How to delete backup data from icloud

How to delete backup data from icloud

Published on November 2, 2022

How to delete backup data from icloud
How to delete backup data from icloud
How to delete backup data from icloud
How to delete backup data from icloud
How to delete backup data from icloud
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As your iCloud backups are starting to take up a great deal of space, most of you consider deleting the ones you no longer need. Therefore a reasonable question arises – what happens if you delete a backup? Will it erase everything on iPhone?

We are here to show you what happens when you delete a backup and how to extract the important data from it before removing it. Select one of the sections below:

  • What happens if I delete a backup

  • I deleted backup from iCloud – Can I rescue the data?

    • Restore data to PC

    • Make a selective restore to iPhone

What happens when I delete iCloud backup

If you have only 5GB of free storage in your iCloud account, which doesn’t seem like enough at first, you might want to delete your old backup to free up some space. To do this, Select the backup > Delete Backup > Disable & Delete.

If I delete an iCloud backup, will I lose everything? Deleting iCloud backup is not as bad as it sounds. Here are the main points you should know about:

  1. It will erase the data you previously backed up to iCloud. So, in case you need to set up your iPhone from scratch, you will not be able to recover data from iCloud.

    ⚡ But good news! CopyTrans Backup Extractor can search for iTunes backups automatically and extract all types of data to PC.

    However, no recovery tool is a sort of cure-all. Therefore, we strongly recommend backing up the iPhone to your computer or external hard drive, or extracting some important data from iCloud backup, and only then delete it.

  2. When you delete iPhone backup, the data synced to iCloud.com won’t be affected. In fact, it won’t have any impact on what’s actually on your device. I guess, most of you are concerned with photos. Well, photos on the iOS device are never only stored in the backup. What would be stored in the backup are deleted pictures that you no longer have in Camera roll/albums.

  3. Deleting iCloud backups will clear your iCloud storage, whereas your iPhone storage will not be affected. Learn a few tips on how to free up space on iPhone.

Deleted backup from iCloud

Can I rescue the data?

The method described below will be helpful in both cases:

💥 You’ve deleted backup from iCloud and want to recover valuable data to PC.

💥 You want to extract important data from iCloud backup before erasing it.

Even if you accidentally deleted backup from iCloud, your precious data still can be in one of your backups in iTunes! We have an application to recover your photos, videos, contacts, messages, notes, and more from any backup to PC – CopyTrans Backup Extractor.

It is a truly versatile tool as it works both with iTunes and iCloud backups. With CopyTrans Backup Extractor you will also be able to extract the important data before deleting an iCloud backup.

Indisputable advantages of using CopyTrans Backup Extractor:

😍 CopyTrans Backup Extractor is compatible with different backups: iCloud, iTunes, CopyTrans Shelbee, or other programs;

🥰 You can choose which data you want to recover.

How to delete backup data from icloud

Some other perks of CopyTrans Backup Extractor:

✔ free version allows you to see what a backup includes;

find all the backups automatically;

✔ doesn’t require you to have your iPhone at hand;

✔ recover contacts, messages, notes, and much more to PC.

Try for free!

Let’s go through the process step by step:

  1. Download and install CopyTrans Backup Extractor:

    Download CopyTrans Backup Extractor

  2. If you need help installing the program, refer to the installation guide.

  3. Run the program and log in to iCloud if you want to find more backups. Once ready, click “Find Backups”.
    How to delete backup data from icloud
  4. You will see a list of all available backups: choose the one that contains the data you’re looking for.
    If you are restoring from iTunes backup, you may be asked for a backup password. What password?

    ☁️ iCloud backups will be marked with a cloud icon, and they are never password-protected.

    How to delete backup data from icloud

  5. Click on “Messages” for example, and press “Extract”, then select the destination folder.
    How to delete backup data from icloud
  6. Wait while all your messages are being uploaded to your PC.

    How to delete backup data from icloud

  7. Once the extraction is finished, you can view the selected data from a backup on a PC.

    How to delete backup data from icloud

❤ We currently have a great deal – you can get 75% off CopyTrans 7 Pack. It’s cheaper than buying just two programs 😉


But what if you need to make a selective restore of data to iPhone after you found it in a local backup using CopyTrans Backup Extractor?

