One Drive Issue

Question

I have two OneDrive accounts—one with 2 terabytes of storage and another with just 5 GB. Both contain the same files. I’d like to combine them so everything is in the account with 2 terabytes of storage. The Larger account is tied to an old email I no longer use, and my new account is over its storage limit.

Answer 1

Microsoft accounts and their OneDrive storage cannot be merged or combined, but all content can be moved so that only the 2 TB account holds the files.

Key points from the current setup:

• The 2 TB OneDrive is on an old email address.
• The 5 GB OneDrive (new email) is over quota.
• Both currently contain the same files.

What is and isn’t possible

• Microsoft personal accounts cannot be linked, merged, or combined, and storage cannot be shared between two personal accounts unless using a Microsoft 365 Family subscription share. Files and storage remain separate per account.
• OneDrive for different accounts can be used side by side on the same PC, and files can be copied or dragged between them, but the storage itself stays separate.

Goal: keep everything in the 2 TB account and free the 5 GB account

1. Make sure the 2 TB account is the master copy

• Sign in to the 2 TB OneDrive account and confirm that all needed files are present and up to date.
• If anything exists only in the 5 GB account, copy it to the 2 TB account (see step 2).

2. Move any unique files from 5 GB account to 2 TB account On a Windows PC, the simplest approach is to sync both accounts and copy between them:

1. Add both OneDrive accounts to the PC (old-email 2 TB and new-email 5 GB).
2. In File Explorer, open the OneDrive folder for the 5 GB account and the OneDrive folder for the 2 TB account.
3. Drag and drop or copy/paste any files or folders that exist only in the 5 GB account into the 2 TB account’s OneDrive folders.
   • This does not merge storage; it just moves/copies files so they are stored only in the 2 TB account.

3. Clean up the 5 GB account so it is under quota Once everything needed is safely in the 2 TB account:

1. Sign in to the 5 GB account’s OneDrive on the web.
2. Use Manage your OneDrive storage to see what is taking space and empty the Recycle Bin.
3. Delete files and folders from the 5 GB account until usage is below 5 GB.
   • OneDrive files and any items in the Recycle Bin count toward the quota.
4. If a shared folder added to this account is pushing it over quota, remove that shared folder from this OneDrive.

This will stop over-quota behavior on the 5 GB account (no more read-only state or quota warnings) while keeping all content in the 2 TB account.

4. If the 2 TB account is tied to an old email

• Accounts cannot be merged or moved to a different email, but the old-email account can continue to be used solely for storage and OneDrive.
• If a Microsoft 365 Family subscription is used on the 2 TB account, the subscription benefits (including 1 TB per person) can be shared with up to 5 other people, but each person’s storage is still separate; it does not merge into a single pool.

5. If the 5 GB account remains over quota after cleanup

• Use Manage your OneDrive storage for that account to confirm usage and empty the Recycle Bin.
• If still over quota or locked/frozen after cleanup and waiting a few hours, contact support from that account.

Summary

• Accounts and storage cannot be combined.
• Use the PC OneDrive client or web interface to copy any unique files from the 5 GB account into the 2 TB account.
• Then delete and empty Recycle Bin in the 5 GB account until it is under 5 GB.
• Continue using the 2 TB (old-email) account as the primary OneDrive storage.

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References:

• Combining Microsoft accounts
• My OneDrive says it's full
• What is Microsoft cloud storage?
• Microsoft storage FAQs

Answer 2

Another possibility:

You can purchase a Microsoft 365 Family plan to get 1TB of storage for each account.

However, quoting this article: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/microsoft-storage-faqs-8fca6272-3427-4cce-a437-2c5ed84550a9

Microsoft 365 subscribers: If you are already a Microsoft 365 Personal & Family subscription holder, you can add even more file storage to the 1 TB already included with your Microsoft 365 subscription. Only the subscription account holder can extend their storage. Extend your OneDrive.

That means that only the account that has purchased the Microsoft 365 subscription can add more storage than the 1TB provided under the plan.