To find large files on a Mac, open System Settings › General › Storage, click the information button next to Documents, then click Large Files. You get a list of the biggest files in your home folder that you can sort by size or by when you last opened them.
For more control, search in Finder: press Command-F, add File Size as a criterion, and ask for files greater than, say, 1 GB. Add Last opened date and you have a list of large files you haven't touched in years.
Finding them is the quick part. Deciding what to keep is where people lose things. A large file is often a video of an event, a project archive or a virtual machine, and it may be the only copy you have.
This post covers every way macOS lets you find large files, where the big ones usually hide, how to tell what each one is, and how to move, archive or remove it without regret.
Find large files on a Mac with Storage settings
Storage settings has a ready-made list of large files. It's the quickest place to start, as long as you know what it covers and what its Delete button does.
How do you open the Large Files list?
- Choose Apple menu › System Settings, click General, then click Storage.
- Wait until the categories stop showing Calculating….
- Click the information button next to Documents.
- Click Large Files.
Click a column heading to sort: Name, Kind, Last Accessed or Size. Sort by size first to see the biggest, then by last accessed to see which of them you've left alone the longest.
The steps are the same in macOS 27 Golden Gate and macOS 26 Tahoe. Before macOS Ventura, the same list was in About This Mac › Storage › Manage, under Documents.
What does the File Browser show?
The File Browser button in the same window shows your folders with how much each one holds. Click a folder to open it and see what's inside, largest first if you sort by size.
Folders and files that already belong to another category, such as the Photos library or iPhone backups, appear dimmed. They're counted elsewhere, and the File Browser leaves them to their own category.
Why shouldn't you click Delete there?
Because it skips the Trash. When you select a file and click Delete, macOS asks to confirm, then says the item will be deleted immediately and that you can't undo it.
That's fine for a file you're sure about. For anything else, click Show in Finder, then move the file to the Trash there. You can put it back until you empty the Trash, and that's worth having for a file of several gigabytes.
What doesn't the Large Files list include?
It lists files in the Documents category only. Apple defines that as files in your home folder that aren't included in other categories, including photos and videos that aren't in your Photos library.
So it leaves out several of the largest things on a typical Mac. iPhone backups are under iOS Files, the Photos library under Photos, attachments under Messages and Mail, and caches, virtual machines and developer files land in System Data, which you can't open at all.
Search for large files in Finder
Finder's search can filter by size, by date and by kind, and save the result as a folder that stays up to date. It takes a minute to set up and works on any folder or disk.
How do you search by file size?
- Open a Finder window and press Command-F.
- Make sure This Mac is selected next to Search, unless you only want the current folder.
- Click the first pop-up menu, which says Kind, and choose Other….
- Select File Size in the list, then click OK.
- Choose is greater than, type a number, and choose MB or GB.
Results update as you set the criteria. Choose View › as List and click the Size column heading to put the largest first. If there's no Size column, Control-click any column heading and choose Size.
A threshold of 1 GB is a good start on most Macs. If that finds nothing useful, try 500 MB; if it finds hundreds of files, try 5 GB.
How do you find large files you haven't opened in a long time?
Click the add button at the end of the size row to add a second row. Choose Other… again, select Last opened date, and set it to is before a date, such as one from two years ago.
A file must match every row to appear, so the list now holds only large files you haven't opened since then. Old screen recordings, exported videos and disk images from finished projects tend to show up here.
One catch: a file you downloaded or copied but never opened may have no last-opened date at all, and then it won't match. Run the search once more with Created date or Last modified date instead to catch those.
Can you narrow the search to one kind of file?
Yes. Add a Kind row and choose Movie, Archive, Image or another kind. For disk images and installer packages, add a Name row instead and look for names that contain .dmg or .pkg.
Combining rows is where search beats Storage settings. Movies over 2 GB, archives over 500 MB, or anything over 1 GB not opened in two years each take one search.
How do you keep the search for next time?
Click Save below the search field. Finder saves it as a Smart Folder, and with Add To Sidebar selected it appears in the sidebar. Open it any time and it searches again, so the list stays current without you doing anything.
A Smart Folder is only a saved search. Removing a file from it in Finder moves the real file to the Trash, and deleting the Smart Folder itself removes nothing but the search.
