Apple's Family Sharing feature allows you to share music, movies, apps, photos, and more with family members, and in iOS 11, Family Sharing extends to Apple's iCloud Storage plans.

When you purchase a 200GB or 2TB iCloud Storage plan, all members of your family can share the storage space. Depending on how many family members you have, family plans offer more storage at a better price than individual plans.

For example, a 50GB storage plan is priced at $0.99 per person. For two people, the $2.99 200GB plan offers each person an additional 50GB of storage for only $1 more.

How to Upgrade to a Family iCloud Storage Plan

  1. Open the Settings app.
  2. Tap on your Apple ID profile at the top of the app.
  3. Choose "Family Sharing," the sixth option in the list.icloudfamilysharing
  4. Tap on "iCloud Storage" to bring up a notice about the new Family Sharing options.
  5. Click "Continue" to choose a plan.
  6. Pick a 200GB or 2TB plan.

You can also access the plan settings through the standard iCloud Storage menu in the Settings app, accessible by going to iCloud > Manage Storage after tapping on your profile.

How to Stop Sharing iCloud Storage With Family

You can sign up for a 2TB or 200GB storage plan and keep family members from accessing your storage space. Here's how:

  1. Open the Settings app.
  2. Tap on your Apple ID profile.
  3. Choose "Family Sharing."
  4. Choose "iCloud Storage."familystoragestopsharing
  5. Tap on "Stop Sharing With Family."

How to Downgrade iCloud Storage

If you want to go back to a cheaper iCloud Storage option, downgrading is as simple as choosing a new plan. New rates won't kick in until the next billing period.

  1. Open the Settings app.
  2. Tap on your Apple ID profile.
  3. Choose "iCloud."
  4. Tap on "Manage Storage."
  5. Choose "Change" under the iCloud Storage option.
  6. Select a 5GB or 50GB plan to downgrade.

It's important to note that there's no way to allocate how much storage each person gets when using one of Apple's new iCloud Storage plans for families, so it's not always an even split. If a family member is hogging too much space, that's a problem that will need to be worked out offline. You can see how much storage each family member is using by going to profile > Family Sharing > iCloud Storage.

familystoragespaceused
When you choose a 200GB or 2TB storage plan and opt in to Family Sharing, family members who are on the free 5GB plan will be upgraded automatically and will begin using the family storage plan.

Family members who already have a paid plan will need to opt in to the family storage plan to transfer over from their own plans. If they want to have separate storage, your family members can continue to pay for their own plans and choose not to opt into the family plan.

To let your family know that you've signed up for a family iCloud plan, Apple offers an automatic iMessage alert that can be sent out to family members that lets them easily switch over to the family plan.

Tag: iCloud

Top Rated Comments

Blackstick Avatar
96 months ago
Great. When can I share the damn Photos library with my wife?
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
higgalls Avatar
96 months ago
This is a great question. I hope so because the shared folders are not full resolution. I want to share photo library with my wife but with current iCliud set up it can't be done. Basically the way it works now is one of us has he main photo library that is synced to the family iMac and one has another iCloud account where we have to airdrop the pics we want into the main one.
This is why my wife and I still use the same iCloud account when setting up our iPhones. I just make sure I turn some things off that conflict between the two (or that we don't want - iCloud Drive, iMessages and FaceTime for each others number etc), and just live with it. But in an ideal world, we should be able to have our own accounts under family sharing, and just sync the same default photo albums. I like how I can just open up my Photos app and see what photos my wife has taken of my kids today when they were out, and vice versa.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Anonymous Freak Avatar
96 months ago
Great. When can I share the damn Photos library with my wife?
+1, need! As it stands, we have to manually copy photos in to a shared album. It's silly.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
load97 Avatar
96 months ago
+1, need! As it stands, we have to manually copy photos in to a shared album. It's silly.
It’s embarrassing for Apple.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Eduardo1971 Avatar
96 months ago
Thank you for the reminder MR!!!

