5 Quick Ways to Empty Trash on Android Devices

Is your phone’s memory always full, even though you keep deleting files? I had the same problem once, I kept on emptying the trash on my Android device to no avail. My phone slowed down and it was annoying to see my phone lag every time I use it.

Here’s the thing. Optimizing your device is essential for anyone trying to improve the speed of the phone, to do this you’ll need to delete unnecessary files and apps, clearing the cache of apps you don’t use can also help improve performance. Even though there’s no actual “recycle bin” on Android, there are a couple of tips and tricks that you can follow to know how to empty your trash on android, getting rid of all those “trash” files.

I found out that there’s an observable difference in performance when I optimized my phone. I listed down methods that worked for me. See how I did it with my phone below!

Related reads:

• Android 11 to bring a hidden trash bin for your deleted files
• Take Out the Trash! The 10 Best To Do List App for Android
• Google’s new storage policies from June 1, 2021: All you need to know

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There Isn’t a Recycle Bin on Android?

While there is one on PCs, the developers of Android decided not to include it. The main reason for this is the limited storage space that a smartphone has. There isn’t really a need to keep files to delete separately. However, some apps that are synced to your phone’s data – like Google Photos – have their own system for managing recently deleted files.

Why Should You Need to Empty Trash on Android?

The trash folders fill up your device’s memory and make it slower. So emptying the trash must be done regularly. How do you know that your phone is in urgent need of deleting junk files? 

It shows some indicators that are full and stuffed with so many files and it also sometimes lags, is infected, or crashes regularly. 

Cleaning up your device and freeing it from the burden of old files is the first step toward solving any of those problems. In case your phone’s memory is full, emptying the trash will definitely give you a helping hand.

The Benefits of Emptying Trash Regularly: 

1. Emptying your trash will free up your storage and this allows you to store more useful files and paves a way to install new apps too.
2. Emptying your trash will prevent your device from viruses and other infected files and programs.
3. Emptying your trash files will improve the device’s performance.
4. It will benefit your device by preventing it from lagging.
5. Emptying your trash will benefit your device in so many ways and it can also stop it from crashing and getting

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Improve Performance by Emptying Trash on Android

Your Android device holds on to unnecessary files that you can delete to clear up some memory. Here’s how you can free up some space by learning how to empty trash on Android.

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5 Ways to Empty Trash on Android

1. Clearing your cached data
2. Deleting downloaded files
3. Uninstalling unused apps
4. Third-party apps
5. Store all your files on a Micro SD!

1. Clearing Your Cached Data

First, what is cached data? It’s an intermediary data saved by your device to optimize your experience. While it does make your usage faster, it takes up memory on your phone that you can use for other purposes. So, if you need to delete your cached data to free up some space, here’s how to do it.

To empty trash on Android, start by clearing your cached data. To delete all of your cached data, access the “Storage” tab in your settings and press “Cached data.” You’ll be given an option to delete all of your cached data.

You can also delete the cached data of specific apps. If you want to clear cached data from a single app, follow this:

Step 1:

Go to Settings,

Step 2:

Tap Apps,

Step 3:

Select the app

Step 4:

Press the Clear Cache button.

You can repeat this process on apps that use up a lot of data if you need to. (e.g. social media apps, etc)

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2. Deleting Downloaded Files

Majority of us download files and forget about it. Even if you don’t use them, they still take up some of your internal memory. To clear up your storage, you need to delete them.

Just go to your Downloads folder and select the files you don’t need anymore. You’d be surprised by the amount of storage you can clear up.

Step 1: Go to Your Downloads Folder And Select The Files You Don’t Need Anymore. 

Also read: How to Find Downloaded Files on Your Android Device

Step 2: Click ‘Clear’ to Clear The Files. 

You’d be surprised by the amount of storage you can clear up.

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3. Uninstalling Unused Apps

We all have apps on our phones that we don’t use anymore. Ask yourself if you need them? If you need to clear out some memory, uninstall the unnecessary apps that fill-up your storage.

To uninstall unused apps, follow these steps:

Step 1:

Go to Settings 

Step 2:

Tap Apps. 

Step 3:

Select the app you want to remove

Step 4:

Tap the “Uninstall” button

You can repeat this process for all the apps that you don’t need.

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4. Third-Party Apps

There are plenty of apps that you can use to optimize your device, but if you want to know how to empty trash on Android, then I recommend the simplest ones. All you need is an app that can organize and arrange all of your data.

Also, as a countermeasure, I decided to include this app so you can recover any deleted files that you unintentionally delete.

Many apps can help you manage your phone’s storage and access deleted files, but for this article, I’ll recommend the Recycle Bin App. After you install it, you’ll be able to access the connected SD card or the internal memory through the app.

Additionally, you’ll be able to see all the recently deleted files. You can recover the data you’ve deleted, or you can remove their temp files to free up more space.

Check out the Recycle Bin app on the Play Store to empty trash on Android devices.

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5. Store All Your Files on a Micro SD!

If you feel like your smartphone’s internal memory isn’t enough, you can always expand it with an SD card. I recommend that you check out this 128GB Micro SD Card from Samsung.

You can store your apps and app data on your Micro SD, as well as your pictures, documents, and all your other files. Doing this prevents your phone from being cluttered and laggy.

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Suggested reads:

• How to find archived emails in Gmail on Android?
• How to Delete Downloads in an Android TV Box (2 Methods)
• 4 methods to clear downloads on Android (with images)

Frequently Asked Questions

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Declutter Your Phone

It’s normal for your phone’s memory to get cluttered up with time. There is an abundance of files that we don’t use or know about that gets stored on our Android devices. Those files can take up a lot of storage space. By going through all of the methods I’ve listed above, you’ll be able to optimize your phone and increase its performance speed. Remember to always empty trash on Android devices, do this to maintain the device’s performance.

You can also try clearing up your RAM to better increase your device’s performance.

So what method did you try? How did it work out for you? Let me know in the comments section down below!

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