How to Check a Folder’s Storage Usage in Windows 11
Checking a folder’s storage usage can help you identify directories that are taking up the most drive space on your PC. Once you identify the biggest space hogs, you can cut your largest folders down to size by uninstalling software and deleting (or even compressing) files in them.
There are a few different ways you’re able to check the data sizes of folders within Windows 11. You can check folder size details within File Explorer, the Command Prompt, the Settings app, and numerous third-party software. These are four methods for checking folder storage usage in Windows 11.
How to Check Folders’ Sizes With File Explorer
File Explorer is Windows 11’s folder navigation and management app. Explorer’s detail view shows file sizes but doesn’t display folder storage usage. Nevertheless, it’s possible to still check folder sizes within File Explorer by viewing their properties windows as follows:
Another way you check a folder’s size info in File Explorer is to view its tooltip. Hover the cursor over a folder for a few seconds until a tooltip appears as in the snapshot below. That tooltip includes a size figure for the folder along with subfolder details.
Note that the tooltips won’t include size info if theDisplay file size information in tooltipsoption isn’t selected. If you’re able to’t see folder size info in tooltips, click theSee more(…) button andOptionsin Explorer. Then select theDisplay file size information in tooltipscheckbox shown directly below, and clickApplyto save.
How to Check a Folder’s Size With the Command Prompt
You can also view folder size details within the Command Prompt by entering a short directory command. That command will display both a folder’s file size and the amount of free drive space. This is how to check a directory’s size within the Command Prompt.
This command will run through all subdirectories and display an overall folder size at the end. The first total files figure shows the overall folder size in bytes. That figure could be 10 or even 11 numbers long if the folder size is in the gigabytes region.
How to Check a Folder’s Size With Settings
The Storage section of Settings provides a limited overview of folder sizes. There you can check the storage usage of some folders, but it doesn’t show all directories. You can check some folders’ storage usage with Settings like this:
How to Check a Folder’s Size With TreeSize Free
The methods above may be ok for checking specific folder sizes. However, you can view a much more detailed overview of folders’ storage usage with the TreeSize Free software. TreeSize displays folders sizes in gigabytes, megabytes, and kilobytes with a directory list view. This is how you can check folders’ sizes with the FreeSize Free:
TreeSize will then display the overall size of the primary folder along with storage usage details for any subdirectories it includes. By default, itsSizecolumn will display the subfolders in descending order from biggest to smallest. The% of Parentcolumn shows the relative percentage share each subfolder has of the overall root directory size.
TreeSize’sViewtab includes options you can select to change how the software displays its details. If only want to see one specific detail, deselect theShow detailsoption. Then click theSize,Allocated Space,File Count, orPercentoption to select what storage usage info the software displays.
If you want to see a full overview of folder sizes on your PC’s hard drive, clickSelect DirectoryandLocal Disk. Selecting that option will display the overall drive storage size and the amount allocated as in the screenshot directly below. Click the>arrows for all the folders to view storage usage info for all their subdirectories.
TreeSize is also accessible from File Explorer’s folder context menus. Right-click whatever folder you want to check the size for in Explorer to selectShow more options. Then selectTreeSize Freeon the classic context menu to bring up storage usage details for the folder in the software.
Check Folder Storage Usage to Free Up Drive Space
So that’s how you can check what folders are consuming the most storage space on your Windows 11 PC. Doing so will give you a better idea of the ones you most need to delete user files from. The best method above is to utilize TreeSize because it provides the most comprehensive overview of folder storage usage.
Learn how to remove files from Windows 11 with surgical precision.
Not Linux, not Windows. Something better.
My foolproof plan is to use Windows 10 until 2030, with the latest security updates.
It saves me hours and keeps my sanity intact.
Obsidian finally feels complete.
The fix was buried in one tiny toggle.
