When WhatsApp is taking up space on a Mac, it's almost always the photos, videos, voice messages and documents from your chats, kept with your message history in WhatsApp's own folder.
The Mac app has no storage manager: WhatsApp's help center says that feature exists only on Android and iPhone. On the Mac, you delete media chat by chat, and turn off automatic downloads.
One detail matters before you start. WhatsApp says that when you delete a message for yourself, the deletion syncs to every device where you're signed in. Media you remove on the Mac goes from your phone too.
Telegram is easier, because much of its folder is a cache of media that stays in Telegram's cloud: clearing it in Telegram's settings frees the space and keeps your chats. WeChat and Signal are the opposite. Neither keeps your history on its servers, so what's on your Mac can be a copy you'd miss.
None of these folders should be deleted in Finder. Each app has its own controls, and they're the safe way to get space back.
Where messaging apps keep their data on a Mac
Each app keeps its history and media in one folder in your Library, and grows it with every photo and video in your chats. Here's where each one lives, from the catalog's entries and, for WeChat, the folder list Homebrew keeps for its app.
| App | Where its data lives | What it holds | Level in the catalog |
|---|---|---|---|
~/Library/Group Containers/group.net.whatsapp.WhatsApp.shared | Chat history and media | Review first | |
| Telegram | ~/Library/Group Containers/ folder ending in ru.keepcoder.Telegram | Local database and media cache | Review first |
| Signal | ~/Library/Application Support/Signal | Encrypted messages and attachments | Review first |
~/Library/Containers/com.tencent.xinWeChat | Chat history, media and backups | Not in the catalog | |
| Messages | ~/Library/Messages/Attachments | Photos and files from Messages | Review first |
Why do these apps count as System Data?
Open System Settings, click General, then Storage. The apps themselves count under Applications, but their data folders in your Library count toward System Data, like most apps' data. So a WhatsApp folder that has grown to many gigabytes shows up as a bigger System Data figure, not as its own line.
Can you delete these folders in Finder?
No. Each one is the app's working store of your messages, not a cache it rebuilds. The catalog rates all of them Review first, and for WhatsApp, Telegram and Signal its advice is the same: remove media and chats from inside the app.
Moving the folder itself to the Trash would remove your chat history from this Mac. For Telegram's secret chats and for WeChat, that history may exist nowhere else.
Why are some of these in Group Containers?
A group container is a folder that an app shares with its own extensions and helpers, rather than keeping inside its private container. The post on Containers and Group Containers explains how these folders work and why macOS guards them.
Where does Apple's Messages app fit?
Messages keeps its attachments in ~/, and they can grow just as large. It has its own Keep messages setting and its own way of deleting attachments. The post on Messages taking up space on a Mac covers it.
Why WhatsApp is taking up space on a Mac
WhatsApp for Mac is a linked device: your phone is the main copy of your account, and the Mac keeps its own copy of your chats. Media you receive lands in that copy, so WhatsApp's folder grows with every busy group chat.
Where does WhatsApp keep its data?
In ~/. The catalog's entry for WhatsApp's chats and media says it holds the message database and the media you send and receive, and that busy group chats can add several gigabytes.
WhatsApp manages the folder itself, which is why the catalog's advice is to remove media from within WhatsApp rather than in Finder.
Where does the Mac's history come from?
From your phone. WhatsApp's help center explains that right after you link a device, your phone sends an end-to-end encrypted copy of your recent message history to it, where it's stored locally. After that, new messages arrive on the Mac directly.
WhatsApp adds that not all messages and chats are synced to linked devices, and that the desktop app syncs more history than WhatsApp Web. Your full history stays on your phone.
Why can't you find Manage storage on the Mac?
Because it isn't there. WhatsApp's article on freeing up storage says the feature isn't available on the Mac app, only on Android and iPhone. That's the screen that lists your largest files and the chats using the most space.
