So you’ve had your Mac for a while, and things don’t feel as fresh and clean as they used to? Although Macs don’t require a lot of maintenance for cleaning, those temporary files, app leftovers, and system cache do accumulate. These files may slow down your machine and take up a lot of valuable space. In this article, we share quick and easy ways to clean up your MacBook. Let’s get started!
How to clean your Mac automatically
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Here’s a simple diagram to explain the most common types of computer junk, sorted by size. Some of these, like Trash bin files, are easily reachable, while others are stored away in hidden system folders. Sadly, there’s no easy way to clear them up without special skills.
If you don’t feel like spending the next several hours cleaning your Mac manually, you can use a powerful cleaning tool CleanMyMac X to find and remove all the clutter your Mac contains. It knows which files are useless, how to find them and remove completely. CleanMyMac has everything to finish the 3-hour task of a Mac cleanup in under 5 minutes. It will even clean up the junk you didn’t know about and give your computer a speed boost.
How to clean up system storage on Mac with CleanMyMac X:
- Download CleanMyMac X for free here.
- Run the app and go to System Junk.
- Click Scan.
- Press Clean to get rid of all junk.
Done! Now your Mac looks much better!
How to Clean Mac Hard Drive Manually
If you never performed an automatic or manual system cleaning — it means that your Mac has been collecting unnecessary files and clutter for years. You can quickly clean up your Mac with these easy steps.
1. Clean up cache
You’ve probably heard “Remove your cache” as a web browser troubleshooting tip. In fact, your Mac stores a lot of information in files called caches, allowing fast access to that data and reducing the need to get it from the original source again. Unfortunately, those files take a lot of space on your Mac, and instead of speeding the things up, they slow your computer down. Therefore, if you want to give your system a boost, clean your Mac from the cache files.
There are two ways to do that: you can delete them manually or use a MacBook cleaner like CleanMyMac X to do the job for you. Of course, the second way is an easy and fast one. However, if you decide to clean up the cache manually, check out a comprehensive guide on “How to Clear Cache on a Mac.”
2. Uninstall apps you don’t use
The applications you’ve installed on your Mac take up space, of course. And over time when your Mac becomes full of different apps, it may start running slowly. How to clean MacBook? In the first place, you need to remove the apps you no longer use or need. To do this, right-click on the app you want to remove and choose Move to Bin.
![Mac Mac](/uploads/1/3/4/1/134152113/360289595.jpg)
You may be surprised to find out that sending an app to the Trash will not uninstall it completely because the app leftovers still remain on your Mac taking up a lot of storage. So, if you want to be a responsible Mac user, you need to uninstall applications the right way. Here’s a step-by-step guide on “How to Uninstall Apps on a Mac.”
Extra step: Trim down your login items
Login items are applications that run automatically upon startup. Nowadays, every second app tries to become as prominent as possible and get into your Login Items. First of all, you may not even know what they are (not all of them appear in the Dock). Secondly, such apps consume memory. That's enough reasons to get rid of extra login items you don't need.
- Open System Preferences.
- Go to Users & Groups.
- Choose your nickname on the left.
- Choose the Login Items tab.
- Check startup programs you want to remove.
- Press the “–” sign below.
You’re done.
Mac Cleanup Software
3. Clean out useless duplicates
Identical photos, music tracks you’ve added one time too many, saved and re-saved PDF files… all of that sits on your Mac and gobbles up storage. The storage that could be used for better purposes.
So how do you quickly weed them out? The fastest way is to use Gemini 2: The Duplicate Cleaner.
- Download and launch the app
- Click “Scan for Duplicates”, and watch as it quickly fetches them from different corners of your Mac.
- Once the scan is done, hit Review Results and check which copies you want to remove.
- Click Smart Cleanup to delete everything you’ve selected.
That's it. Now your Mac should be completely duplicate-free.
4. Empty the trash
Even though you’ve deleted the files, they reside in your Trash bin taking up a lot of storage on your Mac. They are just waiting to be removed completely. If you want your precious hard drive space back, you need to empty the Trash.
Here’s how to clean your MacBook from the trash:
- Click and hold on the Trash can icon in the Dock.
- Click Empty and then Empty Bin.
The process is quite simple, right? There is even a more effortless way to clear Trash. CleanMyMac X scans your Mac for junk and lets you remove all trashed files. To do that, launch CleanMyMac X and press Scan. When the scan is completed, click Review Details to see what exactly CleanMyMac X has found.
I’ve already cleaned Bin a couple of weeks before, but over some time, almost a gigabyte of trashed files has accumulated. Now, I can simply click Back to Summary and then Run to clean Trash and system junk.
5. Reduce clutter
Apple has already thought about the clutter that can be generated on the Macs and provided a possible solution. Here’s how to reduce clutter on your Mac:
- Go to the Apple menu.
- Choose About This Mac and then Storage. Here you can see how much free space is left on your computer.
- Then click Manage.
Here’re some recommendations for saving space on your Mac. You can choose Review Files to examine apps, documents, and other files that are stored on your Mac.
