How To Free Up Storage On Mac

Have you noticed that there is not enough free storage on your MacBook’s drive? If so, do not expect that this problem will solve itself.

1. How To Free Up Storage On Mac Laptop
2. How Do I Free Up Storage On My Mac

To free up disk space, it’s helpful to know exactly what is using disk space on your Mac. A hard disk analysis tool like Disk Inventory X will scan your Mac’s hard disk and display which folders and files are using up the most space. Aug 23, 2021 You will then be greeted by the files on your Mac that are taking up the most storage from the largest in size down to the smallest in size. You can select what you would like to delete from here to free up storage on your Mac. Simply highlight the file that you would like to delete and then click on the Delete button in the lower right-hand.

Despite its many advantages, Macs are not the best when it comes to total available storage. The issue becomes even more problematic if you purchase a cheaper model with a small solid-state drive.

Some might think that lackluster drive space is enough to avoid MacBooks altogether. Well, the reality is quite different. Apple computers continue to be quite popular, and the lack of drive space is not enough of a problem to disrupt the status quo.

There are plenty of ways to deal with storage problems on a computer. If you wish to know how to avoid cluttering your Mac and have it run optimally, the ideas below should come in quite handy.

Get Rid of Old Apps

Let’s start with applications. Since there are so many great apps on the official Mac App Store, you must have installed quite a few yourself. However, there should be some applications that you have not used for a while.

If so, do not hesitate and remove them from the MacBook. Since your goal is to free up the drive’s space, the data you no longer need should go. And in case you decide to use a deleted application in the future, you can download it later.

Keep Tabs on Language Files

Some apps come with redundant language support. Since you need only the English version and maybe one other language, keeping files that translate software into 60 or more languages makes no sense, right?

Look through the applications you have installed and make sure that there is no redundant language pack data. If you find any, do not hesitate and remove them from the system.

Avoid Malware

Cybersecurity threats may find their way into your MacBook and start consuming drive space without you realizing what is happening. In some cases, even reliable antivirus software is not enough to prevent the issue.

Be more mindful about what links you click. It might be worth installing an ad blocker browser extension to prevent aggressive pop-ups and other advertisements that might redirect you to a malware-infected landing page.

Using a virtual private network is another great piece of advice. VPNs cost only a few dollars a month, but they offer both privacy and security online.

Remove Temporary Data

According to this original post about lacking storage space to install macOS Big Sur, getting rid of temporary system storage is one of the most effective methods to free up the drive’s space.

How To Free Up Storage On Mac Laptop

Also, you do not need to remove this data manually. Instead, get a cleanup utility tool like CleanMyMac X. The software removes unwanted system junk automatically, saving you time.

And since you will want to get rid of app cache, plugins, extensions, old system backups, and other unnecessary data regularly, investing in such a tool is worth it.

Delete Downloads

Downloads might take more drive space than you expect. Some people forget about downloading files online and leave them in the download folder. Email attachments are a good example of this. By default, email attachments you double-click on get saved on the computer.

There are two ways to approach the download folder. The first is two remember to delete its files regularly. The second is to switch the default download location.

You could save downloaded files on the desktop. Doing so would let you notice the files and remove them when they become useless. After all, you do not wish to clutter your Mac’s desktop with random documents or shortcuts.

Invest in an External HDD

An external hard drive costs about 50 dollars at most. It is a neat investment that you can use to free up the drive’s space. Keeping data on a hard drive is quite common among Mac owners.

Another advantage of having an external HDD is the option to back up the MacBook’s data by combining the device with Time Machine.

Transfer Files to iCloud

Similar to an external hard drive, you could also transfer files to iCloud. The default service plan offers five gigabytes of storage with an option to extend it by paying a monthly fee. There are three different available plans: 50GB for one dollar a month, 200GB for three dollars a month, and 2TB for ten dollars a month.

Stick to Streaming for Media Consumption

If movies, TV shows, and music are causing you the most problems because you like to hoard media files on the computer, why not take advantage of the available streaming services?

Netflix, Disney+, and Hulu are just a few examples of streaming services that offer hours of entertainment. Subscribing to such platforms will help you free up the MacBook’s drive space and provide a more convenient way to consume media.

The Optimised Storage features of your Mac help you save storage space by storing your content in iCloud and making it available on demand:

• When storage space is needed, files, photos, films, email attachments and other files that you rarely use are stored in iCloud automatically.
• Each file stays exactly where you last saved it, and will be downloaded when you open it.
• Files that you’ve used recently remain on your Mac, along with optimised versions of your photos.

If you haven't yet upgraded to macOS Sierra or later, find out about other ways to free up storage space.

Find out how much storage is available on your Mac

Choose Apple menu  > About This Mac and then click Storage. Each segment of the bar is an estimate of the storage space used by a category of files. Move your pointer over each segment for more detail.

Click the Manage button to open the Storage Management window, pictured below.

Manage storage on your Mac

The Storage Management window offers recommendations for optimising your storage. If some recommendations have already been turned on, you will see fewer recommendations.