Use the method below if:

  • You are not the biggest fan of iTunes;

  • You only need to restore a certain data type and don’t want to completely overwrite the device data to get them back.

CopyTrans Shelbee will be a great replacement for iTunes!

How to delete backup data from icloud

Advantages of CopyTrans Shelbee:

✔ restore selected data;

✔ restore apps to any iOS device with ease even if they have been removed from the App Store after ***;

✔ restore data from an iTunes backup;

✔ restore data from a corrupted iTunes backup;

✔ restore an encrypted backup.

Try for free!

***provided you made a backup with CopyTrans Shelbee v2.1 and above before they were removed from the App Store.

With CopyTrans Shelbee, you can choose the data you want to restore. Learn about the data types below:

◼ Contacts;
◼ SMS Messages, iMessage, MMS pictures and videos;
◼ Camera Roll Photos;

◼ Calendar events & accounts;
◼ Reminders;
◼ Call history;

◼ Apps;
◼ App documents;
◼ Keychain, passwords for email accounts, Wi-Fi, and websites**;

◼ Notes;
◼ App accounts and passwords**;
◼ Settings.

Here’s how to restore selected data to iPhone without iTunes:

  1. Open CopyTrans Shelbee and connect your iPhone. Click on Custom restore.

    How to delete backup data from icloud

  2. Click on the green pencil icon to select which backup you want to restore your data from.

    How to delete backup data from icloud

  3. After you’ve chosen the right backup file, click “Next”.

  4. Wait until the loading process finishes.

  5. Select the data you wish to restore. For example, it is possible to only restore photos from an iPhone backup. Just select Photos, then click on Next.
    For contacts, the process is the same: select Contacts, then click on Next. You can select as many items as you want. Restore calendars, WhatsApp, Notes – in any combination you want!

    How to delete backup data from icloud

  6. 💡 While restoring, CopyTrans Shelbee may ask you to enter the iOS backup password to decrypt the data in the backup. What is an iOS backup password?

  7. Please note that the data you selected will be overwritten. So, if you want to restore contacts, the device contacts will be replaced with the ones from the backup.

    How to delete backup data from icloud

    Click “Next”.

  8. CopyTrans Shelbee will ask you to choose where you want to save the backup of your device in case something goes wrong during Custom restore. Select the destination and click “Start”.

    How to delete backup data from icloud

  9. Wait until the restore process finishes.

    How to delete backup data from icloud

    💡 If the restore fails for some unknown reason, see the troubleshooting steps for when the backup is corrupt.

  10. That’s it! Your device will now restart.

    How to delete backup data from icloud

YouTube guide

If you prefer video to text, here is our YouTube tutorial on how to restore selected data on iPhone.


To sum up, deleting iCloud backup will not affect the data stored on your iPhone. However, we highly recommend that you extract some important data from it before erasing it.

Karina is our tech support specialist who is 25% singer (in the shower), 25% athlete (just bought her first sneakers), 48% mathematician and 100% dog lover.

How do I empty iCloud backup?

Delete files and folders from the iCloud website.
Open iCloud.com in a browser..
Log in with your Apple ID..
Click "iCloud Drive.".
To delete a folder, select it and then click the Delete icon..
To delete files, double-click a folder..
Hold down CTRL while clicking each file..
Select the Delete icon..

Is it OK to delete old backups on iCloud?

Yes, it's safe but you will be deleting data in those backups. Should you wish to restore your device from a backup, then you wouldn't be able to if it's deleted.

Can I delete iPhone backup from iCloud?

The information stored in your iCloud Backups is just that—a backup, or copy, of what is currently on your iPhone. You can remove any device backup stored in iCloud by going into your iOS Settings app and selecting iCloud, Storage & Backup and then Manage Storage.

What happens if you delete iCloud backup?

If you delete iCloud backup, your photos, messages, and other app data will be permanently removed. Your music files, movies, and the apps themselves are not in iCloud backups. You can download them on iPhone any time you want.