You can choose any file in every category (Applications, Bin, Documents, etc.) and click Delete to remove it and optimize space. Look through other recommendations and make the necessary changes to use your Mac’s space more efficiently.
6. Delete large and old files
It has always been a rule of thumb among computer geeks, that you should keep a minimum of 15-20% of free space on your main hard drive. This is just a rough estimation, but the more free space you have, the faster your Mac works. A computer magazine once performed a test on this, which concluded that the difference in speed can reach as much as 35%. If you work with heavy graphics or video rendering, even more free space is recommended.
How to have more free space? Delete large and old files.
The first way is totally manual and requires you to find them one by one, while for the second way, you just need to make two clicks and CleanMyMac X will do the job for you.
How to clean up Mac with CleanMyMac X:
- Download CleanMyMac X (a link to a free edition of the app)
- Launch the program.
- Go to the Large and Old Files section on the menu.
- Click Scan.
- Review the details, select what to clean and then click Clean.
That’s it!
7. Remove old iOS backups
Having your files backed up is a wonderful thing. But over time your Mac becomes overloaded with old backups that take gigabytes of storage on your hard drive. That’s why you should consider removing the old iOS backups you no longer need.
Each backup remains stored on your computer and is accessible via iTunes. To delete the old backups, you need to do the following:
- Choose the Apple menu and then select About This Mac.
- Go to the Storage tab and click Manage.
- Here, choose iOS Files.
- Select the backup you want to remove and click Delete.
- Confirm and you’re done!
That’s it! The backup files are gone from your Mac forever. Mac gray laundry card.
8. Wipe out Language files
Unused language localizations take up about 1 GB of storage space. Mac applications come with language files for every language they support. It allows starting using the app in that language immediately. Cool, right? Not always. Just consider: when was the last time you used the app in Bengali or Korean? Since you don’t speak those languages, such files just waste space on your Mac. You need to remove the unnecessary language files and clean MacBook from that clutter.
How to delete the language files? Go to Finder > Applications, then right-click the app which language files you want to remove and choose Show Package Contents. Open the Resources folder and then find folders ending with “.lproj.” Every folder contains language files for one particular language. Note that for every app you should manually find and select the files to remove. But there is an automatic way to delete the language files that will save you tons of time — CleanMyMac X. Just download the application (for free) and it will do the job for you.
9. Delete old DMGs
Disk images (DMGs) often take up valuable space on your Mac. Here’s how to perform a Mac cleanup and get rid of those files:
- Open Finder and type “disk image” in the search bar.
- Then delete all files that have .dmg extensions. Don’t forget to remove them from Trash as well.
CleanMyMac X allows you to locate and delete DMGs quicker. With its System Junk module you can remove unused disk image in the single click of a button:
Just press Clean and it’s done!
10. Remove duplicates
Useless copies of your documents, files, and photos eat up your Mac’s precious space. Therefore, if you wonder how to clean up a Mac and boost its performance, try to delete the duplicates. Note that the process of finding and removing the duplicates requires either a lot of patience and time (if you decide to delete them manually) or a duplicate finder app. Whatever method you choose, make sure to check out this article on “How to Find Duplicates on Mac.”
11. Tidy up your desktop
Many people use Desktop as their primary destination for files. But this could be tricky because your OS treats every file on a desktop as an active window. When items on your desktop are too many, Finder gets substantially slower. This leads us to the most compelling advice in this article — cleaning up desktop does miracles!
Rather than just leaving every file on your desktop, organize them into folders. The latest macOS does that automatically thanks to the Stacks feature. You can also use Google Drive, Dropbox or any external storage device to save your files and keep your desktop tidy.
12. Clean your Mac’s keyboard
Our last but not least advice is to wipe your Mac’s keyboard. As you use your keyboard daily, it quickly gets dirty. Moreover, all those crumbs may live under the keys forever!
If you were wondering how to clean Mac’s keyboard, there are no special rules here. You can try blowing the dust and other particles out of your keyboard once in a while. Disinfecting wipes and alcohol-based sprays may also prove useful. Just choose the piece of fabric and wipe the keys gently to make them clean and shiny!
All in all, be careful with your system files. Don’t delete things you’re not sure about. If you are not completely confident that you can manage the task by yourself, better use a dedicated utility like CleanMyMac X to get a fresh and clean Mac in just two clicks. Here's the video describing quick tips to clean up your Mac:
Happy cleaning!
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The thing that I always want to see in my Mac is the Speedy Performance. To prevent the junkies from piling up and making the computer sluggish, I make sure to eliminate the unnecessary files on a regular basis. However, tracking down the useless files and removing them is a bit time-consuming. That’s why; I take the help of the most trusted Mac cleaning software to quickly get rid of the redundant files.
Have you found your Mac running at snail’s pace? It’s high time to track down all the unwanted files and shoot them out right away to not just recover some valuable storage but also speed up the computer. Aside from purging out the useless files, many of these tools can also play a pivotal role in providing the needed safeguard to your personal info.
#1. Daisy Disk
“Daisy Disk” has been one of the most reliable Mac storage cleaners for long. It provides a visual breakdown of your disk space, thereby making it a bit easier to spot the space wasters. Therefore, capturing and purging unwanted files becomes pretty straightforward.