With all these iOS 11 goodies I totally forgot about this...I’m adding my family to this!!
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
brian3uk Avatar
96 months ago
And lo, the single famililess are again forgotten. But seriously, the free tier should be more than 5GB now.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

Generic iOS 18

iOS 18.3 Coming Soon: Here's What's New

Monday January 13, 2025 5:33 am PST by
iOS 18.3 is currently in beta for developers and public beta testers. So far, the upcoming iPhone software update is very minor in scope. Below, we outline what is new in iOS 18.3 so far. The only potential new feature coming to iPhones with iOS 18.3 so far is robot vacuum support in the Home app, but this functionality is not yet live. Apple is laying the groundwork for the feature,...
new magsafe charger

Apple Releases Updated MagSafe Charger Firmware

Tuesday January 14, 2025 11:30 am PST by
Apple today released new firmware designed for the 25W MagSafe Charger that is compatible with the iPhone 12 and later and the latest AirPods and Apple Watch models. The updated firmware is version 2A143, up from the 2A138 firmware that the accessory shipped with. In the Settings app, you'll see a different version number than the internal firmware number. The 2024 MagSafe charger was...
HomePod mini and Apple TV

HomePod Mini 2 and New Apple TV Launch Timeframe Narrowed Down

Sunday January 12, 2025 4:11 pm PST by
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman recently reported that Apple plans to release new HomePod mini and Apple TV models this year, and now he has provided a more precise timeframe. In his Power On newsletter today, Gurman said Apple is currently aiming to launch the new HomePod mini and Apple TV models "toward the end of the year." That timeframe suggests the devices will be released at some point...
iPhone 17 Pro Dual Tone Feature 1

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 8 New Features

Thursday January 9, 2025 5:45 am PST by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. iPhone 17 Pro concept based on rumors Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of January 2025: More aluminum: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models ...
iPhone 17 Slim Feature Single Camera 1 Redux

'iPhone 17 Air' Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Wednesday January 15, 2025 7:16 am PST by
While the so-called "iPhone 17 Air" is not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the "ultra-thin" device. Overall, the "iPhone 17 Air" is shaping up to be a mixed bag. Due to its thinness, the device is expected to have some limited specifications compared to the iPhone 17 Pro models, including only a single rear camera, only a single speaker, no SIM...
severance new york promo 1

Apple Promotes Severance Season 2 Premiere With Lumon Industries Pop-Up and Visits From Actors

Tuesday January 14, 2025 3:47 pm PST by
Ahead of the season two premiere of hit TV show Severance, Apple is marketing the show with a fun Severance pop-up at the Grand Central Terminal in New York City. Apple has assembled a glass cube with workstations that are identical to the setups that Lumon employees use on the show, complete with employees "working," doing yoga, playing catch, throwing paper airplanes, sipping coffee, and...
General Apps Messages Redux

Phishing Attacks Use This Simple Trick to Defeat iPhone Message Security

Monday January 13, 2025 6:11 am PST by
A new social engineering tactic is being used by cybercriminals to trick iPhone users into disabling iMessage's built-in phishing protection, in a bid to expose them to malicious links and scams, according to BleepingComputer. The scam exploits a security feature in iMessage that automatically disables links from unknown senders. Apple told the outlet that when users reply to these messages...
airpods pro 2 gradient

AirPods Pro 3 Expected This Year: Here's What We Know

Wednesday January 8, 2025 7:05 am PST by
Despite being released over two years ago, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 continue to dominate the wireless earbud market. However, with the AirPods Pro 3 expected to launch sometime in 2025, anyone thinking of buying Apple's premium earbuds may be wondering if the next generation is worth holding out for. Apart from their audio and noise-canceling performance, which are generally regarded as...
se 4 for 2025

When to Expect the iPhone SE 4 or So-Called 'iPhone 16E' to Launch

Friday January 10, 2025 9:20 am PST by
Apple is widely rumored to be planning a new iPhone SE, and multiple sources lately have commented on the device's launch timing. The latest word comes from Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. In a blog post today, he said the device will be released around the middle of the first half of 2025. In other words, around the quarter mark of 2025. That means the next iPhone SE will likely be ...