How to clear system data on iPhone – As you confirm the root of the problem, in the meantime, you’ll want to clear your system data when it accumulates. We know from your question that you take the route of factory reset to get rid of system data. This is one way to do it—although it’s usually more of a “nuclear” option and can’t be very convenient.
- Shut down your iPhone. Wait a few minutes before turning it back on. Doing so will free up system resources and clear temporary files from your storage. It’s a lot easier than a reset of your phone.
- Clear cache in Safari. If Safari is your browser of choice, the cache can take up significant storage. Clear it by going to Settings > Safari > Clear History and Website Data
- Delete offline content. Periodically delete offline content from your apps—such as downloaded shows in the Netflix app. You need to do this individually in the apps. Where possible, set them to auto-delete.
- Disable features. Apple devices and apps come with a lot of features, but you probably don’t need all of them. Disabling the ones you don’t use could help prevent the accumulation of system data. To disable features, click through your device’s settings menu and toggle off the ones you don’t use. Examples include the Translate app’s On-Device Mode (translates languages when you’re offline) and Apple Maps’ feature that knows where you parked.
- Identify rogue apps. As mentioned above, try temporarily eliminating apps from your phone to determine if there’s one using an inordinate amount of system data storage. It’s detective work but it can save you hassle in the long run.
- Finally a factory reset. A factory reset followed by restoring your backup files is the surefire way to lower your system data. To do so, head over to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Erase All Content and Settings, If you do that, know that you will also be signed out of your Apple ID and all your apps, media, and personal data will be removed.
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Why is system storage so high on iPhone?
What Is iPhone System Storage? – iPhone system storage includes a lot of different files that you might not think about. To understand its purpose, here’s a look at what’s included:
- Essential files, For the most part, iPhone system storage contains the essential files needed to use your iPhone, such as those that support the operating system. That’s why it’s not possible to delete it.
- Cached/temporary files, Cache files are there to support other activities you might be completing, and they soon add up. iPhone system storage may include a lot of these temporary files.
- Updates, Any iPhone update waiting to be installed is left listed under system storage. If you haven’t updated in a while but you have downloaded the relevant file, this could be the contents of your system storage.
- Logs, System storage can contain logs as well as files that you will never access but are necessary for certain technical purposes.
FAQ
- Why does “System” take up so much storage on the iPhone? The System category takes up everything that doesn’t directly fit under other categories (Photos, Apps, etc.), so it can increase pretty quickly. Because it can come from a variety of sources, including different apps, it can grow faster than the rest of your storage. You can quickly reduce it with a restart or installing an update, however.
- How do I get more storage on an iPhone? One easy way to regularly free up iPhone storage is to make items in Messages automatically delete after 30 days. To do this, go to Settings > Messages > Keep Messages and select 30 Days, You can’t add more storage (although you may be able to find an iPhone-compatible external drive), but you can buy more space on iCloud and keep photos and other room-hogging items in the cloud and off of your phone.
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What is system data on iPhone storage?
How to check storage usage in iOS –
Open Settings, Tap General, then iPhone Storage, The bar at the top will graphically show you what storage is being used. The list of apps below shows individual app storage usage. Tap each to see the app size and consumption of related files and options to offload the app and delete the data. At the bottom of the list are listings for iOS and System Data.
System Data, and what the Settings app refers to as “Other System Data,” includes many files not covered by other categories. 
System Data doesn’t usually take tens of gigabytes of storage, but problems happen. The definition within iOS is that System Data “includes caches, logs, and other resources currently in use by the system.” This doesn’t state what the data is, but it can consist of various logs, temporary data stores, and other elements that aren’t strictly considered part of any of the listed apps.
Why is my iPhone storage full after deleting everything?
Solution 3. Clear cache data on your iPhone – It may be that your iPhone has accumulated cache files over a period of time, and these caches are now too large for your iPhone to handle. In this case, what you can do is to clear the cache files on the iPhone to free up memory space. >>Clear out the Safari cache Note : Clearing the cache on Safari will log you out of all websites you are currently logged into. Open the Settings app > scroll down to Safari > tap Clear History and Website Data, 
>>Clear out useless app data on iPhone Like Safari, your app can grab a lot of useless data that you don’t need. Here’s how to get rid of useless files stored in apps: 1. Go to Settings > General > tap iPhone Storage,2. The screen will show the apps that take up the most storage at the top. Tap on one of the apps, click Delete App, 
If the application’s Documents and Data entry shows that the application occupies more than 500 MB, we recommend uninstalling and reinstalling the application.
Does deleting pictures clear storage?
The Recently Deleted Album – The key to solving the problem is that deleted photos continue to take up storage space on your phone until you really delete them. Windows has the recycling bin. Mac has the Trash. The Photos app in IOS 8 has its own variation on Trash that only applies to photos and videos.
When you delete a photo on the iPhone it doesn’t actually get deleted. It just gets moved to a special album called Recently Deleted. The logic is fair enough–it’s a safety precaution against accidentally deleting photos you actually want to keep. And if you need to restore a photo or video, that’s most certainly a positive.
But the execution could be much better. Each photo and video in the Recently Deleted album is on a timer that starts at 30 days. Once that timer runs out, the photo or video will disappear forever. But while photos and videos remain in the Recently Deleted album, they’re still taking up space on your phone.
Why is my storage not going down after deleting?
When a file is deleted, the space used on the disk is not reclaimed until the file is truly erased. The trash (recycle bin on Windows) is actually a hidden folder located in each hard drive. To completely delete the file, another step must be performed.
How do I clear my iPhone storage without paying?
Delete apps you no longer use – Another great way to clear out your iPhone is to get rid of apps you no longer use. If you don’t know where to start, take a look at which apps you haven’t used in a long time. Open your iPhone’s Settings menu, tap General and go to iPhone Storage, Get rid of apps you haven’t used in a long time. You can see the last time you’ve used a specific app in the iPhone’s settings menu. Screenshot by Lisa Eadicicco/CNET