How to free up storage space on your Mac

Mac computers and MacBooks are notorious for quickly running out of storage space, and Apple has been working on solving this problem, and most users are complaining about it. In 2022, Apple released Mac and MacBook Pro models with 8TB large-capacity hard drives and updated macOS Ventura to make it more browser-focused, with most of the work done online to reduce the burden on the hard drive.

Since these changes are not for all Apple devices on the market, but for a handful of high-priced devices, users are still visiting online forums asking “How to free up disk space on Mac?” and there are many effective ways to clean up Mac disks!

How to clean up storage space on your Mac and more

Explore effective solutions to free up space on your Mac, save data and improve device performance with more than 240 applications on Setapp.

Free Trial Security Test How to check how much space you have available?

The Mac's operating system is on its hard drive, and if the hard drive is too full, you'll notice that the device is running much slower. To prevent this from happening, pay close attention to the available space on your Mac. The method is as follows:

1. Click on the Apple icon
2. Go to "System Settings" ➙ "General"
3. Click the "Storage" tab and select "All volumes"

Here you will see a colorful chart showing the Mac's storage usage, with light gray representing available space. Move the pointer to any other color to see the amount of space used by each category (document, application, photo, or system data).

It's always a good idea to always know the disk space situation on your Mac to keep it under control, and there's a more convenient way to monitor it - try using iStat Menus.

iStat Menus is a system data collector located in your menu bar and provides important information about key performance metrics. All information about the memory load is behind a clean blue bar that you can access with one click! If you choose to expand it, you can check the exact partition of memory resources and the load between the lines.

As one of the most comprehensive Mac monitors to date, iStat Menus allows you to automate the process of controlling how much Mac disk space any application uses, and in addition, it presents you macOS performance data in a clear format, so you can fully understand what’s going on inside your Mac.

How much free space does my Mac need?

Less known to Mac convert free space on boot disk into virtual memory for daily operations. This is why it is recommended to keep at least 10% of disk space on your Mac to avoid the device degrading its performance.

How to clean up space on your Mac

Given the large amount of theories available online, we have collected a list of proven techniques on how to manually and automatically free up space on your Mac.

Optimize your Mac storage space

Before digging into all the options that might help you free up space on your Mac, try using one of the device’s built-in tools to optimize available storage space.

When you are still in the Storage tab of your Mac's System Settings, scroll down below the chart showing disk space usage, and you'll see a series of actions Apple recommends you to keep your Mac disks clean. Start here and decide which suggestions you want to try and follow the instructions.

Move files to the cloud

One of the ways Apple recommends how to free up disk space on your Mac is to store more files in a cloud storage service. Simply select the "Storage in iCloud" option from the "Storage" tab in System Settings, and your Mac's desktop and document folders as well as photos and messages will be moved to Apple's iCloud. Now, it will only be downloaded to your Mac when you try to access this content.

The only downside of this approach is that iCloud only offers 5GB of storage for free, which may not be enough to store all the files if you have a lot or very large files. Whether you choose to buy more storage or use other cloud services as additional storage, connecting that storage to your Mac's Finder with CloudMounter is a good idea.

CloudMounter is a utility that helps free up space on your Mac and easily access cloud storage directly from your desktop. Connect your online storage account (such as Google Drive, Dropbox, etc.) to your Mac's Finder, CloudMounter gives you almost unlimited storage capacity and flexibility to operate the built-in hard drive.

Use CloudMounter's Connection menu to select the drive you want to install the most popular cloud as a disk. Just click on the drive you want to install, log in, view the information, click Install again, and never have to wonder "How to free up disk space on your Mac?" again.

Find and delete duplicate files

How many times have you double downloaded the same attachment because you can't remember if it's saved, or, more annoying, where did you save it? Well, all of these duplicate files are probably one of the reasons you search for how to clean up your Mac space, as they can take up up to 30% of the available storage space!

Finding and deleting duplicate files is a tedious task, and even if you sit down and do it once, you probably don't want to repeat the experience. Good news! There is a reliable duplicate file cleaner there. Try using Gemini.

Gemini can quickly find and point out duplicate files and similar files, and it is possible to free up gigabytes of space on your Mac in one cleanup. Gemini presents its discovery results with a clean interface, so it's easy to choose what you want to give up. If you end up incorrectly deleted some content, Gemini also provides secure file recovery!