On the Mac, the tools are the media list in each chat and the automatic download settings, both covered below.
How much space does WhatsApp itself take?
Very little of the total. On one Mac, measured in October 2026, WhatsApp.app took 262 MB in the Applications folder. Its data folder is the part that grows, and it depends entirely on your chats: how many groups you're in, and how much media they share.
Does WhatsApp keep downloaded files twice?
It can. Files you save from a chat, such as a document you opened and kept, go to a folder on your Mac. WhatsApp's help center says the folder where your files are saved is determined by your computer's settings, which often means Downloads.
Those saved copies are ordinary files, separate from WhatsApp's folder. Deleting media in WhatsApp doesn't remove them, and deleting them doesn't affect your chats.
How to free up WhatsApp storage on a Mac
With no storage manager on the Mac, freeing space means going through your largest chats one at a time. Start with the busy groups that share photos and videos.
How do you delete media from one chat?
These are WhatsApp's steps, which the catalog's entry follows:
- Open the chat in WhatsApp.
- Click the chat's name at the top to open its info.
- Click Media, Links, and Docs.
- Click Select, then click each item you want to remove.
- Click the trash icon and choose Delete for me.
WhatsApp notes there's no way to delete all media from a chat in one step. Selecting several items at a time is the quickest route it offers.
Does deleting on the Mac delete it from your phone?
Yes, if the phone is online. WhatsApp's help center says that when you delete a message for yourself or for everyone, the deletion syncs across all online devices where you're signed in. A photo is a message, so Delete for me on the Mac removes it from your phone's WhatsApp as well.
That makes the Mac a poor place to tidy WhatsApp for space alone. If you want to keep media on your phone and only slim the Mac, WhatsApp doesn't document a way to do that.
Which chats should you clean up first?
WhatsApp for Mac doesn't show how much space each chat uses, so go by what you know. Large group chats where people share videos are usually the biggest, followed by chats with a lot of forwarded clips and voice messages.
Work through those first, newest media last. A one-to-one chat with a few photos rarely makes a difference, and it's the kind of history people most often want to keep.
How do you check how big WhatsApp's folder is?
In Finder, choose Go › Go to Folder, enter ~/ and press Return. Select group.net.whatsapp.WhatsApp.shared and choose File › Get Info. The size can take a moment to calculate for a large folder.
Check it again after a round of deleting. Leave the folder where it is: Get Info only reads it.
What about documents and links?
They're on the same screen, in their own tabs next to Media. WhatsApp's article says you delete them the same way: select them and choose Delete for me.
Large PDFs and videos sent as documents are easy to miss, because they don't show in the photo grid. Check the documents tab in busy work groups.
How do you stop WhatsApp downloading media automatically?
- In WhatsApp, click Settings, or your profile picture.
- Click Storage and data.
- In the Media auto-download section, turn off the toggles for the kinds of media you don't want downloaded automatically.
With a toggle off, that kind of media waits in the chat until you click it, so groups you rarely read stop filling your Mac. WhatsApp notes that YouTube videos are never downloaded automatically.
What happens if WhatsApp's folder is removed?
The catalog warns that removing the folder itself would remove your WhatsApp chat history from this Mac. When you link the Mac again, your phone sends recent history again, but not necessarily all of it.
That's also what happens when a linked device is signed out. WhatsApp says linked devices are logged out if you don't use your phone for over 14 days, and disconnected after 30 days without use.
What if you no longer use WhatsApp on the Mac?
