How to fix Insufficient Storage available Google Play error

One of the frequently occurring android nuisances is the error downloading “insufficient space on this device” and “insufficient storage available” error. These are obvious errors if you don’t have enough space in your device to install an app or game. Mostly it’s the people who are trying to install big games report the insufficient storage error. Sometimes you get this error while updating apps because the update is now larger in size and your internal memory barely has any space left. So the solution would be to free up some space and then re-try installation or download. Note that if you have less than 30MB free Android is not going to let you install or update any apps or games. However, sometimes the error can be caused by Google Play Bug. If that’s the case, read the methods below to fix insufficient space and insufficient storage available errors in Android:

Error downloading due to insufficient space on the device- Google Play

How to fix insufficient space on the device error in Google Play

Method 1: Uninstall unwanted apps and games (DUH!)

In case you actually don’t have enough space on your device

Go to Settings >> Memory >> Check how much free space you have left. If you don’t have enough space for the app or game, you’ll have to free-up space. What can you try now?
Go to Settings >> Apps >> All • Scroll and select each app you hardly use or game you hardly play
Uninstall such useless stuff
Check memory again and if you have enough space proceed with installation

Method 2: Moving apps to SD

In case you actually don’t have enough space on your device

Some apps or games can be moved from internal storage to your device’s SDCard storage. If your device is rooted, you can also move apps to an external SDCard using apps like link2SD. If you have a unrooted device or a device running stock(factor version) of Android OS follow these steps:

Go to Settings >> Apps >> All
Select each app from the list one by one
If the option is available, select “Move to SDcard” for large apps and games
To clear up extra space, you can also “Clear Data” for apps like Instagram, Facebook, Linkedin etc.

Method 3: Checking and deleting junk files

In case you actually don’t have enough space on your device
You may not be aware of all the junk cluttering your device’s internal storage. There is one particular location known to store notoriously large temp files that can occupy over 1.5 GB of space. This location is the DCIM folder where your Facebook images, camera app images and android camera’s pictures are stored.

Install a file manager like Es File Explorer or Root Explorer.
Go to internal Storage (sdcard 0)
Open DCIM folder >> Open “.thumbnails” folder
Look for large temporary thumbnail files. They can be small like 20MB or as large as 1GB+. Delete such files- you can spot them easily because they aren’t image files.

You can also install a junk cleaner app like CleanMaster. Once installed, open the junk cleaner and let it scan your device for cache junk, temporary files, residual files etc.

Method 4: Uninstalling Google Play Updates

If you do have enough space but still get insufficient storage error

Go to settings >> Apps >> Scroll down and select “Google Play Store”
Select “Uninstall Updates” >> A message will pop up saying app will be replaced with factory version >> Select “Okay”
Again open Google Play and try to update or install the app/game that was giving you the error

Method 5: Installing Google Play APK from external source

If you do have enough space but still get insufficient storage error

Go to settings >> Apps >> Scroll down and select “Google Play Store”
Select “Uninstall Updates” >> A message will pop up saying app will be replaced with factory version >> Select “Okay”
Go to Settings >> Security >> scroll down and check “Unknown Sources” >> Select “Ok”
Download and install Google Play Store from this link: (Play Store for KitKat and below | Play Store for Lollipop)
Proceed with the installation and then reboot device
Now open the installed Google Play Store and add your Gmail account
Download your app or game.

Method 6: Clear Cache and Dalvik Cache

In case you actually don’t have enough space on your device running custom ROMS like Cyanogenmod, Slim Rom, Paranoid Android and so on.

Reboot into recovery (turn off device >> press power key + volume down until logo appears)
Wipe cache partition • Select “Advanced” and then select “wipe Dalvik Cache”
Also fix permissions if the option is available in “advanced” menu
Reboot system >> wait sometime
Open Google Play Store and install or update your app (game)

I hope one of the above methods have helped you resolve the “insufficient storage available” and “insufficient space on this device” errors. If you have any other solution or quick fix for this issue please post them in the comments below.

Depending on your free space, here are some list of apps prone to insufficient storage errors – Hearthstone, Game of Thrones Android, Asphalt 7, Asphalt 8, Dead Trigger 2, Real Racing 3, Viber, Skype, Facebook, Gmail, YouTube. etc