How to free up storage on a MacBook

Do you also need to create some free space on your Mac but do not know how to create storage space on your Mac?

SSDs make computers extremely fast. Due to the high cost of storage space (hard drives), base iMacs and MacBooks still come with a small 256GB SSD. It is interesting to note that upgrading the system to a larger SSD costs hundreds of dollars. As a result, it is best to make the most of the storage space available on your Mac. In this article, we will look at several ways to create free space in macOS.

If you have a shortage of storage space, you should look at the following seven methods and look at the steps that can be taken to free up storage space. That way, the next time you download a large file, your Mac will not display the scary “Your disk is almost full” banner. So be sure to study the following seven methods carefully.

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1) Empty the trash

Did you know that macOS does not automatically remove items from the Recycle Bin?

It is possible that you only have a few gigabytes of data in your system trash. To empty it, right-click on the Trash icon and select Empty Trash. It is good to know that after deleting the data, you can no longer access it. Follow these steps to empty the trash automatically according to the schedule:

First, enter the Finder.
Then click on Preferences and select Advanced.
Now enable the Remove items from the Trash after 30 option. simply!

2) Remove additional programs

The second way to create storage space on a Mac is to remove extra programs. If you’ve always been a fan of tech websites and the latest apps, you might want to try the new Mac apps. Sometimes after downloading a program and not being satisfied with it, we postpone deleting it to another time and in fact forget about it completely. This also fills the space.

In such cases, we suggest that you download a free application called AppCleaner. AppCleaner is the best way to delete apps on Mac because it automatically deletes all the unwanted files related to the apps as well. To do this, open AppCleaner. Check the list of all available programs and click the Remove button for any programs you no longer need.

If you’re using macOS Sierra and later, you’ll probably be happy to know that macOS has an built – in storage management feature. In this version of Mac and newer versions, follow the steps below, respectively. These steps are:

A) Click the Apple icon in the menu bar. Now select the About This Mac option and go to the Storage section. From this section, click on Manage.

B) Click the Applications button. You will see a list of all programs that are sorted by the memory they occupy. Now select any program you want to delete and click Delete.

C) Program and master plan data are sent to the Recycle Bin. Finally empty the trash to create storage space on your Mac.

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3) Delete large files

From the Storage Management window mentioned above, click on the Documents option. In this section you will see a list of all the files in your system that are sorted from large to small. The best way to free up some storage space is to delete some large and actually heavy files. Selecting hundreds of small files takes a long time, and in the end they may not create a good storage space!

To delete a large file, click on it and press the Delete button. If you have storage on your Dropbox or Google Drive account, you can move the file to your cloud storage to free up storage space on your Mac. When large files get out of the way, a huge amount of storage space is created on your system.

macOS makes this easier for you. At the top of the Documents section, you will see two options, Downloads and File Browser for sorting files. The downloads section gives you files and folders older than three months, six months and a year. So you can browse for files that you have not had access to for a long time and decide whether you want to get rid of them or not!

The File Browser section is actually a storage management tool. You can browse the entire storage system of your device and find the files or folders you want to delete.

Method number three is a common method used by many people.

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4) Delete old iTunes files and iOS backups

If you back up your iPhone or iPad to your Mac, you should be aware that backups may take up several gigabytes of storage space on your system. In the Storage Management section, click on the iOS Files section. If you want to delete the backup of your iOS device, click on it and press the Delete button.

Similarly, if you are using an older Mac, you can delete iTunes application data from the iTunes section. Movies, TV shows and audiobooks are shown in this section. In the new Mac you will also find separate sections for things like music and podcasts.

5) Take a look at cloud storage applications

If you use Dropbox or Google Drive to sync your Mac files with the cloud, be sure to check all the files. Cloud sync services tend to download all data to your Mac by default.

If you are using Dropbox, go to the Selective Sync feature. This lets you choose which folders and files to download to your Mac drive. Now go to Preferences> Sync and click the Choose Folders to Sync button. Delete any folders you do not need from this list. Remember that you can always access your Dropbox data from your site or mobile app.

6) Manage storage space in Photos app

If you’re paying for a 50GB or 200GB iCloud Drive, use the Optimize Storage feature for Photos. The Optimize Storage feature in Photos works just like the iPhone. Instead of holding all the iCloud photos on the device, it keeps only the latest photos and low resolution images on your device.

Of course, it is good to know that if necessary, your computer will download the photos from iCloud. This small feature can help you reduce the size of your photos from hundreds of gigabytes to just a few gigabytes. To do this, follow the steps below. These steps are:

First, open the Photos app.
Now enter the Preferences section.
Click iCloud and go to iCloud Photos.
Finally, turn on the Optimize Storage option.

7) Save the files in iCloud

The Store in iCloud feature automatically backs up all the information in your desktop folders and stores only the most recent files on your system. If needed, you can download old files with the push of a button.

Although this is a regular and fast feature, it is not the safest option! If your important work files are stored in the Documents folder, we recommend that you do not use this feature; But for most users, enabling this feature can create good storage space on the Mac. To enable it, open the Storage Management page and click the Store in iCloud button in the Recommendations section.

Conclusion

Creating storage space on a Mac is not difficult at all. Now that you have some free storage space, you can use your Mac to do different things. Follow these steps from time to time and do not worry about the low storage space of your device. Some of the above methods may be a little time consuming, but they will definitely help you a lot to create storage space on your Mac. As a result, do not neglect to do these seven methods in any way.

What other ways do you know to create storage on your Mac? Share your comments and experiences with us and other Wironal users.

Source: MakeUseOf