When the Music library is taking up space on your Mac, it's almost always the songs and videos stored on the Mac itself: music you downloaded from Apple Music, purchases from the iTunes Store, and songs you imported. Album artwork, the library's database and the app's cache are small next to them.
Downloads from Apple Music and the iTunes Store are the easy part. In the Music app, Remove Download deletes the file from your Mac and leaves the song in your library, to stream or download again. Lossless downloads take far more space than standard ones, so they're the first place to look.
Songs you imported from CDs or files need more care, because the copy on your Mac may be the only one. And the library package itself, Music Library.musiclibrary, should never be opened or trimmed by hand: Music manages it, and editing it can break your library.
This post shows where each part lives, how to measure it, and how to remove what you don't need in the Music app, so nothing you'd want to keep is lost.
Why the Music library takes up space on a Mac
The Music app keeps your library in your home folder, in ~/. Inside are the library's database and a folder of media files, and the media files are where the space goes.
What's in the Music folder?
| Path | What it holds | How big it gets |
|---|---|---|
~/Music/Music/Media | Songs, music videos and downloads, in folders by artist and album | From nothing to hundreds of gigabytes |
~/Music/Music/Music Library.musiclibrary | The library's database: playlists, ratings, play counts | Small next to the media |
~/Music/Music/Previous Libraries | Dated copies of the database from earlier versions | Small |
~/Music/iTunes/iTunes Media | The media folder of a library that came from iTunes | Can be the largest folder of all |
~/Library/Caches/com.apple.Music | Artwork, Apple Music pages and other downloaded data | Grows with use |
On disk, the media folder's full name may be Media.localized; Finder shows it as Media.
What is the Music Library.musiclibrary package?
It's the library itself: the list of every song, playlist, rating and play count. Finder shows it as a single file, but it's a package, a folder that macOS presents as one item. It holds data about your music, not the music.
Never open it to remove files, and never move it to the Trash to free space. Removing it loses your playlists and your library's history, and it doesn't free much, because the songs live elsewhere.
Where do Apple Music downloads go?
When you download a song you added from Apple Music, Music stores it on your Mac with your other music. Apple's guide notes these downloads can't be burned to a disc or copied to a device by hand, but they take space like any other file.
Purchases from the iTunes Store go to the same folder. So do songs you import from CDs, from files you drag into Music, and from other computers on your network.
Is album artwork stored in the library?
Songs from Apple Music and the iTunes Store come with their artwork. Music also downloads artist images and album covers for imported songs, when Automatically update artwork for imported songs is on in Music › Settings › Advanced.
Artwork Music downloads as you browse is kept in its cache folder, described below. Neither is usually large next to the songs themselves.
What about an old iTunes folder?
If your library started in iTunes, Music converted it when you first opened Music. A converted library may still keep its files in the iTunes Media folder, inside ~/, and Music keeps playing them from there.
So an old iTunes folder may be your real media folder, not a leftover. Check before you remove anything: Music › Settings › Files shows the Media Location your library uses.
How to see what your Music library takes
No single screen shows everything. Storage settings shows what Apple counts as Music, Finder shows the folders, and the Music app shows which songs are downloaded.
In Storage settings
Choose Apple menu › System Settings, click General, then Storage. The Music category, when you have one, holds purchases from the Music app that can be removed and downloaded again, in Apple's words. Click its information button to see the items, then select one and click Delete.
This screen is the same in macOS 26 Tahoe and macOS 27 Golden Gate. Don't confuse Music with Music Creation, which holds GarageBand, Logic and MainStage content, not your library.
In Finder
In Finder, choose Go › Go to Folder, type ~/ and press Return. Select the Media folder and choose File › Get Info to see its total.
To find what's largest, open Media, choose View › as List, then View › Show View Options and select Calculate all sizes. Click the Size column heading, and the largest artist folders come first.
In the Music app
Choose View › Only Downloaded Music to see only the music stored on your Mac. Everything else in your library streams from Apple Music or your synced library and takes no space here.
