This week, Google announced a change in how it calculates storage for accounts, effective July 7. All data in Android backups will now count toward the storage limit on Google accounts.
Previously, only media uploaded to Google Photos and multimedia messages (MMS) were included in the storage cap. New Android users will be subject to this change immediately, while existing users will see it implemented over the coming months.
According to a Google spokesperson, “Android backup lets you save the data on your phone to your Google Account so you can easily restore it or set up a new device.” The spokesperson noted that the update is expected to increase the average storage usage by about 40MB.
The update also introduces new controls for users, allowing them greater transparency regarding what data and applications are backed up. These options can be accessed under the device’s backups menu, enabling users to exclude device settings, call history, and SMS/MMS messages from the backup process.
This storage policy update follows a testing phase in May when Google began evaluating a reduction in the default free storage limit for new accounts, lowering the threshold from 15GB to 5GB unless a phone number is linked.
