Messengers have long ceased to be just a means for sending text messages. Today Viber has become a powerful multimedia processor that stores gigabytes of photos, videos, voice notes and stickers on your device. Over time, this leads to the fact that the internal memory of the smartphone is filled to capacity, and the application itself begins to work slowly or crash.
Users often encounter a notification about lack of space just when they urgently need to send an important document or download an update. Clearing messenger data is a necessary procedure, but requires caution so as not to lose important correspondence. In this guide, we will look at all the effective ways to free up space, from built-in tools to manually cleaning up system folders.
Analysis of occupied space in built-in settings
Before blindly deleting files, you need to understand what exactly is taking up space. The developers have provided a convenient statistics tool right inside the application. Go to menu More → Settings → Storage. Here you will see a visual diagram showing the distribution of space between text messages, media files and cache.
The system automatically sorts chats by the amount of space occupied. Usually the most difficult dialogues are at the top of the list. By clicking on a specific chat, you can view in detail how many megabytes are occupied by photos and how many by videos. This allows you to selectively delete content from the most voluminous correspondence without affecting important work chats.
Pay attention to the “Other files” section. Data that is not directly related to media, for example, temporary files or sticker pack data, often accumulates here. Regular monitoring of this section helps maintain order in the storage of your Androidsmartphone without drastic measures.
⚠️ Attention: Statistics in the settings may be updated with a delay. If you just deleted a large video, it may take a few minutes to recalculate the volume.
Built-in statistics are the safest way to find the heaviest files without the risk of deleting the application's system data.
Use the built-in cleaning tool
The fastest way to free up space is to use the "Clean up memory" function, available in the same section of settings. Clicking this button will start the process of deleting cached data. It is important to understand the difference between cache and message history. Cache is temporary files that speed up the operation of the application and can be deleted painlessly.
When you start cleaning, the system will prompt you to select the types of files to delete. Options are usually available to remove thumbnail images, temporary videos, and sticker data. Select the required items and confirm the action. The process only takes a few seconds, but can free up anywhere from 100 MB to several gigabytes of space.
After cleaning, the app may take a little longer to load pictures when you first open chats, since it will have to download them again from the server. This is normal behavior and will quickly stabilize. Regular use of this function once a month prevents critical memory filling.
Set up automatic deletion of media files older than 3 months in the privacy settings so that the memory is not clogged with old content.
You should not abuse full data clearing through the phone settings if your goal is simply to free up space. This action will delete all correspondence history and require re-authorization. Use only targeted tools inside Viber.
Manually deleting media files from specific chats
Sometimes automatic cleaning does not give the desired result, since the main files remain in the chat history. In this case, you will have to perform a manual audit. Open the dialogue that takes up the most space and click on the contact name or group name at the top of the screen.
In the profile that opens, select the “Media, links and files” section. Here you can find a convenient gallery view of all sent and received files. You can highlight them in groups or individually. To mass select, hold your finger on one file, and then mark the rest.
- 🗑️ Remove duplicate images that often arise when sending.
- 🎥 Pay special attention to video files, as they take up the lion's share of memory.
- 🎵 Don't forget to check the "Audio" tab, where old voice messages may be stored.
After highlighting unnecessary files, click the trash can icon. The system will ask if you want to delete files only for yourself or for all chat participants. Select the “Delete from me” option so as not to disrupt the correspondence history for your interlocutors. This action is irreversible for your device.
⚠️ Note: Deleting media files from a chat does not immediately free up space if the cloud backup feature is enabled. Wait until synchronization is complete.
Clearing the cache through Android settings
If the built-in messenger tools did not help, you can go to the system settings of your smartphone. This method allows you to clear the technical cache, which sometimes grows to abnormal sizes due to errors in the application. Go to Settings → Applications → Viber.
In the application menu, find the “Storage” or “Memory” section. There you will see two buttons: “Clear cache” and “Clear data”. Click the first button. It's safe and won't affect your private messages, contacts, or account settings. Only temporary files and thumbnails will be deleted.
The “Clear data” button works differently. It resets the application to its factory state. Use it only as a last resort if the app does not work correctly, and be sure to make a backup copy beforehand. After this procedure, you will have to re-enter your phone number and confirmation code.