In the full view, songs that aren't on your Mac show a download button when you move the pointer over them. Songs that are downloaded don't, which is a quick way to check an album before you travel.
To find where one song is stored, select it and choose Song › Get Info; the File pane shows its location. Or choose File › Show in Finder. If that command isn't there, the song is probably in your library but not on your Mac.
Why don't the numbers agree?
Because each place counts something different. Apple describes the Music category in Storage settings as purchases you can remove and download again, while Finder counts every file in your media folder, imported songs included. A library whose files live on another drive adds nothing to your startup disk at all.
How much space music takes, format by format
A song's size depends on its format far more than its length. A song in the 256 kbps AAC of iTunes Store purchases is a few megabytes; the same song in high-resolution lossless can be tens of times larger.
- AAC at 256 kbps0.1 GB
- 16-bit, 44.1 kHz before compression0.6 GB
- 24-bit, 48 kHz before compression1 GB
- 24-bit, 96 kHz before compression2.1 GB
- 24-bit, 192 kHz before compression4.2 GB
Worked out from each format's data rate: 256 kbps for iTunes Plus AAC, and sample rate × bit depth × two channels for uncompressed audio. Apple Lossless files are smaller than the uncompressed figures, by an amount that depends on the music.
Why are lossless downloads so much bigger?
Because they keep every bit of the original. Apple Music's lossless files use Apple Lossless (ALAC), which Apple's guide says makes files smaller while preserving all of the original data. Lossless goes up to 24-bit, 48 kHz, and Hi-Res Lossless up to 24-bit, 192 kHz.
Without lossless, songs are stored in a compressed format such as AAC, which discards detail most people can't hear. Apple's own note on lossless says downloading it uses significantly more space, and that higher resolutions use more than lower ones.
What a song costs in each format
Here's a four-minute song, worked out the same way as the chart above:
| Format | Four-minute song | One hour |
|---|---|---|
| AAC, 256 kbps (iTunes Plus) | About 7.7 MB | About 115 MB |
| 16-bit, 44.1 kHz, before compression | About 42 MB | About 635 MB |
| 24-bit, 48 kHz, before compression | About 69 MB | About 1.04 GB |
| 24-bit, 192 kHz, before compression | About 276 MB | About 4.15 GB |
Apple Lossless files come in under the uncompressed figures. Even so, a library downloaded in Hi-Res Lossless can need many times the space of the same library in AAC.
Dolby Atmos downloads
Songs mixed in Dolby Atmos can be downloaded in Atmos or in stereo. Apple's guide says Music downloads the Atmos version when Download Dolby Atmos is selected in Music › Settings › General. If you don't listen on speakers or headphones that play Spatial Audio, the stereo download is all you need.
Music videos
Music videos are video files, and much larger than songs. Their download quality is set in Music › Settings › Playback, under Download (Video Quality) or Video Download Quality, with Up to HD, Up to SD and Most Compatible Format. Choosing Up to SD keeps future video downloads smaller.
How do you change the quality of downloads you already have?
Changing a setting doesn't change songs already on your Mac. Apple's note on lossless says that to get a lossless version of music you already downloaded, you delete the download, change the setting, then download it again.
The same works in reverse. Remove the downloads you want smaller, choose High Quality under Download (Lossless Audio) in Playback settings, then download them again.
Removing downloads from Apple Music without losing anything
Music you added from Apple Music or bought from the iTunes Store can always be downloaded again. Removing its download frees the space and keeps it in your library.
Remove Download or Delete from Library?
They sound alike and do very different things. Apple's article on deleting music explains both:
- Remove Download deletes the file from this Mac only. Songs from the Apple Music catalog stay in your library and play when you're online.
- Delete from Library removes the music from your library, playlists included. With Sync Library on, Apple says it's also deleted from all your other devices.
To free space, you almost always want Remove Download.
How to remove downloads on a Mac
- Open the Music app.
- In the sidebar, click Songs or Albums.
- To find what's on your Mac, choose View › Only Downloaded Music.