One notable feature of this software is the ability to scan multiple disks not just accurately but also fast. With the integrated QuickLook features, it lets you easily preview file content.
Besides, you can use Daisy Disk in several languages including English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Polish, Russian, Simplified Chinese, and more.
Mac Cleaning Apps Free
Price: $9.99
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Download
#2. CleanMyMac
“CleanMyMac” is second to none when it comes to wiping out the redundant files with ease. This software scans your entire system and suggests you clean up the files depending on their usability.
It also recommends you to delete all the useless contents related to an application. Hence, you don’t have to spend much time to track down what’s killing the storage.
With just a click, you can remove the entire unnecessary files including the large mail attachments, duplicate photos, cache, etc. and be able to recover plenty of valuable storage.
Price: Free
Download
Download
#3. OS Cleaner Master
Having put my hands on “OS Cleaner Master” and used it to flush out the junk files with ease, I can tell that this Mac cleaner works well. The app allows you to track down the redundant data and lets you get rid of them fast.
Plus, you can use the OS Cleaner Master to keep an eye on the CPU, storage, and memory. Take advantage of the adware doctor to nab the adware and malware. Keep a close watch on the app information like its version and size.
Check out the crashed apps and also find out the firewall status. Besides, you have the option to upgrade this Mac cleaner to unlock several useful features like removing mail attachments, duplicate, and large files.
Price: Free
Download
Download
#4. OnyX
No list of top Mac cleaning software would be complete without OnyX. It’s been a highly trusted and efficient tool for deleting the useless files and keeping the computer clutter-free.
Mac Cleanup Tools
You can use this tool to quickly nab all the problematic files and folders that need to be purged soon. Having given it a long spin, I can say that it can live up to the demand fairly well.
One notable feature of this software is the accuracy with which it unearths junkies. That means there is less chance for the clutters to survive!
Price: Free
Download
Download
#5. Disk Inventory X
Disk Inventory X is a lightweight software but very efficient in getting rid of the unneeded files. It’s up to the mark in scanning the disk and displaying the usage in the treemap format.
Thus, you are able to have a close look at all the files and folders that are of no use. And once you have tracked down the less important files, deleting them all is dead simple. You will really appreciate its simplicity.
Price: Free
Download
Download
#6. MacCleanse
With “MacCleanse”, you are looking at an all-in-one solution. Sudo sh cd app_directory npm install in mac. This software works with high proficiency in erasing various types of files like caches, empty logs, cookies, web histories. You will be able to locate useless and old files and clear them immediately.
MacCleanse comes with a unique feature that lets you instantly find out the unnecessary contents from a respective app. The software also offers detailed information about each file it deletes. Furthermore, it claims to delete files with the US Department of Defense level security.
Price: $19.99
Download
Download
#7. EaseUS CleanGenius
Retrieve the precious disk space by wiping out the large files. “EaseUS CleanGenius” can keep your Mac clutter-free and also boost its performance.
This cleaner app scans through the entire computer to find out the system logs, caches, along with all the files that are hogging tons of storage. You can navigate through the storage hogging files and remove the ones that are useless or need to be cleaned up.
The app also lets you get rid of browser plug-ins, extensions, and cookies. However, it keeps the browsing history, bookmarks, as well as the downloaded files.
Price: $9.99
Download
Download
Mac Cleanup Apps
#8. CCleaner
CCleaner can work exceptionally well in reducing the clutter of your Mac and making it run smoothly. Apart from letting you get rid of junkies and unused files, the software can also help you quickly spot the storage hogging apps.
This tool offers you the desired flexibility to pick and choose exactly what you want to keep or remove. After you have discovered the unwanted files, eliminating them all will hardly take a click or two.
CCleaner also wipes out the browser history to safeguard your personal history. As a result, you will be able to safely browse the web.
The free version of the app comes with limitation and you have to buy its premium version (around $30) to use all the features.
Price: Free
Download
Download
#9. App Cleaner & Uninstaller
App Cleaner & Uninstaller is a fully-featured Mac cleaning tool. The quality that makes it exceptionally user-friendly is the ability to spot all the temporary files and leftovers of the apps you have already deleted. Thus, you are able to wipe out all the useless data that has cluttered the device or threatening to do so.
You can preview all the installed apps and extensions and be able to quickly remove the ones that are no longer needed. Check out login items and remove them if they are of no use.
Turn off launch agents and startup items to expedite the speed of the device. Furthermore, you can use it to take control of all of your files and optimize your Mac’s performance to run smoothly.
Price: Free/$19.90
Download
Download
And that’s it, folks!
What’s your favorite cleaning tool?
Assuming you have found the right storage cleaner for your macOS device? Which one is it and what are the qualities you have found appreciable in it? It would be great to know your feedback in the comments.
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Jignesh Padhiyar is the co-founder of iGeeksBlog.com who has a keen eye for news, rumors and all the unusual stuff that happens around Apple products. During his tight schedule, Jignesh finds some moments of respite to share side-splitting contents on social media.
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