Sign out of the Mac from your phone's Linked devices list, which WhatsApp describes in its help center, then uninstall the app. Its group container stays after the app is gone, as most apps' data does. The post on leftover files after uninstalling apps explains where those folders are and how to judge them.
| What you want | Where to do it | What it changes |
|---|---|---|
| Remove a chat's photos and videos | Media, Links, and Docs › Select | Removes them on every signed-in device |
| Stop new media filling the Mac | Settings › Storage and data | Media waits until you click it |
| Remove big documents | The documents tab of Media, Links, and Docs | Same as media |
| Stop using WhatsApp on this Mac | Linked devices on your phone, then uninstall | The Mac's copy is no longer used |
WhatsApp backups live on your phone and iCloud, not the Mac
People often look for WhatsApp backups on their Mac. They aren't there: WhatsApp backs up from the phone, and the Mac app has no backup feature of its own.
Where are WhatsApp backups stored?
WhatsApp's article on backing up your chat history has versions for Android and iPhone only. On an iPhone, it offers two places: WhatsApp's own cloud storage, which it says is always end-to-end encrypted, or iCloud, which Apple provides and manages.
WhatsApp says its cloud storage is new and may not be available to everyone yet. On Android, the alternative is your Google Account.
Is WhatsApp filling your iCloud storage?
It can be. A WhatsApp backup to iCloud counts against your iCloud storage, and WhatsApp notes that using both iCloud options means storing two copies. In WhatsApp's Chat backup settings on the iPhone, turning off Include videos in chats leaves videos out of the backup.
If your iCloud storage is full, the post on what to do when iCloud storage is full goes through every part of it, WhatsApp backups included.
Should you leave videos out of the backup?
Only if you can live without them. A backup made with Include videos in chats turned off doesn't contain your chats' videos, so if you lose your phone and restore from it, those videos won't come back. Save the videos that matter to Photos or a folder first, then turn the option off.
Does freeing space on the Mac shrink the backup?
Only for media you delete, since deletions sync to your phone and the backup is made from the phone's copy. Deleting media in WhatsApp shows up in the next backup the phone makes.
Are WhatsApp chats in a Finder backup of your iPhone?
A full backup of your iPhone, made with Finder on the Mac, is a separate thing from WhatsApp's own backup. WhatsApp's backup article points to Apple's help for iPhone backups. If you're looking for those files on your Mac, the post on where iPhone backups are stored explains it.
Telegram storage on a Mac
Telegram works differently from WhatsApp. Ordinary chats, which Telegram calls cloud chats, are stored on Telegram's servers, so much of what's on your Mac is a cache of media you've viewed, which Telegram can download again.
Which Telegram app do you have?
There are two. Telegram's FAQ describes Telegram for macOS as the native app, with every feature of the iPhone app including secret chats. Telegram Lite is the Mac version of Telegram's multi-platform desktop client, built for work and large communities, with a three-column layout.
The catalog's entry covers the native app, which keeps its data in a group container ending in ru.keepcoder.Telegram. Telegram Lite keeps its own data separately and has its own storage screen.
How do you clear Telegram's cache?
In the native app, the catalog's steps follow Telegram's FAQ:
- In Telegram, open Settings.
- Choose Data and Storage, then Storage Usage.
- Click Clear cache.
Telegram's FAQ says this frees space on your device without logging you out. Photos, videos and files download again from the cloud when you open them.
How do Keep Media and the cache limit work?
They let Telegram clear itself. Keep Media, in the same Storage Usage screen, removes photos, videos and files from cloud chats that you haven't opened for the period you choose. The media stays in Telegram's cloud.
The Mac app also offers a cache size limit. Telegram's own wording says that once the cache passes the limit, the oldest media is removed from the device, and all media stays in the cloud.
Can you stop Telegram downloading media automatically?
Yes. Telegram's Data and Storage settings on the Mac also hold its automatic download options, with a button to reset them to their defaults. Turning them down for large channels and groups means less media lands in the cache to begin with.
Channels you follow but rarely read are the usual source of a large Telegram cache, because their videos download as they arrive.
What's the difference between clearing the cache and deleting chats?
Clearing the cache removes local copies only: your chats and their media stay in Telegram's cloud, and come back when you open them. Deleting a chat removes its messages from your chat list, which is a decision about the conversation, not about disk space.
