How to Delete Files from Google Drive on iPhone, iPad, and Mac

What do you do to your unwanted Google Drive files? You delete them, obviously. You get 15 GB of free space from your Google account. So, in order to continue enjoying the free storage space, you’d need to remove files that are no longer necessary. In this comprehensive article, we’ll explain how to delete files from Google Drive on iPhone, iPad, and Mac.

However, before you continue any further, there are things that you should know. First of all, when you delete a file on Google Drive, you don’t necessarily get rid of it immediately. Those files get stored in the Trash, where it remains for the next 30 days before being permanently removed. Furthermore, you can recover or permanently delete the file from the Trash before its 30-day period is up.

Learn how to delete files from Google Drive on iPhone and iPad

In this section, we’re going to learn how to delete single or multiple files in Google Drive with your iPhone. Additionally, we’ll learn how to recover and permanently delete Google Drive files from the Trash. So, first things first, install the Google Drive app on your iPhone or iPad if you haven’t done it already.

Step-by-step process on how to delete files from Google Drive on iPhone or iPad:

Steps on how to delete a file in Google Drive from your iPhone or iPad

Launch the Google Drive app

Tap on the “Files” tab

Next, tap on the “More” (three dots) icon located beside the file you want to delete

Then tap on “Remove” and select “Move to trash.” Your file is now in the Trash, where it will remain for 30 days

Step-by-step process on how to delete multiple files on Google Drive from your iPhone or iPad:

Steps on how to delete multiple files on Google Drive from your iPhone or iPad

On your Google Drive app, go to the “Files” tab

Next, touch and hold on the file that you want to remove to select it

After that, choose all the files that you also want to remove

Then tap on the “More” (three dots) symbol located in the upper-right

And then tap on “Remove” followed by “Move to trash”

Step-by-step process on how to permanently delete files from the Google Drive app on your iPhone or iPad:

Steps on how to permanently delete files from the Google Drive app on your iPhone or iPad

On your Google Drive app, tap on the “Hamburger” (three horizontal lines) icon located in the upper-left

Next, select “Trash” to open the location where all your recently deleted files are saved for a 30-day period

Steps on how to permanently delete files from the Google Drive app on your iPhone or iPad 02

To permanently delete a single file, tap on the “three dots” icon next to the file and select “Delete forever.”

To empty all your trash on Google Drive, tap on the “three dots” icon located at the top-right corner, and tap “Empty trash.” Next, tap on “Delete forever” to confirm your choice

Step-by-step process on how to recover files from Google Drive on iPhone or iPad:

Steps on how to recover files from Google Drive on iPhone or iPad

On your Google Drive app’s upper-left, tap on the “Hamburger” icon

Next, select “Trash” from the menu

After that, tap on the “More” (three dots) icon next to the file that you want to recover

Then select “Restore,” and your file will be returned to its previous location

Learn how to delete files from Google Drive on Mac

In this part, we’ll focus on deleting files from Google Drive on your Mac. The steps are almost similar. So, let’s find out how to remove, recover, and permanently delete files in Google Drive from your Mac.

Here’s how to remove files from Google Drive on your Mac:

Steps on how to remove files from Google Drive on your Mac

Visit the https://drive.google.com/ website on your web browser and log into your account

Next, right-click on the file you wish to delete and select “Remove” from the menu options. Your deleted file is now moved to the Trash

To delete multiple files from Google Drive, left-click and hold the mouse button to select all of the files you wish to remove. And then right-click and select “Remove.”

Here’s how to recover files from Google Drive on Mac:

Steps on how to recover files from Google Drive on Mac

On your Google Drive account, click on the “Trash” section from the left-side panel

Next, right-click on a file and select “Restore”

If you wish to recover multiple files, then select those files, then right-click and select “Restore”

Here’s how to permanently delete Google Drive files on Mac:

Steps on how to permanently delete Google Drive files on Mac

On your Google Drive account, visit the “Trash” section

To permanently delete single or multiple files, select the file(s), then right-click and select “Delete forever.” Next, tap on “Delete forever” again on the confirmation box

To permanently delete all the files from Google Drive, press the “Empty trash” option in the upper-right of the files. After that, click on “Delete forever” to confirm your choice

Concluding Remarks

If you’re using Google Drive for storing your important documents, slides, spreadsheets, pictures, or any other files, knowing how to manage storage is important. You should frequently remove files that are redundant or unwanted to save space for other files. That’s why our in-depth guide on how to delete files from Google Drive on iPhone, iPad, and Mac can be very helpful for you.

Here are some related blogs that you might be interested in:

11 Best File Manager Apps for iPhone & iPad in 2022

How to Buy More Storage on iPhone