Store in iCloud

Click the Store in iCloud button and then choose from these options:

• Desktop and Documents. Store all files from these two locations in iCloud Drive. When storage space is needed, only the files you've opened recently will be kept on your Mac, so you can work offline easily. Files stored only in iCloud display a download icon , which you can double-click to download the original file. Learn more about this feature.
  
• Photos. Store all original, full-resolution photos and videos in iCloud Photos. When storage space is needed, only space-saving (optimised) versions of photos are kept on your Mac. To download the original photo or video, just open it.
  
• Messages. Store all messages and attachments in iCloud. When storage space is needed, only the messages and attachments you recently opened are kept on your Mac. Find out more about Messages in iCloud.

Storing files in iCloud uses the storage space in your iCloud storage plan. If you reach or exceed your iCloud storage limit, you can either buy more iCloud storage or make more iCloud storage available. iCloud storage starts at 50 GB for US$0.99 a month, and you can purchase additional storage directly from your Apple device. Find out more about the prices in your region.

Optimise Storage

Click the Optimise button to save space by automatically removing films and TV programmes you've watched. When storage space is needed, films or TV programmes that you've purchased from Apple and have already watched will be removed from your Mac. Click the download icon next to a film or TV programme to download it again.

Your Mac will also save space by only keeping recent email attachments on this Mac when storage space is needed. You can manually download any attachments at any time by opening the email or attachment, or saving the attachment to your Mac.

Optimising storage for films, TV programmes and email attachments doesn't require iCloud storage space.

Empty Bin Automatically

Empty Bin Automatically permanently deletes files that have been in the Bin for more than 30 days.

Reduce Clutter

Reduce Clutter helps you identify large files and files you may no longer need. Click the Review Files button and then choose any of the file categories in the sidebar, such as Applications, Documents, Music Creation or Bin.

You can delete the files in some categories directly from this window. Other categories show the total storage space used by the files in each app. You can then open the app and decide whether to delete files from within it.

Find out how to re-download apps, music, films, TV programmes and books.

Where to find the settings for each feature

The button for each recommendation in the Storage Management window affects one or more settings in other apps. You can also control these settings directly within each app.

• If you're using macOS Catalina or later, choose Apple menu  > System Preferences, click Apple ID and then select iCloud in the sidebar: store in iCloud will turn on the Optimise Mac Storage setting on the right. To turn off iCloud Drive entirely, deselect iCloud Drive.
• If you're using macOS Mojave or earlier, choose Apple menu > System Preferences, click iCloud, then click Options next to iCloud Drive. Store in iCloud turns on the Desktop & Documents Folders and Optimise Mac Storage settings.
• In Photos, choose Photos > Preferences and then click iCloud. Store in iCloud selects iCloud Photos and Optimise Mac Storage.
• In Messages, choose Messages > Preferences, then click iMessage. Store in iCloud selects Enable Messages in iCloud.

• If you're using macOS Catalina or later, open the Apple TV app, choose TV > Preferences from the menu bar, then click Files. Optimise Storage selects “Automatically delete watched films and TV programmes”.
• If you're using macOS Mojave or earlier, open iTunes, choose iTunes > Preferences from the menu bar, then click Advanced. Optimise Storage selects “Automatically delete watched films and TV programmes”.
• In Mail, choose Mail > Preferences from the menu bar and then click Accounts. In the Account Information section on the right, Optimise Storage sets the Download Attachments menu to either Recent or None.

Empty Bin Automatically: From the Finder, choose Finder > Preferences, then click Advanced. Empty Bin Automatically selects “Remove items from the Bin after 30 days”.

Other ways that macOS automatically helps to save space

With macOS Sierra or later, your Mac will take these additional steps automatically to save storage space:

• Detects duplicate downloads in Safari, keeping only the most recent version of the download
• Reminds you to delete used app installers
• Removes old fonts, languages and dictionaries that aren't being used
• Clears caches, logs and other unnecessary data when storage space is needed

How to free up storage space manually

Even without using the Optimised Storage features described in this article, you can take other steps to make more storage space available:

• Music, films and other media can use a lot of storage space. Learn how to delete music, films and TV programmes from your device.
• Delete other files that you no longer need by moving them to the Bin, then emptying the Bin. The Downloads folder is good place to look for files that you may no longer need.
• Move files to an external storage device.
• Compress files.
• Delete unneeded email: In the Mail app, choose Mailbox > Erase Junk Mail. If you no longer need the email in your Deleted Items mailbox, choose Mailbox > Erase Deleted Items.

Learn more

How Do I Free Up Storage On My Mac

• The Storage pane of About This Mac is the best way to determine the amount of storage space available on your Mac. Disk Utility and other apps may display storage categories, such as Not Mounted, VM, Recovery, Other Volumes, Other, Free or Purgeable. Don't rely on these categories to understand how to free up storage space or how much storage space is available for your data.
• When you duplicate a file on an APFS-formatted volume, that file won't use additional storage space on the volume. Deleting a duplicate file only frees up the space required by any data that you might have added to the duplicate. If you no longer need any copies of the file, you can recover all of the storage space by deleting both the duplicate and the original file.
• If you're using a pro app and Optimise Mac Storage, find out how to make sure your projects are always on your Mac and that you're able to access their files.