Free Up Storage on a Firestick

A full Firestick shows itself in several ways: apps take longer to open, streams stutter, updates fail with an error about storage, and apps close without warning. Fire OS needs free space to work. When it runs low, the system starts shutting down apps to recover memory, and video apps are hit first.

As a rule of thumb, aim to keep at least 1 GB free. Here is how to find out where your space has gone and get it back.

Check how much space you have

Planning what to install? The storage planner shows how much your apps will take before you install them.

Go to Settings › My Fire TV › About › Storage. You will see total and available storage. If less than 500 MB is free, you will notice problems. Below 200 MB, apps and updates start to fail.

Step 1: Clear the cache of your biggest apps

Every streaming app keeps a cache of images, thumbnails and video segments. Over time a single app can build up hundreds of megabytes. Clearing the cache is safe. It does not sign you out or delete your settings.

1. Go to Settings › Applications › Manage Installed Applications.
2. Select an app. The screen shows its size, data and cache.
3. Choose Clear cache.
4. Repeat for your most-used streaming apps.

Fire OS does not show a single list sorted by size, so check the apps you use most. Video apps, browsers and the Downloader app are usually the biggest.

Step 2: Delete leftover APK files

When you install an app with Downloader, the APK file stays on the device unless you delete it. Each one takes 15 to 100 MB.

1. Open Downloader.
2. Select Files in the left menu.
3. Highlight each APK file, press the Menu button (three lines) on the remote and choose Delete.

In future, choose Delete when Downloader asks after an install. There is no reason to keep the file.

Step 3: Uninstall apps you do not use

Pre-installed and long-forgotten apps take up more space than most people realise.

1. Go to Settings › Applications › Manage Installed Applications.
2. Select an app you no longer use and choose Uninstall.

Games are often the biggest culprits, at hundreds of megabytes each.

Step 4: Clear data for apps that keep growing

If an app's data figure (not cache) is very large, choosing Clear data resets it to a fresh install. You will need to sign in again and redo its settings, so use this only for apps that have ballooned in size.

Step 5: Turn off features that store data

• Collection of app usage data: Settings › Preferences › Privacy Settings, then turn off Collect App Usage Data and Device Usage Data. This saves a little space and background activity.
• Automatic app updates for apps you rarely use: updates for large apps you never open can quietly eat space. Uninstalling those apps is better.

Can I add more storage to a Firestick?

Fire TV sticks have no memory card slot. With a USB OTG adapter you can connect a USB stick to some models and use it for files, but Fire OS does not let you move most apps to external storage on recent sticks. For heavy use, a device with 16 GB or more, such as the Fire TV Stick 4K Max or a Google TV device, is a better long-term answer.

Keep it from filling up again

• Delete APK files straight after installing.
• Clear the cache of your main streaming apps once a month.
• Restart the Firestick weekly by holding Select and Play/Pause for five seconds. This clears temporary memory.
• Avoid installing several apps that do the same job.

If your Firestick still feels slow after freeing space, see our guide to speeding up a slow Firestick.

Frequently asked questions