Windows 11 Storage Settings: Storage Sense and Cleanup Guide

A nearly full drive makes Windows 11 slow, blocks updates and leaves no room for new photos. The Windows 11 storage settings page is the place to see what is filling the drive and to clear it safely, without third-party “cleaner” apps. This guide explains the Storage page, how to set up Storage Sense so it tidies up automatically, how to use Cleanup recommendations, when the classic Disk Cleanup tool is still useful, and which files you should think twice about deleting.

The steps apply to Windows 11 version 24H2, 25H2 and 26H2.

Open the Storage page

Go to Start > Settings > System > Storage. At the top you see the system drive (usually C:) with used and free space. Below it, Windows lists the largest categories, such as Installed apps, Temporary files, Documents and Other. Select Show more categories for the full breakdown.

Selecting a category opens more detail. Installed apps lists apps by size so you can remove large ones you no longer use; see uninstall apps in Windows 11. Temporary files lets you tick types of temporary data to delete. Other often contains folders that Windows could not categorise, such as game libraries or virtual machine files.

Storage Sense: automatic cleanup

Storage Sense is Windows’ built-in housekeeper. Microsoft’s page explains its default behaviour:

• It works on the system drive only.
• With default settings, it runs when disk space is low and clears unnecessary temporary files.
• Recycle Bin contents are deleted after a while by default.
• Items in Downloads and in OneDrive or other cloud folders are not touched unless you set Storage Sense up to do so.
• It is off by default, but Microsoft says Windows may turn it on in a low-disk situation and notify you.

To configure it:

1. In Settings > System > Storage, turn on Storage Sense, then select it to open its settings.
2. Leave Cleanup of temporary files on.
3. Under Run Storage Sense, choose how often it runs, for example every week or during low free disk space.
4. Set Delete files in my recycle bin if they have been there for over to a period you are comfortable with.
5. Set Delete files in my Downloads folder if they haven’t been opened for more than carefully. Many people keep important files in Downloads by accident; “Never” is the safe choice until you have tidied it.
6. For OneDrive, choose when unused files become online-only. Microsoft notes this does not delete them and files marked Always keep on this device are excluded.

Select Run Storage Sense now to clean up immediately.

Cleanup recommendations: review before deleting

For a one-off clean-up with more control, open Settings > System > Storage > Cleanup recommendations. Microsoft describes four categories:

Category	What it suggests	Watch out for
Temporary files	Temporary data, previous Windows installation files	Removing the previous installation ends the go-back option
Large or unused files	Big files you have not opened for a while	Check each file before deleting
Files synced to the cloud	Local copies of cloud files	They stay in the cloud, but need internet to open
Unused apps	Apps you have not used recently	Some may be needed occasionally

Tick the items you are sure about and select Clean up for each section. Windows shows how much space you will save.

Disk Cleanup for system files

The classic Disk Cleanup tool is still included and is useful for update leftovers:

1. Search for Disk Cleanup in Start and open it.
2. Choose the system drive.
3. Select Clean up system files, choose the drive again and select OK.
4. Tick items such as Windows Update Cleanup and Delivery Optimization Files, then select OK.

Microsoft’s Free up drive space page suggests Clean up system files for deeper removal.

The Windows.old folder

After a feature update or an upgrade from Windows 10, the previous installation is kept in C:\Windows.old so you can go back. It can be very large. Microsoft notes that deleting it means you can no longer roll back to the previous version. Wait until you are sure the new version works well, typically past the 10-day go-back window, then remove it through Temporary files (Previous Windows installation(s)) or Cleanup recommendations. Do not delete it manually in File Explorer.

Other drives and moving files

Storage Sense only manages the system drive. To see other drives, go to Advanced storage settings > Storage used on other drives. To move content, change where new content is saved under Advanced storage settings > Where new content is saved, and move large personal folders to another drive or external storage. Microsoft’s Free up drive space page suggests moving files you no longer need to an external drive or SD card.

How much space to keep free

Microsoft’s guidance on unexpected restarts suggests keeping roughly 10 to 15 percent of the drive free. Feature updates need space to download and install as well; Microsoft’s page on freeing space for updates recommends Storage Sense and Cleanup recommendations first. Running close to full also affects SSD performance; see check SSD health in Windows 11.

What not to do

• Do not delete folders inside C:\Windows, C:\Program Files or C:\ProgramData by hand.
• Avoid registry cleaners and “PC optimiser” tools; Windows does not need them and they can break apps.
• Do not turn off the page file or hibernation file to save space without understanding the trade-off; see enable hibernate in Windows 11 for what hiberfil.sys does.

If the disk is constantly busy rather than full, see Windows 11 disk usage 100%. For opening downloaded archives without leaving duplicates around, see open RAR files in Windows 11, and the Windows 11 settings guide covers the rest of Settings.