When Will You Need a Bigger iCloud Plan? Forecast It with a Widget
Published October 19, 2026.
Most people find out they need more iCloud storage the same way: a "storage full" alert, followed by a quick upgrade so photos keep syncing. A forecast gives you time to decide instead. You can clean up and compress before you hit the limit, or plan the upgrade for when you actually need it.
HEVCut's Storage Forecast widget does that for your photo library. It shows where your library is today, where it will be in a month and a year at your current pace, and roughly when it reaches the next iCloud+ plan size. This guide explains exactly how it calculates that, what it can't see, and how the other HEVCut widgets and the Pending Deletions Live Activity fit in.
Quick answer
- Add the Storage Forecast widget in its medium size. It shows your library today, in 1 month and in 1 year, plus a line such as "Reaches 200 GB in 3.6 yr".
- The projection is a straight line from your current library size, using the average daily size of photos and videos dated in the last 90 days.
- It counts your photo library only, not backups or iCloud Drive, and it doesn't know which plan you're on.
What the Storage Forecast widget shows
The widget comes in two sizes:
- Small: your current library size and the expected change per month, such as "+2.9 GB / mo".
- Medium: your library today, in 1 month and in 1 year, each with the change from today, and a line showing the next plan size and when you'll reach it.
If you want the plan forecast, use the medium size. The small widget doesn't show the plan line.
How the forecast is calculated
The forecast uses two numbers HEVCut already has from scanning your library on your device:
- Your library total: the combined size of the photos and videos in your library.
- Your pace: the combined size of the photos and videos dated within the last 90 days, divided by 90. That gives an average per day. A 90-day window keeps one busy week from swinging the forecast.
From there it is simple arithmetic. The 1-month figure is today's total plus 30 days at that pace; the 1-year figure adds 365 days. The plan line picks the smallest of 50 GB, 200 GB, 2 TB and 6 TB that is larger than your library today, and divides the gap by your daily pace.
Here's an example. Say your library is 74 GB and the photos and videos dated in the last 90 days add up to about 8.5 GB, so roughly 95 MB a day:
| Value | |
|---|---|
| Today | 74 GB |
| In 1 month | about 76.9 GB (+2.9 GB) |
| In 1 year | about 108.7 GB (+34.7 GB) |
| Next plan size | 200 GB |
| Time to reach it | 126 GB ÷ 95 MB a day ≈ 1,326 days, shown as "in 3.6 yr" |
Under a month away, the widget counts in days; under a year, in months; beyond that, in years. If your pace is zero, or the next size is more than 50 years away, it shows a dash.
Plan sizes use decimal units: 1 GB is 1,000,000,000 bytes.
What the forecast can't see
The widget answers one question well: when will my photo library alone reach the next plan size? Keep its limits in mind:
- Other iCloud data isn't counted. Apple notes that iCloud storage also holds backups, iCloud Drive files, Messages attachments and Mail (Apple Support). If those are large, you'll need the next plan sooner than the widget says.
- It doesn't know your plan. It always shows the next size above your library, not your plan's limit. Apple sells 50 GB, 200 GB, 2 TB, 6 TB and 12 TB plans, and iCloud includes 5 GB free (Apple Support). The widget projects up to 6 TB.
- It's a straight line. A wedding, a holiday or a new phone with a better camera can change your pace fast. The forecast follows as new photos and videos enter the 90-day window and older ones leave it.
- Compressed copies count twice until you decide. After compressing, the original and the smaller copy are both in your library until you tap Keep or Revert, and the forecast counts both.
- It updates when you use HEVCut. The app refreshes the numbers while it runs, and the widget shows them once you leave the app.
Add the widget
- 01
Open HEVCut and keep it open until the first scan of your library finishes. The widgets show numbers the app has saved, so they have nothing to show before that.
- 02
On your Home Screen, touch and hold a widget or an empty area until the apps jiggle.
- 03
Tap Edit in the upper-left corner, then tap Add Widget.