Why doesn't Finder's search find everything?
Finder searches with Spotlight's index, so it only finds what Spotlight has indexed. Three things leave files out:
- System files. They're left out unless you add the System files criterion and set it to are included. Finder describes them as preference files, plug-ins and the like.
- Invisible files and folders. Folders whose names start with a dot, such as the ones many developer tools use, are left out unless you add File visibility and choose Visible or Invisible. Even then, Spotlight may not have indexed them, so check those folders directly.
- Excluded folders. Folders you've added to Search Privacy in System Settings › Spotlight never appear in results.
If a result turns out to be inside a package, such as a Photos library or a virtual machine, leave it where it is. A package belongs to the app that made it, and that app is the place to change it.
| Criterion | What it finds | Good starting value |
|---|---|---|
| File Size, is greater than | Large files anywhere Spotlight indexes | 1 GB |
| Last opened date, is before | Files you haven't opened since a date | Two years ago |
| Created date, is before | Files that arrived long ago, opened or not | Two years ago |
| Kind, is Movie | Videos, usually the largest personal files | Combine with 1 GB |
| Kind, is Archive | Zip and other archives you may have expanded | Combine with 500 MB |
| System files, are included | Files Finder hides from search by default | Only when you need it |
Sort folders by size in Finder
Search finds single files. When the space is spread across many medium files, such as a folder of raw photos or a project with thousands of assets, sorting folders by size finds it faster.
How do you find which folder is the big one?
- Press Shift-Command-H to open your home folder.
- Choose View › as List, then View › Show View Options.
- Select Calculate all sizes, then click the Size column heading.
- Open the largest folder and repeat until you reach the files.
Finder counts each folder in the background, so the sizes fill in one by one. In a big home folder that can take a few minutes.
How do you see inside the Library folder?
Your Library folder is hidden by default. To show it in your home folder, open your home folder, choose View › Show View Options, and select Show Library Folder.
Many of the largest items on a Mac are in there, from iPhone backups to app data. Look, but treat it with care: the Library folder holds every app's data and settings, and most of what's in it isn't yours to delete in Finder.
For a hidden folder whose name starts with a dot, choose Go › Go to Folder, type its path, such as ~/, and press Return. Finder opens it even though it's hidden.
Which folders usually hold the largest files?
| Where | What's often large there | Before you remove it |
|---|---|---|
~/Downloads | Disk images, installers and archives | Check you can download it again |
~/Desktop | Screen recordings, saved as .mov files | Watch it first; it may be the only copy |
~/Movies | iMovie and Final Cut libraries, exported videos | Manage libraries in their app |
~/Documents/Zoom | Meeting recordings saved to this Mac | Cloud recordings aren't affected |
/Applications | Install macOS apps, games, creative suites | Installers download again |
~/Library/Application Support/MobileSync | iPhone and iPad backups | Check the device backs up elsewhere |
~/.ollama and other dot folders | Local AI models | Remove them in the tool |
Screenshots and screen recordings go to the desktop unless you choose another place in the Screenshot app's Options menu. Their names start with "Screen Recording" and include the date and time, which makes old ones easy to spot.
Large files hidden inside apps
Some of the largest files on a Mac live inside an app's own library or folder. Finder can show you they're big, but removing them belongs in the app. Changing their files from outside can lose data or damage the library.
How do you find large videos in Photos?
Open Photos and click Videos below Media Types in the sidebar. If you don't see it, hold the pointer over Media Types and click the arrow that appears. Long and 4K videos are usually the largest items in a library.
Delete the ones you don't want in Photos, never in Finder. They stay in Recently Deleted for up to 30 days and keep their space until then. With iCloud Photos on, deleting on your Mac deletes on your other devices too.
Where do iPhone backups go, and how big are they?
Backups of iPhones and iPads you sync with this Mac live in your Library folder, one folder per device, and each can take tens of gigabytes. Storage settings lists them under iOS Files.
The easiest place to delete one is there. Or connect the device, select it in the Finder sidebar and click Manage Backups, where each backup shows its device's name. The guide to iPhone backups on a Mac explains how to check a device has a backup elsewhere first.
How do you find large attachments in Messages and Mail?
