iCloud Storage Full Email Scam: Spot It, Check It, Report It
Got an "iCloud storage full" email? How to spot the scam, check your real storage in Settings, report it in the UK or US, and what to do if you clicked.
Storage full & iCloud
Calculator
iPhone Storage Calculator: How Many Photos Can 128GB Hold?
A 128GB iPhone holds about 23,000 to 41,000 photos in the 24 MP HEIC format once 25 GB is set aside for iOS and apps. The same free space holds about 29 hours of 1080p video at 30 fps. Changing the photo format moves the count from about 1,200 in 48 MP ProRAW to 69,000 in 12 MP HEIC.
—photos fit in the free space
—of video fit, at that quality
—until full, at your monthly use
How big is your camera roll?
—estimated library size
Estimates, shown as ranges: real file sizes depend on the scene, the lens and the iPhone model. Runs in your browser — nothing you type is sent anywhere.
The calculator takes the iPhone's capacity, the space iOS and apps already use, the photo format and the video setting. It returns how many photos fit, how many hours of video fit, and how many months the free space lasts at a given monthly use. It runs in the browser and sends nothing anywhere.
How Many Photos a 128GB iPhone Holds
How many photos can 128GB hold?
128GB can hold about 23,000 to 41,000 photos on an iPhone saving 24 MP HEIC files, with 25 GB left for iOS and apps. At 12 MP HEIC the count rises to 41,000 to 69,000. In 48 MP ProRAW it falls to 1,200 to 1,600.
24 MP is the default photo resolution on the iPhone 15, 16 and 17 series, the iPhone 16e and 17e, and iPhone Air. Apple's iPhone User Guide lists the models. HEIC is the file type Apple uses for HEIF photos, the format iOS calls High Efficiency. Switching Settings > Camera > Formats to Most Compatible saves JPEG files instead.
The 128GB on the box is counted in decimal units, because Apple counts 1GB as one billion bytes. The calculator uses the same unit. Part of that space goes before any photo is taken. iOS, its updates, system files and installed apps all take a share, which differs from phone to phone.
The calculator starts from 25 GB for iOS and apps, and that figure is an input rather than a fixed rule. Each 10 GB moved between apps and photos shifts the 128GB answer by about 2,000 to 4,000 photos at 24 MP. At 15 GB the answer is 25,000 to 45,000; at 40 GB it is 20,000 to 35,000.
| iPhone | Free after 25 GB | HEIC 12 MP | HEIC 24 MP | HEIC 48 MP | JPEG 12 MP | ProRAW 48 MP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 64GB | 39 GB | 16,000–26,000 | 8,700–16,000 | 4,900–7,800 | 8,700–16,000 | 460–600 |
| 128GB | 103 GB | 41,000–69,000 | 23,000–41,000 | 13,000–21,000 | 23,000–41,000 | 1,200–1,600 |
| 256GB | 231 GB | 92,000–150,000 | 51,000–92,000 | 29,000–46,000 | 51,000–92,000 | 2,700–3,600 |
| 512GB | 487 GB | 190,000–320,000 | 110,000–190,000 | 61,000–97,000 | 110,000–190,000 | 5,700–7,500 |
How Many Photos a 256GB iPhone Holds
How many photos can 256GB hold?
256GB can hold about 51,000 to 92,000 photos at the 24 MP HEIC setting, after 25 GB for iOS and apps. That is 2.2 times the 128GB figure, not double. The iOS and app share stays at 25 GB, while the free space grows from 103 GB to 231 GB.
Apple ProRAW changes the arithmetic on any capacity. Apple puts a ProRAW photo at about 25 MB at 12 MP and about 75 MB at 48 MP. That is 10 to 12 times the size of a HEIF or JPEG file. ProRAW is available on Pro models from the iPhone 12 Pro, and at 48 MP from the iPhone 14 Pro.
At 48 MP, a 256GB iPhone holds about 2,700 to 3,600 ProRAW photos. That is fewer than a 64GB iPhone holds in 24 MP HEIC. Every photo count comes from one number, the size of a single photo, and that number is easiest to compare per gigabyte.
How Many Photos Fit in 1GB
One gigabyte holds about 220 to 400 photos in 24 MP HEIC. The same space holds 400 to 670 in 12 MP HEIC, or 12 to 15 in 48 MP ProRAW. Each count is 1,000 MB divided by the largest and the smallest likely size of one photo in that format.
| Format | Size of one photo | Photos in 1GB |
|---|---|---|
| HEIC 12 MP | 1.5–2.5 MB | 400–670 |
| HEIC 24 MP | 2.5–4.5 MB | 220–400 |
| HEIC 48 MP | 5–8 MB | 130–200 |
| JPEG 12 MP | 2.5–4.5 MB | 220–400 |
| ProRAW 12 MP | 22–28 MB | 36–45 |
| ProRAW 48 MP | 65–85 MB | 12–15 |
File size changes with the scene as well as the setting, so one setting produces files of different sizes. A minute of video, by comparison, uses the space of about 9 to 160 photos at 24 MP.