For space alone, clear the cache and set Keep Media. There's no storage reason to delete cloud chats.
Do files you saved from Telegram stay?
Yes. A file you saved from a chat to a folder on your Mac is an ordinary file, separate from Telegram's cache. Clearing the cache, or setting Keep Media, removes only Telegram's own copies, so check your Downloads folder for anything you saved and no longer need.
Why are secret chats different?
Telegram's FAQ says secret chats are device-specific and aren't part of Telegram's cloud: you can only read them on the device where they started. Their messages and media exist only on that device.
That's why the catalog rates Telegram's data and media cache as Review first, not Safe. Clearing the cache in Telegram keeps your chats; removing the folder itself would also remove secret chats that exist only on this Mac.
What about Telegram Lite?
Telegram Lite has its own screen, called Manage local storage in Telegram's translation of the desktop app, where you can clear its cache and set limits. Third-party guides place it in the Advanced section of its settings.
If you've used both apps, each keeps its own cache. Clearing one doesn't touch the other.
WeChat storage on a Mac
WeChat keeps chat history differently from all the others. Its help center says it doesn't store your chat logs or message history on its servers: your history is only on the devices that sent or received the messages.
Where does WeChat keep its data on a Mac?
In its app container. Homebrew's list of WeChat's files includes ~/, the app's container, along with a few related folders. The catalog has no entry for WeChat, so treat everything in it as yours to keep until WeChat itself removes it.
WeChat's help center says chat history stays within the app on your device as long as the app isn't removed and there's enough storage space.
Why can your Mac hold the only copy of a chat?
Because WeChat for Mac can store backups of your phone's chats. WeChat's help center describes it: in WeChat for Mac, click the icon in the lower-left corner, choose Migrate and Backup, then Backup and Restore, and confirm on your phone.
WeChat notes that you can save several chat history backups on your computer, and that unwanted backups can be deleted. Each one is a full copy of the chats you chose, so old backups add up.
How do you clear WeChat chat history?
WeChat's help center describes the steps for the phone app: open a chat, tap the more button at the top right and choose Clear Chat History, or go to Me › Settings › General › Clear All Chats for every conversation. WeChat warns that deleted history can't be recovered.
Its help center doesn't document a storage manager for the Mac app, so check WeChat's own settings on your Mac for its current options.
Before you delete anything in WeChat
Make sure you have a copy of what matters. Since WeChat keeps nothing on its servers, a chat cleared on the Mac and missing from your phone is gone. WeChat suggests its migration feature, Favorites or a computer backup to carry history across devices.
Signal Desktop's storage
Signal Desktop keeps its own encrypted copy of your messages, attachments and settings. Signal doesn't offer a cache to clear: its storage article tells desktop users to delete messages instead.
What does Signal keep on a Mac?
The catalog's entry for Signal Desktop's messages and attachments places it in ~/. It grows with every photo, video and file in your chats.
How do you free space in Signal Desktop?
Signal's storage article says it plainly for the desktop app: delete messages to clear data, or view and save media to keep it outside Signal. To delete a whole chat:
- Open the chat.
- Click the more button.
- Choose Delete messages.
- Click Delete to confirm.
To remove a single message, hover over it, open its more menu, choose Delete, then Delete for me.
Does deleting in Signal Desktop delete it from your phone?
No. Signal's deletion steps open by saying they delete a message from each device individually, and its storage article adds that deleting a message or chat doesn't delete it from your contact's phone. Deletions on the Mac stay on the Mac, unlike WhatsApp's.
That makes Signal Desktop easy to slim down without touching your phone's history.
What if Signal's folder is removed?
The catalog warns that you'd need to link Signal Desktop to your phone again, and only the history still on your phone could be transferred. Anything that existed only on the Mac would be gone.
Do Signal Desktop backups take space?