In Storage settings, click the information button next to Messages for a list of attachments from your conversations, which you can sort by size. Remove the ones you don't need there or in Messages itself. With Messages in iCloud turned on, a deleted attachment is deleted on your other devices too.
Mail keeps attachments inside your messages. When you open one, Mail also saves a copy in ~/ so another app can open it, and copies from messages you keep stay there. Those copies come back the next time you open the attachment, so with Mail quit they're fine to remove.
Are large apps worth removing?
Click the information button next to Applications in Storage settings to see your apps by size. Games, video editors, creative suites and developer tools can each take tens of gigabytes, and some arrive with extra content they download after you install them.
Removing an app you no longer use frees its own space. Its caches and data in your Library folder stay behind, though, and for some apps they're larger than the app. Use the app's own uninstaller if it came with one, since it knows where its files are.
What about virtual machines and Docker?
A virtual machine from UTM, Parallels, VMware Fusion or VirtualBox keeps a whole computer's disk in one package, often tens of gigabytes. Remove a machine in the app that made it, after copying out anything you want from inside.
Docker Desktop keeps every image, container and volume in a single file, Docker.raw. Finder often shows its maximum size rather than what it really takes, because it's a sparse file. Never delete it; remove what you don't need in Docker Desktop. The guide to Docker.raw explains why its size looks so alarming.
Where do AI models and developer files hide?
Developer tools and AI apps often keep their largest files in folders whose names start with a dot, such as ~/, or inside ~/. Finder's search skips the first kind unless you include invisible files.
Local language models are a few gigabytes each for small ones and tens for large ones. Remove them in the tool that downloaded them; the guide to local AI models covers each one.
- Downloads and large old files5–100 GB · Review first
- iPhone and iPad backups10–200 GB · Review first
- Messages attachments5–100 GB · Review first
- Virtual machines10–150 GB · Review first
- Local AI models20–150 GB · Review first
- Zoom recordings1–50 GB · Review first
- Final Cut generated media5–200 GB · Usually safe
- macOS installers13–20 GB · Usually safe
Typical ranges on Macs that have these items at all, from the research behind the app's catalog. Many Macs have far less, and some have none.
How to tell what a large file is
A file name doesn't always say much. Before deciding anything, find out what the file is, where it came from, and whether anything else depends on it.
How do you look inside a file without opening its app?
Select it and press the Space bar. Quick Look shows a preview: it plays videos and audio, and shows documents, images and PDFs. Press the Space bar again to close it.
For a disk image (.dmg), double-click it to open it as a disk and see what's inside, then eject it in the Finder sidebar. Disk images from app downloads usually hold just the app and a shortcut to Applications.
What does Get Info tell you?
Select the file and choose File › Get Info. The General section shows its size, where it is, and when it was created and modified. More Info can show when it was last opened and where a download came from.
Two sizes appear next to Size: the data the file holds and the space it takes on disk. When the second is much smaller, the file is sparse or compressed, and removing it frees less than its headline size.
What if you don't recognize it at all?
Look at where it is first. A large file in a folder named after an app, or after an app's identifier such as com.developer.appname, almost always belongs to that app. Get Info's Where line shows the full path.
If it's inside your Library folder and you can't tell what it is, leave it. An unknown file there is far more likely to be an app's data than something you forgot, and removing it can break the app or lose what's inside.
Is it the only copy?
This is the question that matters most for large files. A video of a wedding, a recording of a talk or the archive of a finished project may exist nowhere else.
- Time Machine: open the file's folder, then open Time Machine from Spotlight and step back through your backups to see whether the file is there.
- iCloud Drive: in list view, the iCloud Status column shows whether a file is stored in iCloud. A file in iCloud Drive is in iCloud already, so removing it from your Mac doesn't need the Delete command at all.
- Another drive: search for the file's name with that drive connected and selected in Finder's search.
If you can't confirm a second copy, assume there isn't one.
What kind of large file is it?
