Help · Mac storage

How to clear the cache on a Mac.

By Grant and Brad, who make Pangalin's apps · Updated 11 October 2026

Caches are files apps keep so things load faster next time: web pages, thumbnails, downloaded updates. Clearing them is safe for most apps, and can free a few gigabytes. But apps rebuild them as you use them, so the space partly comes back. Clearing caches is a tidy-up, not a cure for a full disk.

Clear a browser's cache

Use the browser's own setting. It's the safest way, and you can keep your sign-ins.

• Safari: choose Safari › Settings › Advanced, tick Show features for web developers, then choose Develop › Empty Caches.
• Chrome: Chrome › Delete Browsing Data…, choose Cached images and files only, then Delete data.
• Firefox: Firefox › Settings › Privacy & Security › Cookies and Site Data › Clear Data…, tick only Temporary cached files and pages.

Clear app caches in your Library

1. Quit the apps whose caches you're clearing. Clearing a cache while its app is open can confuse it.
2. In Finder choose Go › Go to Folder… (⇧⌘G), type ~/Library/Caches and press Return.
3. Switch to list view (⌘2), turn on View › Show View Options › Calculate all sizes, and sort by Size.
4. Open a big folder named after an app you recognise (for example com.spotify.client or Google) and move what's inside it to the Trash. Leave the folder itself.
5. Restart your Mac, then empty the Trash.

Leave Apple's caches alone (folders starting com.apple.). Some, such as Photos' face and scene analysis, take hours to rebuild and keep your Mac busy while they do. Others protect you, like Safari's safe-browsing list. And never delete the Caches folder itself, or anything in /Library/Caches or /System.

Why the space comes back

That's what caches are for. A browser rebuilds its cache as you browse, a music app re-caches what you play. If one app's cache keeps growing to many gigabytes, check its settings for a cache size limit (Spotify, Steam and many video apps have one) rather than clearing it every week.

What about “system junk”?

Logs and temporary files are usually small, and macOS cleans them itself. Restarting clears much of the temporary space. If your disk is genuinely full, the big wins are usually elsewhere: see how to find large files and what to do when your disk is almost full.