How to delete files or folders from Dropbox

Updated Jun 28, 2024

You can delete or permanently delete any file or folder in your Dropbox account, even if it’s shared, as long as you’re the owner. Find out how to know who the owner of a file or folder is.

Not using Dropbox yet? See how Dropbox makes file recovery and history easy.

Important:

Standard file recovery periods and options don’t apply to files deleted directly from the Send and track feature. Deleting a file from Send and track is permanent, and any associated metadata or data analytics can’t be recovered once the file is deleted.
Any files added to Send and track before February 15, 2024 won’t be added to the “Send and track” folder on your Dropbox account. Deleting these files is permanent, and any associated metadata or data analytics can’t be recovered once the files are deleted.

Delete a file or folder

Follow the instructions below to delete a file or folder from your Dropbox account on dropbox.com, the Dropbox desktop app, or the Dropbox mobile app. Deleted files or folders can be restored within a certain window of time, depending on your Dropbox plan.

Log in to dropbox.com.
Hover over the file or folder and click "…" (ellipsis).
Click Delete.
Click Delete again to confirm.

Open the Dropbox folder on your computer.
Right-click the file or folder you’d like to delete.
Click Delete (Windows) or Move to Trash (Mac).

Open the Dropbox mobile app.
Tap the “⁝” (vertical ellipsis on Android) or “…” (ellipsis on iPhone/iPad) next to the file or folder you’d like to delete.
Tap Delete.

Notes:

If you’re a member of a Dropbox team, your admin may have limited your ability to permanently delete files and folders, including with a data retention policy.
Deleted files don't count against your storage quota, so permanently deleting them won’t free up space.
If other Dropbox users have a copy of the files that you permanently delete, their copies won’t be deleted.

Permanently delete a file or folder

Follow the instructions below to permanently delete a file or folder on dropbox.com. Permanently deleted files and folders can’t be restored.

Notes: You can permanently delete any file or folder that you own. You can only permanently delete files and folders that you don’t own if:

You’re a Dropbox team admin.
You’re not an admin, but you’re the only person who has taken any actions on or edited the file or folder.

To permanently delete a file or folder on dropbox.com:

Follow the instructions in the above section to delete the file or folder on dropbox.com.
Click Deleted files in the left sidebar.
Check the box next to the file or folder you’d like to permanently delete.
Click Permanently delete.
Click Permanently delete again to confirm.

Deleting Send and track files

Learn what happens when you delete Send and track files in the following ways:

Deleting files in the “Send and track” folder

Adding a file to the Send and track feature from your local drive, OneDrive, or Google Drive creates a file copy in the “Send and track” folder. This copy takes up storage space and counts towards your storage limit.

Deleting this copy from the “Send and track” folder automatically removes the file stored in Send and track, along with any associated metadata and analytics. Restoring the file copy restores the Send and track file and its data.

Deleting files from your Dropbox account

Adding a file to Send and track directly from your Dropbox account doesn’t create an additional file copy in the “Send and track” folder.

Deleting the original file from your Dropbox account automatically removes it, and any associated metadata and analytics, from Send and track as well. Restoring the original file restores the Send and track file and its data.

Deleting files in the Send and track feature

Note: Deleting file copies in Send and track is permanent. Any metadata and data analytics associated with that file can’t be recovered, even if the source file is left intact.

Deleting files directly in Send and track won’t affect the source files in your Dropbox account, local drive, OneDrive, Google Drive, or the “Send and track” folder.

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