It is not the usual, but it may be that for privacy reasons, you prefer to use iMessage before alternatives such as WhatsApp or Telegram. If this is the case, then what usually happens when we use a messaging client every day can happen: all the files we share accumulate, and they end up collapsing the space of the devices and/or iCloud.
But like all other clients, iMessage can easily free up storage space from an iPhone or iPad. We are going to see how to get it in two different ways, so you can choose the one you like best.
Delete attachments from iMessage in Settings or in the application itself
The first way is through Settings: in them, you must enter the section General> iPhone / iPad Storage, where you will see a graph of all the space occupied by your data and applications on the device. In the list of applications that you will see below, locate the Messages application, and click on it.
You will see a list of file formats (photos, videos or GIFs, and stickers) with what they occupy in our message history. If you touch on each of them, you will see them distributed in a list, from which you can select what you want to easily remove through the ‘Select’ button.
If you prefer an alternative mode, you can find those same lists tapping on the title of each conversation (individual or group) from the iMessage application itself. From there, you can not only clean images and videos but also the links that may have stored content locally on the iPhone or iPad.
Be very careful not to underestimate this: just remember that iCloud only offers 5 GB of free storage. And iMessage tends to take up a lot more than you think due to its encryption protocols, among other things.