Here is how to clean up Mac disk space using Gemini:

1. Launch the application and click the large button
2. Select the Mac folder or section to scan and click Select
3. Click Scan Duplicates

Delete temporary files

The Mac's operating system relies on creating temporary files to run correctly. When that data plays a role in helping your Mac perform smoothly on day-to-day performance, it will hibernate on your device and can take up a lot of space.

Here is how to clean up your Mac storage by deleting temporary files:

1. Go to Finder ➙ Go to ➙ Go to Folder
2. Enter ~/Library/Caches/ and press Enter
3. Drag and drop cache folder to trash

However, be aware of what you deleted, as there is always a risk of deleting the wrong folder. But if you don't want to take this risk, you can have a professional cleanup app like CleanMyMac do the job for you.

CleanMyMac is designed to help you speed up and protect your Mac by running instant system cleaning, uninstalling and updating applications, removing malware, and erasing files of any size. CleanMyMac can delete up to 74GB of junk files on average. Does this seem impossible? Try it and take a look at it yourself!

Here is how to free up space on your Mac by automatically deleting temporary files:

1. Start CleanMyMac and click the System Junk tab in the sidebar
2. Click Scan, wait for the scan to complete, and then click Clean

Empty downloads and trash bins

This suggestion may sound too obvious, but the reality is that we often forget to process our Downloads and Trash folders that keep accumulating files that take up Mac disk space.

Here is how to clean up your Mac storage by cleaning the Downloads folder:

1. Go to Finder ➙ Download
2. Select the file you want to delete, right-click and select Move to Trash

Now you can right-click on the trash icon and select Empty Trash. You can also automate this process so that files stored in the Trash folder that are longer than 30 days will be automatically deleted permanently. The method is as follows:

1. Click Finder in the menu bar
2. Go to "Settings..." ➙ "Advanced"
3. Check "Delete items from trash after 30 days"

Please read also:

• macOS system data is too large
• Create a shared folder on your Mac
• Download from Google Drive
• Quitall tutorial

Clean your desktop

You might think a messy desktop will only affect your personal productivity, but it can actually have a negative impact on your Mac's performance. All screenshots, random downloads, and other miscellaneous files scattered on the desktop can accumulate to take up hundreds of megabytes of wasted storage space on your Mac.

Check your screen, move or delete files you no longer need, and if you want to maximize efficiency, here is how to free up disk space on your Mac by getting rid of the largest files on your desktop:

1. Go to Finder ➙ Desktop
2. Under the View section, select List
3. Sort items by size and delete the largest files

This is a great way to manually free up space on your Mac, but there is also a way to organize and manage your desktop with a file organizer like Spotless.

Spotless is an application that sorts files the way you want to organize. You just need to use the simple settings window to create rules to determine how you want to group files and folders, and then let Spotless do the rest for you. Experience the magic of automatic schedule cleaning. You decide the time and Spotless will complete its sorting tasks as you continue to work. Also, you no longer have to worry about losing files during the cleaning process!

If “homeless” notes and screenshots are the main sources of your desktop chaos, you need to try Unclutter.

Unclutter can be used as both a fully-featured memo assistant or as a powerful desktop sticky note application, which gives you unlimited clipboard copy-paste functionality, and a clean place to store all your temporary notes. Unclutter's tools are unified in a handy window, ranging from fast full-text search and clipboard history tracking to temporary storage for drag-and-drop file management and merges.

Uninstall unused applications

In 2022, the number of applications installed by Mac users on their devices grew to 37. Meanwhile, the average number of apps used per day is only 13, of which 10 are pre-installed Mac applications.

If you want to know how to free up space on your Mac, it's time to evaluate your app situation and uninstall an app you no longer need by dragging it to the trash. Note, however, that this action does not delete any hidden files associated with the application, such as logs and crash reports. To delete these files, you need to dig deeper into your Mac's operating system, or simply use CleanMyMac's uninstaller module. The method is as follows:

1. Start the application
2. Click Uninstall Programs under Applications
3. Scroll through the list of applications you are not using and select the application you want to delete completely
4. Click Uninstall

Clear the browser cache

Every time you visit a new page, any internet browser creates a cache to load it faster when you access it again. This will improve your browsing experience, but over time, cache piles in your browser folders start to affect your Mac's disk space.