Most large files are one of a handful of kinds, and each kind has a usual answer.
| What it is | How to tell | Usual answer |
|---|---|---|
| Media you made | Videos, recordings, raw photos with your own names | Keep, or move to an external drive |
| Media you got | Downloads, purchases, files someone sent | Delete if you can get it again |
| Installer or disk image | .dmg, .pkg, .iso, Install macOS apps | Delete once the app is installed |
| Archive | .zip and similar, often next to an expanded copy | Delete if the expanded copy is there |
| A container | Virtual machines, Docker.raw, app libraries | Manage it in its app |
| App data | Inside your Library folder | Leave it, or use the app's own setting |
Move, archive or delete
Once you know what a file is, there are three ways to free its space. Deleting is only one of them, and for files you made it's rarely the first choice.
How do you move large files to an external drive safely?
Dragging a file to another disk copies it; the original stays where it was. That's the safe way: copy first, then open the copy on the external drive to check it plays or opens, and only then move the original to the Trash.
To move in one step instead, hold the Command key while you drag. It's quicker, but leaves you without a second copy if the drive turns out to be faulty.
Use a drive formatted as APFS or Mac OS Extended for files only a Mac will read, or ExFAT if a Windows PC needs them too. For anything you can't replace, keep two copies on two drives, or one on a drive and one in iCloud.
Is compressing large files worth it?
Sometimes. Control-click a file or folder and choose Compress to make a .zip archive. Text files, logs and many documents shrink a lot.
Videos, photos, music and most disk images are already compressed, and zipping them saves little. For those, moving them to another drive is the answer, not compressing.
Why didn't deleting a large file free space?
Three reasons, in order of likelihood. The file is still in the Trash, which holds its space until you empty it. A Time Machine local snapshot still holds the file, usually for up to a day. Or the file was an APFS clone of another, and the two shared their space all along.
The last one surprises people who delete a duplicate of a large video. Copies made in Finder on the same disk start as clones, so deleting one frees little until the other is gone too.
On an external drive, files you delete go to that drive's own Trash. Its space comes back only when you empty the Trash while the drive is connected.
Should you empty the Trash right away?
Not after a big cleanup. Leave large files in the Trash for a day or two, use your Mac as usual, and empty it once you're sure nothing is missing. The space comes back the moment you do.
If you need the space now, select only the items you're sure about in the Trash, Control-click them and choose Delete Immediately. The rest stay in the Trash, where you can still put them back.
Large files you should never delete in Finder
Some of the largest items on a Mac look like files you could throw away, and aren't. Removing them in Finder can lose data, damage a library or leave an app broken.
Which large items look safe but aren't?
| Item | Why not in Finder | What to do instead |
|---|---|---|
| Photos Library and Music library | They're databases; removing parts damages them | Delete items in the app; Photos can also move its library |
| iMovie and Final Cut libraries | Packages the app manages | Delete render and generated files in the app |
| Docker.raw | Holds every image, container and volume | Clean up in Docker Desktop |
| Files in iCloud Drive, Dropbox or OneDrive | Deleting removes them everywhere | Remove Download, or the app's online-only setting |
| Swap and sleep image files | macOS is using them | Leave them; restarting clears swap |
Anything in /System | macOS protects and manages it | Nothing; it isn't yours to change |
Is it safe to delete large files in the Library folder?
Some, carefully. Caches of apps you've removed are fine to move to the Trash, and so are old iPhone backups once you've checked them. Most of the rest is an app's data, and some of it is your own work kept inside the app.
Never move the Library folder itself, or folders such as Application Support, Caches or Containers as a whole. Remove single items inside them, after checking what they belong to.
Why not use a Terminal command to find large files?
Many guides suggest a command that lists every file over a certain size. Finder's search does the same job with a list you can sort, preview and act on safely, and it never deletes anything by accident.
Commands that delete files skip the Trash and can't be undone. And a guide that asks you to paste one to free space is worth closing: fake cleanup guides are a known way to install malware.
A first pass, step by step
If you've never looked for large files before, this order finds the most space for the least risk. Nothing in it deletes anything for good until you empty the Trash.
Start with what you can get again
- Open Downloads, sort by size, and move disk images and installers for apps you've already installed to the Trash.
- Look in Applications for an Install macOS app you no longer need. Apple lets you download installers again for the versions your Mac supports.
- Check Downloads for archives next to their expanded folders, and move the archives to the Trash.
Then look at what you made
- Run the Finder search for files over 1 GB not opened in two years, and sort by size.
