Skip to main content

How to delete games on a PS4

If you enjoy variety when it comes to your PlayStation 4 games, then you’ve probably already encountered a storage issue. Since some games can take up as much as 100GB each, your system might not allow you to keep more than a few installed at a time. Here's how to manage storage space by removing games that you have completed or abandoned to make room for new ones.

Difficulty

Easy

Duration

10 minutes

What You Need

  • PS4

How to delete games in your PS4 library

Deleting a game from your console isn’t too difficult, and as long as you follow these steps, you’ll be on your way to freeing up PS4 storage space.

Step 1: Navigate to the icon for the game you wish to delete, either in the quick start main menu or in your library, which is found all the way to the right side of the media bar on the PS4 home screen.

how to delete games on ps4 20180108132847
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 2: While highlighting a game's icon, press the Options button on your controller to bring up this menu.

how to delete games on ps4 20180108125952 1
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 3: Scroll down to Delete, and confirm your selection by pressing OK.

how to delete games on ps4 20180108125959 1
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Deleting a game from system storage

If want to clear out lots of space, you may want to delete games from the system storage menu itself. The storage menu lists games in size order, making it easier to identify which games are taking up the most space.

Step 1: Navigate to Settings on the home screen.

how to delete games on ps4 20180108130014 1
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 2: Select Storage.

how to delete games on ps4 20180108130022 1
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 3: Select System Storage, or Extended Storage, if you have an external hard drive attached to your PS4.

how to delete games on ps4 20180108130030 1
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 4: Select Applications.

how to delete games on ps4 20180108130035 1
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 5: Press options on your controller, then choose Delete.

how to delete games on ps4 20180108134313
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 6: You can select as many games as you want to delete at this time.

how to delete games on ps4 20180108131014
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 7: With the desired boxes checked, choose Delete.

how to delete games on ps4 20180108131046 1
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 8: Confirm your selections by pressing OK.

how to delete games on ps4 20180108131051 1
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Reinstalling digital games

Reinstalling games you bought digitally is also quite simple.

Step 1: Select Library and pan down until you find Purchased on the home screen. If you’d like to search for specific PlayStation Plus games, you can click on the yellow plus sign under the Purchased icon.

how to delete games on ps4 20180108131258 1
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 2: After that, you’ll likely spot that games that aren’t already downloaded on your console will feature a small download icon. (That icon is usually on the bottom right of the little game display.)

how to delete games on ps4 20180108131358 1
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 3: You can tap on any of the download icons on these games, and that game will begin to reinstall on your console.

how to delete games on ps4 20180108131408 1
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Deleting and reinstalling disc-based games

If you’re playing using a disc-based game, you can manually remove the data.

Step 1: In order to do this, just search for the game in your library, click on it, and then scroll down until you see the Delete icon on the right side.

Step 2: Click on it and delete the game.

Step 3: You must always remove the game disc before deleting it from your console.

Step 4: If you’re ever ready to play that game again, all you have to do is reinsert the disc and reinstall it to your console.

how to delete games on ps4 20180108131744 1
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Editors' Recommendations

Steven Petite
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Steven is a writer from Northeast Ohio currently based in Louisiana. He writes about video games and books, and consumes…
The PS5 Pro may be coming even sooner than we thought
Two versions of the PS5 next to each other.

An enhanced PlayStation 5, colloquially known as the PS5 Pro, is all but officially confirmed now, with a new report revealing that dev kits for the enhanced console are in the hands of developers and that Sony wants games for it ready by August.

Last month, internal documents revealing the specs of the PS5 Pro leaked. It won't offer a massive leap in power, but it will have a better GPU and some new machine learning technologies, and it should make things like ray tracing and stable frame rates much more possible with games made for the PS5. On Monday morning, The Verge released a report affirming the leaked specs and confirming that PS5 Pro dev kits are now in the hands of more developers.

Read more
How to fix Helldivers 2 matchmaking issues
Two soldiers in a Helldivers 2 trailer.

Helldivers 2 is a ridiculously-fun squad shooter for PlayStation 5 and PC via Steam. With a major emphasis on co-op play, one of the core features of any multiplayer game is matchmaking. This is the game’s ability to group random players together for an online session. While this should be a pretty automated process that players don’t have to worry about, some Helldiver fans have reported failed matchmaking. If you keep finding yourself unable to land in a lobby, here’s a couple of things you can try to fix the issue.
How to fix matchmaking issues
Before offering some potential solutions, know that these are workarounds and not official remedies to the problem. Arrowhead has stated in its official Discord that it is aware of the problems and is working on a fix. However, if you just can't wait to get back to blasting bugs with your pals, here are some methods some players have found success with.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Helldivers/comments/1ami79d/helldivers_2_matchmaking_workaround_easy/

Read more
If you love Amazon’s Fallout, play the series’ best games on Game Pass and PS Plus next
Two characters in power armor in Fallout 4.

The Fallout TV series just released on Amazon Prime, and it's one of the best video game adaptations out there. It perfectly captures the tense, humorous feel of the postapocalyptic video game series while telling a new story with original characters. If you've just watched the show, you're probably itching to play a Fallout title again or check out one of the games the series is based on for the first time. Thankfully, if you're subscribed to one of the major video game subscription services, that's very easy to do.

Fallout, Fallout 2, Fallout Tactics, Fallout 3, Fallout: New Vegas, Fallout 4, and Fallout 76 are all on at least one gaming subscription service. While PC and Xbox players will be looking to Xbox Game Pass, PlayStation owners can get in on the fun with PS Plus Extra's game catalog. We've combed through what's available on PC Game Pass, Xbox Game Pass, and PS Plus Extra, and there's no shortage of options. Here are the best starting points on each service.
PC Game Pass

Read more