Yes, in the folder you choose. Signal Desktop can create an end-to-end encrypted backup under Settings › Backups, saved to a folder you pick, which Signal says can be restored on an Android phone. That folder is separate from Signal's own and counts wherever you put it.
Cache or only copy: what each app can download again
The question behind every decision here is whether the app can bring something back. For some it can, for others nothing can.
| App | Where your history lives | Comes back if removed from the Mac? | Safe first step |
|---|---|---|---|
| Telegram cloud chats | Telegram's servers | Yes, when you open it | Clear cache in Telegram |
| Telegram secret chats | Only the device they started on | No | Leave them, or delete in Telegram |
| Your phone, plus its backup | Partly, by relinking | Turn off Media auto-download | |
| Only your devices | No | Delete old backups you don't need | |
| Signal Desktop | This Mac's own copy | Only what's on your phone | Delete old chats on the Mac |
Why doesn't macOS clear these folders when space runs low?
Because they aren't caches. Apple's guide to optimizing storage says that when space is needed, macOS clears caches and logs that are safe to delete. A messaging app's history isn't safe to delete, so macOS leaves it alone, and so should any tool you use.
Telegram's cache is the exception in spirit, but Telegram manages it itself, through Keep Media and its cache limit.
How do you save media before deleting it?
Copy what matters into a folder of your own first, using each app's save or download option, and open a few of the saved files to check they're complete. Signal's article describes this for its desktop app: view and save media to keep it outside Signal.
For photos you want in your library, import the saved files into Photos. Then delete them in the chat app with its own controls.
Is it worth compressing saved media?
Usually not for photos and videos, which are already compressed and barely shrink in a zip archive. Folders of saved documents, such as PDFs and spreadsheets, can shrink more. The post on compressing files on a Mac explains what's worth zipping and what isn't.
What about WhatsApp Web and Telegram in a browser?
They keep their data in the browser's website data, not in the folders above. Clearing that site's data signs you out there, and you'd link the browser again. The post on clearing cookies on a Mac covers how each browser does it.
What if you're leaving one of these apps for good?
Save what you want from it first, then remove it. For WhatsApp, your phone keeps the full history, so sign the Mac out from Linked devices and uninstall the app. For Telegram, cloud chats stay in your account; only secret chats are tied to the Mac.
WeChat and Signal need more care. Keep a WeChat backup until you're sure you have the chats elsewhere, and remember Signal Desktop's history on the Mac may include messages your phone no longer has.
How is this different from Slack, Teams and Discord?
Those apps keep your messages on their servers, and their Mac folders hold caches you can clear without losing anything. The post on Slack, Teams, Discord and Zoom caches explains each one.
Mistakes to avoid with messaging apps' storage
Most of the risk comes from treating a messaging app's folder as a cache. Only Telegram's cloud media really is one.
Common mistakes
- Deleting WhatsApp's folder in Finder. It removes your chat history from this Mac, and relinking may not bring all of it back.
- Tidying WhatsApp on the Mac to save phone space, or the reverse, without knowing deletions sync. They do, while the phone is online.
- Deleting Telegram's folder instead of clearing the cache. Secret chats live only there.
- Clearing WeChat history without a copy. WeChat keeps nothing on its servers.
- Looking for WhatsApp backups on the Mac. They're made from the phone, to WhatsApp's cloud, iCloud or Google.
- Pasting cleanup commands from a web page. Files they delete skip the Trash and can't be put back.
| Don't | Why | Instead |
|---|---|---|
Move group.net.whatsapp.WhatsApp.shared to the Trash | It's your history on this Mac | Delete media in Media, Links, and Docs |
| Delete Telegram's group container | Secret chats exist only there | Settings › Data and Storage › Storage Usage |
| Remove WeChat's container | History isn't on WeChat's servers | Delete old backups and chats in WeChat |
| Remove Signal's folder | Only phone history can be relinked | Delete old chats in Signal Desktop |
A worked example
Say System Data has grown, and you use WhatsApp, Telegram and Signal on your Mac. In Telegram, you click Clear cache and set Keep Media to remove media you haven't opened in a month. That frees the most space, and nothing is lost.