Here is how to clean up Mac storage by deleting the browser cache in Safari:

1. Open your browser and click on the Safari drop-down menu
2. Go to Settings ➙ Advanced
3. Select the "Show the Development Menu in the Menu Bar" check box
4. Open the Development menu and click Clear Cache

If you are using Chrome, follow these steps:

1. Open the browser and click the three dots in the upper right corner
2. Go to "More Tools" ➙ "Clear browsing data..."
3. Select the checkbox next to "Cookies and other site data" and "Cached images and files"
4. Click Clear Data

There is also a faster way to clear caches in any and all browsers using CleanMyMac. Simply go to the application's "Protection" module, select one or all listed browsers, check the items you want to clear, and select "Delete".

Delete spam and email attachments

If your personal and professional life involves a lot of email communication and your Mac has insufficient disk space, you should go to your Mail app and delete unnecessary attachments and spam.

Every attachment you open will remain on your Mac forever, taking up gigabytes of storage. So, here is how to delete these attachments:

1. Open the Mail app and go to Preferences
2. Find the option "Delete Unedited Downloads" in the General tab
3. Select "After Delete Mail"

To delete spam, simply click the Accounts tab in Mail's Preferences, find the Delete Spam Options and set it to "One Month After".

Tip If you want to enhance the security and organization of your email, try Canary Mail. Canary Mail integrates all email accounts, allowing you to manage them in one place. What are the benefits of this app? it:

• Organize all emails with attachments and allow you to quickly delete unnecessary emails.
• Use artificial intelligence to help you draft emails, summarize information, and more.
• Allows you to encrypt emails for enhanced security.

Delete old backups

Backing up your iOS device on your Mac, or creating a macOS backup with Time Machine is a good habit to help protect your data, but if your Mac has trouble finding enough free storage to run smoothly, it's time to delete these old backups.

Here is how to clean up Mac disk space by deleting old iOS backups:

1. Click on the Apple icon
2. Go to "System Settings" ➙ "General"
3. Click the "Storage" tab and scroll to the "Suggestions" section
4. Click "iOS File", select the old backup and click "Delete"

If you also want to delete past Time Machine backups, follow these steps:

1. Click on the Apple icon
2. Go to System Settings ➙ “General” ➙ “Time Machine”
3. Uncheck the check box next to "Automatic backup"

You may be wondering what is a great way to protect your important files from accidental deletion now. It's time to try Get Backup Pro.

Get Backup Pro is a reliable backup utility for Mac that can withstand any kind of disaster that leads to data loss. Get Backup Pro can restore all files or selected files to any other computer in seconds using a variety of backup methods such as simple copy, cloning, incrementing, and versioning. Free up space on your Mac with a compressed backup from Get Backup Pro, which can reduce the obtained archive size by up to 60%!

If you are looking for ways to easily synchronize your data, ChronoSync Express is your application.

ChronoSync Express is a consistent tool that ensures your data is secure and updated wherever you are, as it allows you to remotely sync data with other Macs, iPads, and iPhones. Customize your sync direction and plan and preview the results with the Trial Sync option, always be confident about how and where the file moves.

FAQ: How to clean disk space on your Mac

Apart from the above-mentioned methods on how to clean up space on your Mac, here are some of the answers to the most common questions on this topic.

How do I clean my Mac to make it run faster?

Insufficient storage space can often cause slower Macs, so it is best to use one or more of the suggestions outlined in this article on how to free up space on your Mac.

Why is my Mac always full?

Usually, this is because there are too many outdated files, unused applications, old logs, caches, and system data hidden in your Mac.

How to get more disk space without deleting anything?

If you don't want to erase certain files, you can free up space on your Mac by compressing them or uploading them to cloud storage.

Unless your Mac has TB of storage, some tips for cleaning up disk space should be part of your routine to keep your device running smoothly.

If you prefer to automatically free up space on your Mac, try to quickly delete unnecessary files with CleanMyMac and Gemini while keeping all your important data intact with CloudMounter, Get Backup Pro and ChronoSync Express. Easily track and manage Mac performance with iStat Menus, perfectly organize your desktop with Spotless and Unclutter, and process emails with Canary Mail!

All of these apps are available for free via the seven-day free trial of Setapp, a expert-curated platform with over 240 effective tools for your macOS and iOS devices. Use Setapp's search capabilities to quickly find the right application for your task or use case and observe your efficiency gains!

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