner for WhatsApp. These tools help automate the process of finding, selecting, and deleting large, unnecessary files, keeping your backup streamlined.
