Free up Overcast storage

Overcast is iPhone-only. It keeps downloaded episodes on this device so they play offline. Follows and play position sync with your Overcast account. Smart Speed is a playback feature that shortens silences. It is not a storage cleaner. Android users should use another podcast app.

See how much space Overcast is using

Open Overcast and tap the gear (Settings) on the home screen.
Open Manage Storage if that row is shown.

You can also open iPhone Settings > General > iPhone Storage > Overcast. Overcast's older official notes describe a storage manager that lists space per show. The 2024 rewrite temporarily dropped some of that UI, then brought storage management back. Wording can vary by version.

Delete downloads in Manage Storage

Open Settings > Manage Storage.
Tap a podcast to delete its downloads, or use Delete All Downloads if that button is shown.

The show stays in your subscriptions. Only the offline files leave this iPhone. You can download an episode again later. You can also delete one episode from its row, or delete all episodes for a podcast from that show's page.

Auto-delete finished episodes

Open Overcast Settings.
Set completed episodes to delete immediately, or 24 hours after completion. Official Overcast 4.1 notes added the 24-hour option.
On a podcast page, tap More and open Podcast Settings to limit how many episodes that show keeps.

That is the real way to stop Overcast from growing. Smart Speed does not delete files. It only changes playback. Any extra working files it creates are not a documented cleanup screen.

iPhone does not offer a separate Overcast cache button. Use Manage Storage and auto-delete, or offload the app in iPhone Storage if the system total stays high.

Reinstall the app if storage is still high

If you already cleaned media and Overcast still looks huge, a fresh install can clear leftover cache and temp files that are hard to reach by hand.

Sign in to Overcast first. Follows and play position sync. Downloaded episodes need to be downloaded again. Premium uploads are treated separately from auto-delete.
Delete the app from your phone.
Restart your phone.
Install Overcast again from the App Store or Google Play.
Sign in and restore from backup if the app offers it.

This often frees a lot of space. You may need to download some media again after restore.

What to do next

After Overcast is lighter, check your photo library for duplicates and similar shots. That is what Dedupo is for.

More app guides: Free up app storage.