How Much Video Fits on an iPhone
An iPhone records about 40 MB to 400 MB of video a minute at the settings from 720p at 30 fps to 4K at 60 fps. Three settings decide the figure: resolution and frame rate in Settings > Camera > Record Video, and the format in Settings > Camera > Formats.
Apple's note on HEIF and HEVC confirms that Most Compatible records H.264 video in place of HEVC.
| Setting | High Efficiency (HEVC) | Most Compatible (H.264) | Hours on a 128GB iPhone, HEVC |
|---|---|---|---|
| 720p, 30 fps | 40 MB a minute | 60 MB a minute | 43 h |
| 1080p, 30 fps | 60 MB a minute | 130 MB a minute | 29 h |
| 1080p, 60 fps | 90 MB a minute | 175 MB a minute | 19 h |
| 4K, 24 fps | 135 MB a minute | 270 MB a minute | 13 h |
| 4K, 30 fps | 170 MB a minute | 350 MB a minute | 10 h |
| 4K, 60 fps | 400 MB a minute | N/A | 4.3 h |
Most Compatible roughly doubles the size of each minute. At 1080p and 30 fps the figure goes from about 60 MB to 130 MB. At 4K and 30 fps it goes from 170 MB to 350 MB. For 4K at 60 fps the calculator applies one figure, about 400 MB a minute, whichever format is set.
One minute of 4K at 60 fps takes the space of about 89 to 160 photos at 24 MP. Twenty minutes of it a month uses 8 GB, against 0.75 to 1.35 GB for 300 photos. At those rates the video takes six to eleven times the space of the photos.
How Much iPhone Storage You Need
How much iPhone storage do I need?
You need 128GB of iPhone storage if you mostly shoot photos and 1080p video and keep the phone for about three years. You need 256GB if you film 4K often, shoot ProRAW, or keep years of video on the phone.
The deciding figure is how many months the free space lasts. At 300 photos a month in 24 MP HEIC, with 25 GB for iOS and apps, the months depend on video. Each count starts from an empty camera roll.
| Video a month | 128GB lasts | 256GB lasts |
|---|---|---|
| 20 minutes, 1080p 30 fps | 40–53 months | 91–120 months |
| 20 minutes, 4K 30 fps | 22–25 months | 49–56 months |
| 20 minutes, 4K 60 fps | 11–12 months | 25–26 months |
| 60 minutes, 4K 30 fps | 9 months | 20–21 months |
The test is to compare that figure with how long the phone will be kept. A camera roll moved over from an old phone comes off the free space first. A 40 GB library leaves a 128GB iPhone with 63 GB to fill, not 103 GB. Price and iCloud also weigh on choosing between 128GB and 256GB.
Optimise Storage changes the answer for anyone using iCloud Photos. With it on, the iPhone keeps space-saving versions of photos and videos, and iCloud holds the originals. The phone then carries a library larger than the photo counts suggest, and the originals use iCloud storage instead.
Each of those month counts rests on two estimates: the 25 GB for iOS and apps, and the size of each file.
Why the Calculator Shows Ranges
The calculator shows ranges because one photo's size depends on the scene, the lens and the model. Each count divides the free space by the largest and then the smallest likely file size. The figure for a given phone most likely sits between the two.
The photo sizes are the calculator's estimates. Apple's ProRAW figure and its 10-to-12-times ratio put a 12 MP HEIF photo at about 2.1 to 2.5 MB. The calculator extends the low end to 1.5 MB.
The video sizes match the iPhone video size table from VideoProc. It covers the iPhone 8 to iPhone 15 and lists 60 MB a minute at 1080p and 30 fps in HEVC.
The iOS and app share is the easiest estimate to replace. Checking iPhone storage in Settings > General > iPhone Storage, the path Apple's storage guide gives, shows what uses the space. The total for apps and system space goes into the second box of the calculator.
When the Camera Roll Is Bigger Than the Phone
The calculator's library estimate shows how much space an existing camera roll already takes. A camera roll of 12,000 photos and two hours of 1080p video comes to about 37 to 61 GB at 24 MP HEIC. That is a third to three fifths of the free space on a 128GB iPhone.
Shrinking a library that size means reviewing it photo by photo, including the burst frames, retakes and screenshots that build up between clear-outs. Swipe-based cleaners such as Swipe Quick work through the camera roll one photo at a time: swipe right to keep, swipe left to delete. Deleted photos stay in Recently Deleted for 30 days.
Other ways to free up space on an iPhone, from offloading apps to clearing large videos, work alongside a photo clear-out.
Swipe Quick runs on the iPhone itself, uploads no photo, and is free to download with ads.
Keep reading
All free tools
System Data & cache
How to Clear Cache on iPhone: Safari, Chrome, and Apps
Clear cache on iPhone in Safari, Chrome, and apps like Spotify and TikTok. There is no single button, and each route removes something different.
Deleting photos
How to Organize Photos on iPhone
Organize photos on iPhone in order: clear out, let Photos sort, then use Favourites, albums, pins, People & Pets, and iOS 27 keywords and ratings.