- 04
Find HEVCut in the list, choose Storage Forecast, pick the medium size, then tap Add Widget.
- 05
Tap Done.
These are Apple's standard steps for adding a widget (Apple Support). Tapping the widget opens HEVCut.
The other HEVCut widgets
All four widgets come in small and medium sizes:
- Savings: how much space HEVCut has saved you so far, a ring showing that as a share of saved plus what's still reclaimable (an estimate covering compression, duplicates and clutter), and a line such as "1.2 GB ready · 37 items" for media ready to compress. When nothing's left, it says "Library fully optimized".
- Library Growth: your library total, its change over the last 30 days, and a 30-day chart. It uses a shorter window than Storage Forecast, so it shows recent bursts of activity more clearly.
- Capture Activity: a calendar grid of how many photos and videos you captured each day, with a total count. A bigger widget shows more weeks.
The Pending Deletions Live Activity
On iPhone, HEVCut can show a Live Activity on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island when items are waiting for you to confirm. It covers two things:
- Swipe: photos and videos you swiped into the deletion bucket but haven't deleted yet.
- Compress: originals of compressed items that are waiting for you to tap Keep.
It shows how many items are waiting and how much space you'd free ("Free up 4.2 GB", for example). Its Review button opens the Swipe deletion review if you have swiped items, or the compressed originals otherwise. Nothing is deleted until you confirm in the app.
It appears when the number of waiting items grows, ends when nothing is left, and if you dismiss it, it stays away until something new is added. To turn Live Activities off for an app, go to Settings > Apps, tap the app, then tap Live Activities (Apple Support).
That matters for the forecast too: until you confirm, the space isn't freed, and pending compressed copies are counted twice.
Add the Storage Forecast widget and see when your library reaches the next iCloud+ plan. The widgets are free.
Push the date back
If the plan line is closer than you'd like, these steps move it:
- Compress your videos. Videos are often the largest files in a library. HEVCut copies the capture date to each compressed copy, so once you tap Keep, the smaller file lowers both today's total and, for recent videos, your pace. See how to optimize iCloud Photos for maximum space.
- Clear duplicates and clutter. Start with Exact and Similar duplicates, then media saved from WhatsApp and Instagram and blurry photos.
- Don't count on Optimize iPhone Storage. It keeps full-resolution photos and videos in iCloud and smaller copies on your device (Apple Support). It saves space on your iPhone, not in iCloud.
Deleted items stay in Recently Deleted for 30 days (Apple Support), so iCloud space returns once they leave that album. For a broader plan, read how to stop paying for iCloud storage.
Check the forecast before and after a cleanup. Because it's built on your library total and recent pace, compressing last month's videos changes both numbers, and the plan line shows how much time you bought.
Frequently asked questions
Is the forecast my actual iCloud usage?
No. It measures your photo library only. Backups, iCloud Drive, Messages and Mail also use iCloud storage, so check Settings, then your name, then iCloud for your real total. Use the widget for the part that usually grows fastest: photos and videos.
Why does it say Reaches 50 GB when I already pay for 200 GB?
The widget doesn't know which plan you have. It shows the smallest plan size above your current library, from 50 GB, 200 GB, 2 TB and 6 TB. If your library is 40 GB, that's 50 GB, whatever plan you're on.
Why does the widget show a dash instead of a date?
The dash means there's no date to show: either no photos or videos dated in the last 90 days, so the pace is zero, or the next plan size is more than 50 years away at the current pace.
How often does the widget update?
HEVCut updates the widget's numbers while you use the app, for example after it syncs with your library, and the widget picks them up when you leave the app. It doesn't watch your library on its own, so open HEVCut now and then to keep the forecast current.
Can I tap the widget to jump to a specific screen?
Tapping any HEVCut widget opens the app. The Pending Deletions Live Activity is different: its Review button opens the review screen for the items waiting.
Do the widgets cost anything?
No. All four widgets work in the free version of HEVCut.