Google is preparing an Android update that will give users more precise control over which apps and data get backed up to the cloud, according to reporting by PhoneArena.
The change targets a long-standing frustration: Android currently backs up app data broadly, leaving users with limited say over what consumes their cloud storage quota.
What Is Changing
The update will let users select individual apps to include or exclude from cloud backups — a level of granularity the platform has not previously offered through standard settings.
That means a user could, for example, keep a game’s progress from syncing to Google’s servers while still backing up messaging apps and contacts.
Still, the full scope of the controls — including whether users can manage backup frequency or backup size per app — remains unclear ahead of an official announcement from Google.
Why It Matters
Cloud storage limits are a real constraint for millions of Android users. Google caps free Google One storage at 15 GB, shared across Gmail, Google Drive, and Google Photos.
Once that limit fills, Android stops backing up new data entirely — leaving devices unprotected against loss or damage until users either pay for more storage or manually clear space.
By excluding low-priority apps from backups, users could recover meaningful storage without touching a single photo or video in their library.
The Broader Context
Google has steadily expanded backup functionality on Android over several years. The company introduced its current backup framework — which stores app data, call history, contacts, and device settings to Google’s servers — as a core feature of Android 6.0, released in 2015.
That framework, however, was designed primarily around what apps could back up, not what users could block.
Third-party apps must opt into Android’s backup API (application programming interface, the software bridge that lets apps communicate with the operating system) for their data to sync at all — meaning some apps already fall outside the backup system entirely.
Meanwhile, iPhone users have faced a parallel dynamic with iCloud. Apple provides only 5 GB of free iCloud storage, and iOS allows per-app backup toggling — a feature Android users have long requested.
The timing of the Android change aligns with broader industry pressure on cloud storage pricing. Statista estimates more than 3 billion active Android devices worldwide, making even incremental changes to default backup behavior significant at scale.
Google has not announced a Release Date for the updated backup controls or confirmed which Android versions will receive them.
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