In WhatsApp, you turn off automatic downloads for videos and documents, then delete the videos in two busy groups after saving the few you want, knowing they'll go from your phone too. In Signal Desktop, you delete chats you no longer need, which leaves your phone's copy alone.
How the app does it
Wombit is a native Mac app that shows what's using your storage and explains every item in plain language. It scans the whole disk or any folder, reading only names, sizes and dates. File names and paths never leave your Mac.
The messaging apps' folders appear on the map with their real size, explained from the catalog's entries: what each holds, why removing the folder would cost you history, and the steps to free space in the app itself.
~/
Library/ Group Containers/ group.net.whatsapp.WhatsApp.shared WhatsApp's chat history and the photos, videos, voice messages and documents from your chats on this Mac.
Review first · Explained only: the app shows you how
~/
Library/ Group Containers/ *.ru.keepcoder.Telegram Telegram's local copy of your chats and the photos, videos and files it has downloaded.
Review first · Explained only: the app shows you how
~/
Library/ Application Support/ Signal Signal Desktop messages and attachments
Signal Desktop's encrypted message history, attachments and settings on this Mac.
Review first · Explained only: the app shows you how
All three are Review first. The app doesn't move these folders or anything inside them; it points you to WhatsApp's, Telegram's and Signal's own steps instead. Folders macOS didn't let it read are listed, not skipped.
The scan, the map, the explanations, System Data explained and Apple Data are free. Cleanup, the Apple Data actions and the uninstaller 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
Why is WhatsApp taking up so much space on my Mac?
WhatsApp for Mac keeps its own copy of your chats, with every photo, video, voice message and document it downloads, in a folder in your Library. Busy group chats can add several gigabytes. Turning off media auto-download and deleting media from large chats are the ways to shrink it.
Does WhatsApp for Mac have a Manage storage screen?
No. WhatsApp's help center says the free-up-storage feature isn't available on the Mac app, only on Android and iPhone. On the Mac, open a chat's Media, Links, and Docs, select items and choose Delete for me.
If I delete WhatsApp media on my Mac, is it deleted on my phone?
Yes, while your phone is online. WhatsApp says that deleting a message for yourself or for everyone syncs across all online devices where you're signed in. A photo or video counts as a message.
Where are WhatsApp backups stored for Mac users?
Not on the Mac. WhatsApp backs up from your phone: on an iPhone to WhatsApp's own cloud storage or to iCloud, on Android to WhatsApp or your Google Account. The Mac app keeps a synced copy of your recent history, not a backup.
How do I clear Telegram's cache on a Mac?
In Telegram, open Settings, then Data and Storage, then Storage Usage, and click Clear cache. Telegram says this frees space without logging you out. Cloud media downloads again when you open it, and Keep Media can remove unopened media automatically.
Is it safe to delete Telegram's folder on a Mac?
No. Clear the cache in Telegram instead. Secret chats exist only on the device where they started, so removing the folder itself would also remove them.
Does WeChat store my chat history on its servers?
No. WeChat's help center says chat history is kept only on the devices that sent or received the messages. That's why a backup made with WeChat for Mac can be the only copy of some chats, and why deleted history can't be recovered.
How do I free up space in Signal Desktop?
Delete chats or messages you no longer need, from the chat's more menu, or save media you want outside Signal first. Signal deletes messages on each device separately, so deleting on the Mac doesn't remove them from your phone.
Sources
- How to free up storage on WhatsApp · WhatsApp
- About message history on linked devices · WhatsApp
- How to back up your chat history · WhatsApp
- Telegram FAQ · Telegram
- How to Backup/Restore WeChat Chat History on Windows/Mac? · WeChat
- Storage Management · Signal