- Click the More button next to a song, or over an album.
- Choose Remove Download.
The song stays in your library. Click the download button next to it when you want it on your Mac again.
What about purchases from the iTunes Store?
Purchases can be removed and downloaded again too. Apple's guide says you can download previous purchases to your authorized computers and devices, up to 10, and Storage settings lists them in its Music category with a Delete button.
Apple also notes that downloaded purchases stay yours: it can't revoke them, and they play without an internet connection. If you keep a purchase only on this Mac and never back it up, though, you rely on the store still offering it.
| What you do | What it removes | Can you get it back? |
|---|---|---|
| Remove Download on an Apple Music song | The file on this Mac | Yes; it streams, or download it again |
| Remove Download on a purchase | The file on this Mac | Yes, from your purchases |
| Delete from Library with Sync Library on | The song from your library on every device | Only by adding or buying it again |
| Delete Song, then Move to Trash, on an imported song | The song and its file | From the Trash, until you empty it |
| Delete Song, then Keep File | The song from your library only | Yes, but the file still takes space |
Stopping downloads from coming back
Some settings download music to your Mac without you choosing each song. If space keeps disappearing, check these first.
Automatic Downloads
In Music › Settings › General, Automatic Downloads downloads music to this Mac from your other devices: your iTunes Store purchases, and, for Apple Music subscribers, songs you add on your iPhone, iPad or another computer.
On a Mac with little space, turn it off and download only what you want here. Music you add on other devices still appears in your library, ready to stream.
Always check for available downloads
This option, in the same General settings, checks for iTunes Store purchases you haven't downloaded yet and downloads them. It's useful after an interrupted download, and unhelpful when you've removed purchases on purpose.
Download Dolby Atmos and lossless quality
Download Dolby Atmos, in General, and Download (Lossless Audio), in Playback, decide how large each future download is. Leave them off, or at High Quality, unless you listen on gear that benefits.
| Setting | Where | What it adds |
|---|---|---|
| Automatic Downloads | Music › Settings › General | Purchases and Apple Music songs added on other devices |
| Always check for available downloads | Music › Settings › General | Purchases not yet on this Mac |
| Download Dolby Atmos | Music › Settings › General | Atmos versions of songs that have one |
| Download (Lossless Audio) | Music › Settings › Playback | Lossless or Hi-Res Lossless files instead of AAC |
| Download (Video Quality) | Music › Settings › Playback | HD versions of music videos |
These settings are the same in macOS 26 Tahoe and macOS 27 Golden Gate, in Music › Settings.
Is there an Optimize Storage for music on a Mac?
No. On a Mac, Storage settings' Optimize Storage removes Apple TV movies and shows you've watched and keeps only recent mail attachments. Nothing removes music you haven't played by itself, so removing downloads is up to you.
Songs you imported yourself
Songs from CDs, from files you bought elsewhere and from your own recordings are different. Nothing may be able to download them again, so treat each one as possibly the only copy.
Is Apple Music a backup of your imported songs?
No. Apple says plainly that Apple Music isn't a backup service, and asks you to back up your library before making changes. With Sync Library on, Music keeps up to 100,000 of your songs available, but songs it matches to the store come back as 256 kbps AAC, not as your original files.
Files larger than 200 MB aren't kept at all, and purchases from the store don't count toward the limit. So keep your own backup, with Time Machine or a copy on another drive, before you delete imported music.
How to delete an imported song
- In Music, click Songs in the sidebar and select the song.
- Press the Delete key, then click Delete Song.
- Click Move to Trash to delete the file, or Keep File to remove the song from your library and leave the file in your media folder.
Keep File frees no space. Move to Trash frees it when you empty the Trash, and until then you can put the file back.
Which format should you import CDs in?
The format you import in decides the size of every song that follows. Choose it in Music › Settings › Files, under Import Settings, where Import Using offers encoders such as AAC and MP3, each with preset settings.
