How to Check Data Usage on iPhone
Mobile data may be becoming more affordable in some places, but in the majority of countries, carrier data is quite expensive. So if you’re concerned about exhausting your data plan or you just want access to your data usage statistics, we’ve got you covered. Here’s how to check data usage on iPhone.
How to Check Data Usage and Reduce Unnecessary Data Consumption on iPhone
iOScomes with a built-in cellular data usage tracker that lets you know how much data you consumed during a specific period and the total amount of data each app has eaten into. Moreover, it also shows the amount of data that the personal hotspot has taken up. While it lacks the ability to show exactly how much data you consume daily or weekly, you can retrieve the desired information through a simple workaround.
There are some handy third-party cellular data trackers that allow you to monitor your data consumption on a daily and weekly basis. So, if you don’t find the native option helpful, they would be worth trying out. On top of all, if you want to prevent unnecessary data usage, we’ve mentioned the effective ways to reign in the features that tend to eat into plenty of cellular data. Now that you’ve got a fair idea about what this detailed guide has to offer, let’s cut the chase for good!
Check Total Cellular Data Usage During a Specific Period on iPhone
-
Launch theSettings appon your iPhone and then tapCellular/Mobile Data.
-
Now, scroll down to theMobile Datasection. You should see the total cellular data consumption right next to theCurrent Period. This section also shows the amount of data consumed during the current period of roaming.
Note:
Monitor Data Usage of Specific Apps on iPhone With Ease
-
Navigate to theSettings appon your iPhone ->Cellular/Mobile Data.
-
Now, scroll down to see a long list of apps. Right below an app, you should see how much data it has consumed.
This is very useful if you want to check how much data is being used by specific apps or by text messages.
Check How Much Data Personal Hotspot Has Consumed on Your iPhone
-
Head over to theSettings appon your iPhone ->Cellular/Mobile Data.
-
Now, scroll down to theMobile Datasection. Check out the total data usage right next toPersonal Hotspot. To view all the devices where your cellular data has been used, tapPersonal Hotspot.
Reset Cellular Data Statistics on iPhone
iOS allows you to reset cellular data statistics on your iPhone manually. Hence, you can reset the statistics weekly or monthly basis to find out the total cellular data usage during a certain period.
-
Open theSettings appon your iPhone-> Cellular/Mobile Data.
-
Now, scroll down to the bottom and tapReset Statistics. A popup will appear from the bottom asking you to confirm the action. TapReset Statisticsagain to finish.
Best Cellular Data Tracker Apps for iPhone
If you are not pleased with the built-in cellular data tracker or need a better tool to let you monitor data usage in real-time, these third-party apps can live up to your task.
Data Tracker Lite is a pretty simple app that lets you track cellular and Wi-Fi data usage on your iPhone. It’s easy to set and allows the needed flexibility to customize the billing cycle and how you wish to track the data usage. Moreover, you can use this app to monitor your daily, weekly, and monthly data usage.
With clean graphs, the app makes it more convenient to keep an eye on the leftover data, remaining days, and the remaining data for each day. Besides, it also offers a way to check the uploaded and downloaded bytes.
Install:(free, internet data tracker is available for $1.99)
DataMeter is a lightweight cellular data tracker for iOS. The app lets you customize the cycle settings and track the data usage in real-time. Thanks to theToday widget, you can keep an eye on your cellular data usage right from the lock screen of your iPhone. While DataMeter is available for free, you will need to spend $1.99 if you want to upgrade to the ad-free version.
Install:(free, ad-free version is available for $1.99)
If you need a more capable cellular data tracker for your iPhone and iPad, “Data Usage Plus” would be a better option. What makes it stand out from the rest is the ability to offer a detailed history of your cellular/Wi-Fi data usage. Features like predictive forecast, daily limits, and warnings enable you to take control of your data usage. Since it also offers anApple Watch app, you can monitor real-time data usage right from your wrist.
Install:($0.99)
Handy Tips to Reduce Cellular Data Usage on iPhone
If you are worried about the rapid cellular data consumption on your iPhone, there are some effective ways through which you can significantly reduce the data usage on your device.
To me, the best way to reduce cellular data usage on iPhone is to allow only specific apps to access your data. This way you can prevent a number of apps from eating into your data unnecessarily. When you disallow an app from using your cellular data, it’s forced to only use Wi-Fi.
What“Low Power Mode”is for battery, “Low Data Mode” is for cellular. When enabled, it automatically pauses automatic updates and background tasks such as Photos syncing to preserve cellular data on your iPhone.
Note:
To preventsloppy Wi-Fi connectionfrom halting your communication, gaming, or video/music streaming, iOS automatically starts using a cellular connection whenever it finds your Wi-Fi connection poor. While Wi-Fi Assist is designed to enhance your experience, it can gobble up a ton of mobile data in trying to cover up the ill-functioning Wi-Fi. Therefore, make sure to disable it if you want to cut down data consumption.
If you are not managing the background app refresh smartly on your iPhone, there is a good chance that it’s eating into a large chunk of data on your device. Thankfully, iOS offers the desired control over this data-hungry feature. So, you can choose to altogether disable it, allow only selected apps to refresh in the background or refresh apps only on Wi-Fi.
Additionally, you can also restrict apps to use less cellular data on your iPhone. For instance, you can enable Data Saver inSpotify(Settings icon -> Data Saver) to force the app to consume less data while streaming music and set upWhatsAppto eat less mobile data during video/audio calls (Settings -> Storage and Data -> Use Less Data for Call). If you want to find out more efficient ways to take control of data usage on your iPhone,check out this detailed guide.
Keep a Track of Cellular Data Usage on iOS With Ease
That’s done! So, these are the ways through which you can monitor the mobile data usage on your iPhone and also cut down the unnecessary data consumption. Though the built-in cellular tracker is quite efficient, it lacks the option to show real-time data consumption. But bother not, this is where the third-party data trackers have a role to play. That said, let us know your feedback and the preferred way of keeping an eye on the mobile data usage on iOS.
Rajesh Mishra
An old school bibliophile who turned a tech nerd out of obsession. When he is not digging into hacks and tracking down stories that are breaking the internet, you may find him reciting poems.
Add new comment
Name
Email ID
Δ