- Quick Look each one. Copy what you want to keep to an external drive, and check the copies open.
- Move the originals to the Trash, along with anything you're sure you don't want.
Finish with the apps
- In Storage settings, check iOS Files for backups of devices you no longer own.
- In Photos, look through Videos for long clips you don't need.
- Remove virtual machines and models you no longer use, each in its own app.
Leave the Trash for a day or two, then empty it. Check Storage settings again afterwards to see what changed.
Keep large files from piling up again
Large files arrive a few at a time: a recording here, an installer there, a virtual machine for one project. A little habit keeps them from adding up to a full disk.
Where do new large files come from?
- Screen recordings, saved to the desktop unless you choose another place.
- Downloads of apps, disk images, videos and archives.
- Exports from video, audio and photo apps, often saved next to the project.
- Meeting recordings saved to this Mac rather than to the cloud.
- Virtual machines and models set up for one project and forgotten.
What's a good routine?
Keep the Smart Folder from earlier in the sidebar, for large files you haven't opened in a long time. Every month or two, open it and decide on whatever is new there: keep, move to a drive, or move to the Trash.
At the same time, sort Downloads by size, and move screen recordings off the desktop into a folder you'll actually look through. Empty the Trash a day or two later, once you're sure.
To see what each number in Storage settings means, and why Finder and Disk Utility disagree about it, see how to check storage on a Mac.
How the app does it
Wombit is a native Mac app that shows what's using your storage, explains every item in plain language, and clears it safely: Trash first, undoable and logged. Its scan covers the whole disk or any folder, reading only names, sizes and dates, and file names and paths never leave your Mac.
The map is the home screen: a treemap and a sunburst show at a glance which folders and files are large, with a list and search beside them. Select anything to see what it is and how safe it is to remove. Quick Look and Reveal in Finder work on every item.
Its catalog has a description for large files you've left alone, Large files not changed in a year: files of 500 MB or more in your home folder that haven't changed for a year. It leaves out your Library folder, iCloud Drive and other cloud folders, packages such as virtual machines, and files a more specific description covers.
These are Review first: they may be the only copy, so nothing starts checked, and nothing inside Documents or Desktop is ever checked for you. Disk images, installers and archives in Downloads are Review first too. The Photos library and Docker.raw are explained and handled through their own app, never moved.
Finding and explaining large files is free, with the map, the list, search, Quick Look, Undo and Put Back. The Apple Data actions for large old files, iPhone backups and installers, and Cleanup, are PRO: one payment of $4.99 with lifetime access. Every Pro tool's review is free to open, so you see what would go and why before you buy.
Frequently asked questions
How do I see the biggest files on my Mac?
Open System Settings, click General, then Storage, and click the information button next to Documents. Click Large Files and sort by Size. It covers files in your home folder; backups, photos and app data are listed under their own categories.
How do I search for files bigger than 1 GB on a Mac?
In a Finder window, press Command-F, click the Kind menu and choose Other, then select File Size and click OK. Set it to is greater than 1 GB. Click Save to keep the search as a Smart Folder in the sidebar.
Is it safe to delete large files on a Mac?
It depends on what they are. Installers and archives you can download again are usually fine to remove. Videos, recordings and project archives may be your only copy, so check for a backup or copy them to another drive first, and move them to the Trash rather than deleting them outright.
Why can't I find the large files that are filling my Mac?
Much of the space may not be in ordinary files. Time Machine's local snapshots, swap, app libraries and hidden developer folders don't show up in the Large Files list or a normal Finder search. Check System Data and the other categories in Storage settings, and search with invisible files included.
Does deleting large files make a Mac faster?
No. Removing files frees space, not speed. A Mac with very little free space can struggle to install updates or save large files, so keeping room helps with those tasks, but apps don't run faster because files are gone.
How do I find large files on an external drive?
Select the drive in the Finder sidebar, press Command-F, and choose the drive's name next to Search instead of This Mac. Then add File Size as a criterion. You can also open the drive in list view, turn on Calculate all sizes in View Options and sort by Size.
Where are screen recordings saved on a Mac?
On the desktop, unless you chose another place under Save to in the Screenshot app's Options menu. They're .mov files whose names start with Screen Recording and include the date and time, so old ones are easy to find and sort.