Is 5 GB Email Storage Enough?

When it comes to email storage, whether 5 GB of email storage space would be enough or not is a common concern for many users. It is crucial for individuals as well as working professionals to have sufficient storage available for their long-term communication, as emails act as evidence of all the communications.

In this article, we will explore the considerations and limitations of 5GB email storage and provide insights to help you determine if it is adequate for your needs.

Understanding Email Storage.

Email storage refers to the amount of space allocated to store emails and their attachments on a server or cloud-based platform.

It is important to note that a portion of this storage is also utilized for other purposes, such as saving drafts, spam filtering, and system files.

Therefore, the actual usable space may be slightly less than the allocated storage size.

What Would Happen if My Email Storage Is Full?

Usually, this won’t happen as modern-day email software is designed the way you get notified that your email is about to be full, and you need to delete unwanted emails to gain some space or upgrade. The warning notifications start to trigger when you touch 80-90% and above storage limit.

But what if you keep ignoring these notifications and don’t do upgrades?

This Could Have Several Consequences:

• You won’t be able to send and receive new email messages.
• People who email you will receive a bounce message telling them your mailbox is full. This will keep bouncing until you upgrade or free some space.
• Or in rare cases, you won’t receive an email, even notifications and warnings. Which would be different for different email service providers.

Is 5 GB Storage Enough?

Technically, a 5 GB email storage space is more than enough for a regular user, if you do manage your emails well. Things only get worse when you start using big attachments in the email and receive the same. Here is my basic calculation…

On average size of emails is counted as 75 KB, make it 100 KB for easy calculations.

5 GB = 5,000 MB = 50,00,000 KB
                = 50,00,000/100
                = 50,000 Emails.

So you can have less than 50,000 emails in 5 GB storage.

Now do the same calculation with big attachments.

Many emails have their own attachment size limits – Gmail has a 25 MB limit, Outlook has a 20 MB limit, iCloud has even less, and so on. I’m considering the big one 25 MB.

5 GB = 5,000 MB
     = 5,000/25
     = 200 Emails.

With only large attachments you can have up to 200 emails in a 5 GB mailbox.

So it is up to you now, if you need to upload and receive large documents via email, better upgrade to larger storage options, otherwise 5 GB is more than sufficient for everyone to receive basic emails and some mails with sizable attachments.

My Own Experience.

I, too, use a business email to manage my business related emails and there the limit is 5GB/User with an option to upgrade as needed and believe me no one feels that it is less space. Although, we have easy one click solution to upgrade the size anytime, we never felt that we need to do that.

All we do is, keep cleaning mails for spam and trash monthly. This doesn’t take more than 5 minutes and once done everything feel light again.

Conclusion.

While 5 GB email storage may suffice for some users, it may fall short for those with heavier email usage or specific storage needs.

It is important to assess your requirements and explore alternative solutions, such as upgrading your email account or utilizing the cloud stage for larger attachments.

You can even use local email clients if you wish to stay in free options, if necessary.

Doing so ensures a seamless email experience.