Swapping out an old hard disk drive for an SSD is one of the best upgrades you can make for your computer in 2024. It's true that SSDs are more expensive than your regular hard drives, but this upgrade is sure to breathe new life into your system's performance. The only downside to this is that you may not get a lot of storage for the money, making it very easy to run out of space on your system. But it's nothing a bit of clean up can't fix, which is why it is important to declutter your SSD occasionally. If you are wondering how to do it, then read on to find out how you can clean your SSD and free up space for all your games, pictures, videos, or whatever you want on your PC.

Clear the temporary files

Quick and easy cleanup tip

It's no secret that temporary files accumulate on your system, and they can take up a lot of space if you don't pay attention. Most cleaning utilities and even the built-in tools like Disk Cleanup target these files first, so why not handle them yourself occasionally to ensure they don't become a culprit in your cluttered SSD case? To find the temporary files:

  1. Press Windows + I on the keyboard to access the Windows Settings page.
  2. Locate and click on the System settings on the left side.
    A screenshot showing the highlighted system and storage option on Windows settings page.
  3. Click Storage, and then select Temporary files.
    A screenshot showing the highlighted Temporary files option on Windows settings page.
  4. Click the Refresh button.
    A screenshot showing the highlighted Refresh button in temporary files settings. in Windows.
  5. Click the checkboxes to select/deselect items.
    A screenshot showing the highlighted Refresh button in temporary files settings. in Windows.
  6. Hit the Remove files button once you select the files to clean up.
    A screenshot showing the highlighted Remove files button in Temporary files menu in Windows.

Uninstall unwanted apps

Get rid of the apps and games you haven't opened in ages

Getting rid of unwanted apps and games is another obvious step in cleaning up the SSD. We all have those apps that we installed ages ago and completely forgot they exist, right? Well, it's time to say goodbye to them, and put the space they're occupying to better use. To uninstall them:

  1. Press Windows + I to open Settings.
  2. Click Apps on the left and select Installed Apps.
    A screenshot showing the highlighted Apps and Installed apps option in Windows settings.
  3. Click the drop-down next to the Sort by option and select Size (Large to small).
    A screenshot showing the highlighted Sort By option on the Installed apps page in Windows settings.
  4. Locate the app you want to uninstall and click the three-dot icon next to it.
    A screenshot showing the highlighted three-dot menu items in Installed apps screen on Windows Settings page.
  5. Select the Uninstall button twice to remove that particular app.
    A screenshot showing the highlighted Uninstall button within the Installed apps page in Windows Settings.

Run disk cleanup frequently

Among the best free utilities

Disk Cleanup is a free Windows utility tool to free up space by cleaning unnecessary files. It's fairly simple to use, and it only takes a few minutes to get the job done and free up space on your SSD. To use it:

  1. Press the Start button and type Disk Cleanup.
  2. Select the Disk Cleanup utility to open it.
    A screenshot showing the highlighted Disk Cleanup utility on Windows Start menu.
  3. Select the drive you want to clean if you have more than one.
  4. The Disk Cleanup utility calculates how much space you can free up.
    A screenshot showing the highlighted check boxes in Disk Cleanup utility.
  5. Click the checkboxes to select/deselect items, and select OK when done.
    A screenshot showing the highlighted OK button on the disk cleanup utility.
  6. Select Delete Files when prompted to clean up the unnecessary files on your machine.
    A screenshot showing the highlighted Delete Files button in the Disk Cleanup utility confirmation box.

Use Storage Sense to automatically free up space

Let the OS take charge

Windows Storage Sense is a simple utility tool that helps you manage your storage space. You can configure it to remove items you don't need, like temporary files. Storage Sense will automatically delete content from the Recycle Bin by default after some time, but it'll only delete the items in your Downloads folder and OneDrive if you've set it up to do so. This particular feature is disabled by default. To enable it:

  1. Press Windows + I to open Windows Settings.
  2. Select System and locate the Storage option.
    A screenshot showing the highlighted system and storage option on Windows settings page.
  3. Look for Storage Sense on the Storage Management tab and click the toggle to enable it.
    A screenshot showing the highlighted toggle to enable or disable Storage Sense feature in Windows.
  4. Select the Storage Sense option to expand all the settings.
  5. Adjust the frequency of content cleanup based on your requirements.
    A screenshot showing the highlighted Configure cleanup schedule option in Storage Sense settings.

Use a third-party tool to clean the SSD

Plenty of both free and paid utilities out there

If you're not satisfied with the built-in tools to clean up your disk, you can also use third-party disk cleaners. CCleaner is among the most popular disk cleaning programs available, and it's the one we're using in this particular tutorial. CCleaner's Custom Clean option does a pretty good job of removing unwanted and temporary files to free up space. To use CCleaner:

  1. Download the CCleaner setup file and install it.

    Make sure you don't install the CCleaner browser during setup.

    A screenshot showing the highlighted 'Free Download' button on CCleaner website.
  2. Launch the application once it is installed.
  3. Select the Custom Clean button on the left side.
    A screenshot showing the highlighted Custom Clean button in CCleaner.
  4. Click Analyze.
    A screenshot showing the highlighted Analyze button on CCleaner Disk Clean menu.
  5. Click Run Cleaner button after reviewing the files to remove them.
    A screenshot showing the highlighted Run Cleaner button in CCleaner.
  6. Click Continue on the confirmation screen.
    A screenshot showing the highlighted Continue button in cleanup confirmation box in CCleaner.

Enjoy a cleaner, faster, and more spacious SSD

Those are some tried-and-tested ways to clean your SSD and free up space for all your new games and media files. As long as you keep the temporary file folders in check and frequently clean up your system for unwanted apps and files, you should have absolutely no issues with space. But remember that there's only so much you or these utility tools can do to free up space on your SSD. If you feel like you're constantly running out of space in your computer, it may be time to pick up a new SSD with more storage. It's never a bad time to upgrade the storage of your computer, and there are plenty of great SSDs out there right now.