Decreasing iCloud storage by deleting stored items
How do I delete items stored in iCloud? I don't want to buy more storage, I want to decrease what is stored.
[Re-Titled by Moderator]
Original Title: iCloud storage
MacBook Pro 15″, macOS 12.7
Question marked as
Are you talking about iCloud Drive? Then just drag files out of the iCloud Drive folder on your Mac to a different Finder folder, either on your Mac or on an external drive. See this for context:
Understanding iCloud Drive - Apple Community
Or are you asking about iCloud Photos? iCloud Photos is a copy of your local Photos Library, so you would need to reduce the number of pictures in your Mac's Photos. You can use File>Export to send some pictures to Finder Folders on your Mac, or to Finder folders on an external drive. Then you can delete those from Photos. You'll have to choose whether you want to Export your edited and cropped and commented pictures, or if you want to Export the Unmodified Original files.
Keep in mind that if you delete files from Recently Deleted, they cannot be recovered.