As a guide, AAC at 256 kbps, the quality of iTunes Plus, is under a fifth of the data rate of uncompressed CD audio at 1,411 kbps. A lossless or uncompressed import keeps everything, at several times the space.
If you want smaller files from songs you've already imported, Apple's guide recommends importing again from the original source in the new format, rather than converting one compressed format to another, which can lower the quality. Remove the larger versions once the new ones play.
Finding duplicates
Imported libraries often hold the same song twice. In Music, click Songs, select a song, then choose File › Library › Show Duplicate Items to see every copy of songs by the same artist.
Hold the Option key and choose File › Library › Show Exact Duplicate Items to see only songs whose name, artist, album and version all match. Check which copy plays before you delete the other, then click Done to see everything again.
Copies Music makes by itself
Some actions copy files rather than move them, so the space doubles:
- Adding files to your library. With Copy files to Media folder when adding to library on, in Files settings, Music copies each file you add and leaves the original where it was.
- Converting formats. File › Convert adds a second copy of each song in the new format and keeps the original.
- Consolidating. File › Library › Organize Library › Consolidate files copies files from other places into your media folder, and Apple notes the originals stay put.
After any of these, look for the originals, often in Downloads, and remove them once you've checked the copies play.
The Music cache and other small folders
Next to the songs, Music keeps a few smaller folders. One is safe to clear, one is worth keeping, and one belongs to your iPhone rather than to Music.
What's in the Music cache?
~/ holds album artwork, Apple Music pages and other data Music downloaded, so it doesn't have to download them again right away. None of it is part of your library, and Music recreates the folder when you open it.
It grows with use, and Music has no setting to limit its size. To clear it, quit Music, open the folder with Go › Go to Folder, and move the items inside to the Trash.
Artwork and pages load more slowly at first while Music downloads them again. The post on whether ~/Library/Caches is safe to delete covers caches in general.
What does Reset Music Store cache do?
The Reset Music Store cache button, in Music › Settings › Advanced, clears the store pages Music saved. Apple suggests it when a page looks out of date or won't open properly. It's a fix for the store, not a way to free much space.
The Previous Libraries folder
After an update that changes the library's format, Music can keep a dated copy of the old library database in ~/. It holds no songs, so it's usually small. Leave it until you're sure the current library works, and it costs little to keep.
The iTunes folder in your Library
~/ isn't your music. Despite its name, it's where Finder keeps the software it downloads to update or restore an iPhone or iPad, in files of several gigabytes. The post on iOS Files in Mac storage explains them; they're safe to remove, and Finder downloads them again when it needs them.
| Folder | Is it safe to clear? | What happens next |
|---|---|---|
~/Library/Caches/com.apple.Music | Yes, with Music quit | Artwork and pages download again |
~/Music/Music/Previous Libraries | Usually, once the current library works | Nothing; it's an old copy |
~/Music/Music/Music Library.musiclibrary | No | Your playlists and library are lost |
~/Music/Music/Media | Only through the Music app | Removed songs may be gone for good |
~/Library/iTunes/iPhone Software Updates | Yes | Finder downloads the update again when needed |
Other accounts, extra libraries and backups
A few situations multiply the space music takes without anyone noticing. They're worth checking on a shared Mac, or one that has had several libraries over the years.
Does each user account have its own music?
Yes. Each account has its own Music folder in its own home folder, with its own library and downloads. If two people on one Mac download the same album, it's stored twice.
Storage settings counts other people's files under Other Users & Shared, which only shows a size. Each person removes their own downloads, in Music, while signed in to their own account.
Do extra libraries take space?
They can. Apple's guide describes keeping more than one library, chosen by holding Option while Music opens, and each library has its own media settings. A library you stopped using still holds every file in its media folder.
If you made a second library once, open Music with the Option key, choose it, and check what it holds before deciding. Remove songs from inside that library, the same way as from your main one.
Should Time Machine back up your music?
Yes, at least the songs you imported, because nothing else may hold a copy. Apple Music downloads sit in the same media folder, so excluding that folder from Time Machine would leave your imported songs unprotected too.
