1. Check Recently Deleted
Photos keeps deleted items for up to 30 days. Open Photos → Collections → Utilities → Recently Deleted and unlock the album. Review the items before choosing permanent deletion.
Only remove what you are sure you do not need.Deleting from Recently Deleted is permanent. With iCloud Photos, deletions sync across devices using the same Apple Account.
See Apple’s deletion and recovery instructions. The labels you see can vary with the iOS version.
2. Separate iPhone space from iCloud space
With Optimize iPhone Storage, the full-resolution originals can live in iCloud while smaller versions remain on the device. A multi-gigabyte original therefore may not occupy that much on the phone.
Check local storage in Settings → General → iPhone Storage, and cloud storage in Settings → your name → iCloud. These are two different totals.
3. Check the category that is still large
In iPhone Storage, look at which apps account for the remaining use. Downloaded media, Messages and app documents can still take space even after a photo cleanup. Review the recommendations shown there rather than deleting more memories without a target.
What Unclog helps you understand
Unclog shows separate iPhone and iCloud information when you review files. After a video replacement, it explains the new size and the original’s Recently Deleted status. It cannot force Photos to update storage totals or remove items from that album for you.
That distinction matters when a video is only in iCloud: downloading and replacing it can use local storage even as the full-size file gets smaller. Read the result in context, rather than treating every megabyte saved as immediately free phone space.
If there is no room to start
Making a video smaller needs temporary space. Start by reviewing files you know you no longer need, or the storage recommendations in Settings. If Photos is the main consumer, find the largest videos and decide which ones matter before attempting a conversion.
If the storage figures remain unexpected, use Apple’s support options. Unclog does not clean system data or other apps’ private files.