Settings → Applications → Viber → Storage → Clear cacheOn some smartphone models, for example Samsung or Xiaomi, the path to these settings may be slightly differ. Sometimes the “Storage” item is hidden in an additional menu, called up by long pressing the application icon on the desktop.
☑️ Safe cleaning through Android settings
Managing automatic media downloads
One of the main reasons for quickly filling memory is the automatic downloading of all incoming files. By default Viber it is configured to download photos and videos immediately upon receipt, even if you are using mobile data. Disabling this feature will significantly save space.
Go to Settings → Data and multimedia. Here you will find switches for uploading photos and videos. It is recommended to disable auto-download for the mobile network, leaving it active only for Wi-Fi. This way, files will be downloaded only when you click on them while in a stable Internet zone.
Also in this section there is a setting for the quality of downloaded photos. Selecting the “Standard” option instead of “High” will save space without significantly losing quality for viewing on your smartphone screen. This is especially true for devices with a small amount of built-in memory.
| Connection type | Recommended setting | Impact on memory |
|---|---|---|
| mobile data | Do not download automatically | High savings |
| Wi-Fi home | Download automatically | Medium impact |
| Roaming | Prohibit downloading | Maximum savings |
Remember that if you disable autoloading, you will not see image previews in the chat until you click on the download icon. This is a small compromise for the sake of free disk space.
⚠️ Note: The settings interface may change with application updates. If you do not find the specified item, use the search inside the settings menu.
Manual cleaning of system folders through the file manager
For advanced users, there is a cleaning method through the file manager. Files Viber are stored in a specific directory on the internal drive. Using the My Files app or any third-party file manager, navigate to Android/media/com.viber.voip or Viber in the root folder.
Here you will find the folders Viber Images, Viber Video and Viber Documents. You can manually delete the contents of these folders. However, be extremely careful: deleting files from here will not remove them from the messenger interface, but will free up disk space. In the chat, a loading error will be displayed instead of a picture.
This method is useful if you urgently need to free up space to install another app, but you don’t have time to enter every chat. After clearing the folders, it is recommended to restart the device so that the system correctly recalculates the free space.
Hidden data folders
In some versions of Android, the data folder may be located at /Android/data/com.viber.voip/files. Access to it may be limited in new versions of the OS without special rights.
Do not delete the application folder itself or database files with the extension .dbif you do not want to lose the entire correspondence history without the possibility of recovery. Work only with media containers.
Transferring data to a memory card and backup
If the internal memory of your smartphone is critically small, consider transferring media files to a card microSD. Unfortunately, the message database itself cannot be transferred, but photos and videos can be saved directly to an external card.
In the messenger settings, find the “Save path” item. Change it from internal memory to SD card. Now all new files will be downloaded there without taking up precious system space. For already downloaded files, you will have to use a file manager to move them.
Regular backup to the cloud (Google Drive) allows you to delete old chats from your phone, knowing that they can be restored if necessary. Go to Settings → Account → Viber backup and start creating a copy. After successful completion, you can safely delete old dialogs.
Transferring the save path to an SD card is the best preventative solution for smartphones with a small amount of built-in memory.
Remember that the speed of the application may be slightly decrease when storing data on a memory card of a low speed class. Use UHS-I or higher standard cards for comfortable work.
Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
Will correspondence be deleted if I clear the Viber cache?
No, clearing the cache affects only temporary files and thumbnails. Your message history, contacts and settings will remain completely safe. This is a safe procedure.
Why does Viber take up more space than is visible in the phone settings?
This is due to the fact that some of the data is stored in hidden system folders or in encrypted form. Also, the difference may arise due to the fact that the system takes into account the size of the application itself, and not just its data.
Is it possible to recover deleted photos from Viber memory?
If you deleted a photo through the messenger interface and emptied the trash (if there is one), recovery is impossible without a preliminary backup copy. File managers can find leftovers in hidden folders, but this is not guaranteed.
How to prevent saving photos from Viber to the phone gallery?
In the application settings there is an item “Save to gallery”. Disable this switch. Photos will be available only within the messenger and will not be duplicated in the general Android gallery.
Does clearing memory affect the speed of the application?
Yes, freeing up space and clearing the cache often speeds up the messenger, reduces the number of freezes and speeds up the launch of the app, especially on older devices.