macOS already includes the tools you need to inspect disk space, caches, logs, running processes, installer receipts, and common developer storage. The commands on this page do not delete files.
First, know what you are looking at
Neither is the same as your documents, photos, or project files—but that does not make every item inside automatically disposable.
Cache
Examples include downloaded images, previews, indexes, and compiled data. Most applications rebuild their caches, so the next launch may be slower and some data may be downloaded again. A poorly behaved app can still put important state in a cache folder, so recovery is never guaranteed.
Log
Logs help diagnose crashes, errors, and unusual behavior. Applications usually create new logs after old ones are removed, but the old diagnostic history is gone once Trash is emptied.
Terminal is already installed on every Mac. Open it once, then use the Copy buttons below. You do not need to type the commands yourself.
This opens Spotlight Search.
Choose the Terminal app, then press Return.
Use the Copy button beside the task you want.
The command runs and prints a result or opens Finder.
Already decided? Use the fast path
Quit every application, use the two Copy buttons below, and run each command in Terminal. In each Finder window, press ⌘A to select the contents, then ⌘Delete to move them to Trash. Do not move the Caches or Logs parent folder itself.
open "$HOME/Library/Caches"Quit your applications first. In Finder, select the contents—not the Caches folder itself.
open "$HOME/Library/Logs"Logs are diagnostic history. Select the contents—not the Logs folder itself.
Start with read-only commands. A large or old file is not automatically disposable.
Open folders in Finder and move only items you recognize. Trash lets you restore them.
This guide intentionally contains no sudo, rm, or automatic cleanup command.
The actual cleanup
Once you know what an item belongs to and have decided you do not need it, the cleanup itself is a Finder action.
Close the application that owns the cache or log.
Use an open command from this guide to reveal it in Finder.
Select only a child file or folder you recognize—not the parent Library folder.
Press Command–Delete or choose File → Move to Trash in Finder.
Reopen the app and check your work before emptying Trash.
01 · Start here
These commands report disk usage. They do not delete or move anything.
df -h /Shows the startup disk in human-readable units.
du -hd 1 "$HOME" 2>/dev/null | sort -hMay take a while on a large Home folder. Permission-blocked paths are omitted.
du -sh "/path/to/folder" 2>/dev/nullReplace /path/to/folder with a path you want to inspect.
02 · Common storage
Measure first, then open the folders in Finder. Do not move the entire Caches or Logs folder itself.
du -sh "$HOME/Library/Caches" "$HOME/Library/Logs" 2>/dev/nullReports the observed size of the two folders without changing them.
open "$HOME/Library/Caches"Finder opens the folder. Nothing is selected or moved automatically.
open "$HOME/Library/Logs"Quit the related application before moving one of its recognized folders.
find "$HOME/Library/Caches" -type f -mtime +30 -print 2>/dev/nullAge alone does not mean a file is junk. This can print a long list.
Caution: A folder named Cache can still contain active state. If you do not recognize the owning application, leave it alone.
03 · Files you control
These are often the simplest places to recover space because the decision belongs to you.
open "$HOME/Downloads"Sort by Size or Date Last Opened in Finder and review the files yourself.
find "$HOME/Downloads" -type f -mtime +90 -print 2>/dev/nullThis is only an age filter. It does not determine whether a file is important.
du -sh "$HOME/.Trash" 2>/dev/nullFiles in Trash still use disk space until Trash is emptied.
open "$HOME/.Trash"Review or restore items before emptying Trash.
04 · Activity
Process lists are observations, not instructions to terminate anything.
ps -axo pid,ppid,%cpu,rss,commRSS is reported in kilobytes. Helper processes may belong to a larger application.
lsof "/path/to/file"Replace the example path. No output usually means no matching open handle was observed.
05 · macOS evidence
Receipts describe installed package payloads. They do not prove that every listed file still exists or is safe to remove.
pkgutil --pkgs | sortCopy a package ID from this list for the next command.
pkgutil --files "com.example.package"Replace the example with an exact package ID. Keep the quotation marks.
mdfind "your search"Replace the search text. Results depend on Spotlight indexing and privacy settings.
06 · Developer and AI storage
The commands below inspect tools only when those tools or folders exist. They do not prune images, models, packages, or environments.
brew --cacheRequires Homebrew. This prints the cache path; it does not clean it.
du -sh "$(brew --cache)" 2>/dev/nullRequires Homebrew. Measure the result before deciding what to do.
docker system dfRequires Docker. Volumes may contain databases or other working data.
ollama listRequires Ollama. Models are working assets, not automatic cleanup candidates.
du -sh "$HOME/.ollama" 2>/dev/nullReports the observed size of Ollama's local folder when present.
du -sh "$HOME/.cache/huggingface" 2>/dev/nullMay include downloaded models, datasets, references, and incomplete transfers.
du -sh "$HOME/Library/Developer/Xcode/DerivedData" "$HOME/Library/Developer/CoreSimulator" 2>/dev/nullSimulator storage can contain app data. Treat it as working data until reviewed.
du -sh "$HOME/.npm" "$HOME/Library/pnpm/store" 2>/dev/nullA missing path is simply omitted. Project dependencies live elsewhere too.
Caution: Do not run Docker prune, model removal, package cleanup, or Xcode deletion commands until you understand what will be rebuilt and what cannot be recovered.
du can report that a directory occupies 17 GB. It does not prove who owns every file, whether some storage is shared, whether another application is using it, or whether all 17 GB would become free.
find can match a name or age. A matching name is not ownership evidence, and age is not proof that a file is junk.
If you recognize the item and understand the consequence, use Finder and Trash. If you do not, stop. Keeping an uncertain file costs less than losing working data.
If you would rather not do this by hand
Everything above is free and always will be. What it cannot give you is a second opinion: the same folder can be a rebuildable cache on one Mac and active working state on another. CleanDeck scans the same locations and labels each item Ready, Review first, or Protected — showing the path and the reason before anything moves. It moves items to the Trash rather than deleting them, asks for no sudo password, installs no background daemon, and keeps what it finds on your Mac.
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