How to share iCloud storage with your family
The short answer
Turn on Family Sharing and enable iCloud storage sharing in your iPhone or Mac settings — everyone in your family group then uses one shared storage plan.
What you need first
- An iCloud+ paid plan — the free 5 GB plan cannot be shared, so you need at least the 50 GB plan ($0.99/month)
- Family Sharing set up — you need a family group with up to five other members
- Everyone on their own Apple ID — each family member signs in with their own account
If you have not set up Family Sharing yet, you will do that as part of the steps below.
How to share iCloud storage on iPhone or iPad
1. Set up Family Sharing (if you have not already)
- Open Settings and tap your name at the top
- Tap Family Sharing and follow the prompts to invite family members
2. Turn on iCloud storage sharing
- Go to Settings, tap your name, then tap iCloud
- Tap Share with Family
- Follow the on-screen instructions to confirm
Family members will get a notification to accept. Once they do, everyone draws from the same storage pool.
How to share iCloud storage on Mac
- Open System Settings and click your name
- Click iCloud, then click Share with Family
- Follow the prompts to confirm
Things to know
- Everyone’s data stays private — family members share the storage space, but no one can see each other’s files, photos, or backups
- You might need a bigger plan — if your family uses a lot of storage, consider upgrading to the 200 GB ($2.99/month) or 2 TB ($9.99/month) plan
- The organizer pays — the person who set up Family Sharing is billed for the shared plan
- You can stop sharing anytime — go back to the iCloud settings and turn off family sharing, and each member reverts to their own free 5 GB plan
How to check shared storage usage
Go to Settings, tap your name, then tap iCloud. You will see a colored bar showing how much storage each family member is using. This helps you decide if you need to upgrade your plan.
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