How to Reclaim Disk Space on Windows 11

Clear unnecessary files and optimize your storage drive on Windows 11 with this step-by-step cleanup guide.

1. Run Storage Sense to automate cleanup. Open the Settings app by pressing Windows Key + I. Navigate to System > Storage and toggle the Storage Sense switch to On to allow Windows to automatically purge temporary files and manage cloud-synced content.
2. Remove temporary files manually. Within the Storage menu, click Temporary files. Wait for the scan to complete, check the boxes for items like Windows Update Cleanup and Delivery Optimization Files, then select Remove files.
3. Analyze disk usage with File Explorer. Open File Explorer and select This PC. Look for folders with the largest footprint, typically User folders such as Downloads, Videos, and Pictures, to identify high-capacity media that can be moved to external storage.
4. Uninstall unused applications. Go to Settings > Apps > Installed apps. Sort the list by Size to identify heavy software suites or games you no longer use, then click the three-dot menu next to the application and select Uninstall.
5. Disable Hibernation to reclaim large file space. Open Command Prompt as Administrator by typing 'cmd' in the search bar, right-clicking, and selecting Run as administrator. Enter 'powercfg -h off' and press Enter to delete the hiberfil.sys file, which is often several gigabytes.