If backup space is tight, remove downloads you don't need offline instead. Later backups no longer include them, and they can always be downloaded again.
How big do libraries get?
Anywhere from a gigabyte or so to a couple of hundred gigabytes is typical, and the difference is almost all downloads. A library that streams everything takes very little; one that keeps a large collection downloaded in lossless can fill a small disk by itself.
Moving your music to an external drive
If you want to keep a large library but not on your startup disk, Music can keep new media, or a whole library, on an external drive. Apple's guide also advises, for best results, not changing the location of the Music folder or the folders inside it. So copy a library and choose the copy, rather than moving folders around.
Store new imports on the drive
In Music › Settings › Files, click Change next to Media Location and choose a folder on the drive. Apple's guide says new songs you import go there from then on, and songs you already imported stay where they are. Click Reset to go back to the default.
This alone frees nothing today. It only stops the startup disk filling further.
Keep a whole library on the drive
Apple's guide says you can keep music in a library on an external storage device, and choose it when Music opens:
- Back up your Mac, or at least your Music folder, first.
- Choose Music › Quit Music.
- In Finder, copy your library folder, the one holding
Music Library.musiclibraryandMedia, to the drive. - Press and hold the Option key while you open Music, click Choose Library, and choose the copied library.
- Select a few songs, choose Song › Get Info, and check that the location in the File pane is on the drive. If it still shows your startup disk, the copy is using your original files: don't remove them.
- When songs play from the drive, move the old library folder to the Trash, and empty it when you're sure.
Apple doesn't document a one-step move for an existing library, so check before you remove anything. Copying first and deleting last means a failed copy loses nothing, and you can open Music with the Option key again to choose the original library.
Keep the drive connected
A library on an external drive needs the drive. Connect it before you open Music, and use a drive that stays with the Mac if you use Music daily. The same goes for a Photos library.
Deciding what to keep
Start with what can come back, and leave what can't until you've backed it up.
A quick way to decide
| If it's | Then |
|---|---|
| Downloaded from Apple Music | Remove Download; it streams or downloads again |
| A lossless download you rarely play | Remove it, set High Quality, and download it again if needed |
| An iTunes Store purchase | Remove the download; it stays in your purchases |
| Imported from a CD or a file | Back it up before deleting anything |
| A duplicate | Keep the copy that plays; delete the other |
| The original of a file Music copied | Remove it once the copy plays |
Which downloads are worth keeping?
Downloads matter only when you're offline: on a flight, on a commute without a signal, or where your connection is slow or metered. Apple notes that streaming lossless uses significantly more data, so if you play the same lossless albums every day on a metered connection, keeping those downloaded can make sense.
Everything else streams just as well. A useful rule is to keep downloaded what you'd want on a plane, and remove the rest. The same rule works for Spotify and other streaming apps, whose downloads stay until you remove them.
Mistakes to avoid
- Deleting files from the Media folder in Finder. Music still lists the songs, and can't find them. Remove songs in the Music app.
- Choosing Delete from Library to free space. With Sync Library on, it removes the music from every device. Remove Download frees the same space.
- Opening the library package.
Music Library.musiclibraryholds your library's data, and editing it can break your library. - Treating Apple Music as a backup. Apple says it isn't one. Keep your own copy of music you imported.
- Expecting a faster Mac. Removing music frees disk space; it doesn't speed anything up.
Keeping it from growing back
Turn off Automatic Downloads if you don't need every song from your iPhone on this Mac, and set download quality to what you can hear. Every few months, choose View › Only Downloaded Music and remove what you no longer play offline.
How the app does it
Select the media folder or the cache in the map, the app's home screen, and the inspector says what it is, which app made it and how that app removes it. The explanations come from the catalog, written and checked by hand, with its sources.
~/
Music/ Music/ {Media,Media.localized} Songs, music videos and other files in your Music library, including music you imported and songs you downloaded.
Review first · Explained only: the app shows you how
~/
Library/ Caches/ com.apple.Music Album artwork, Apple Music pages and other downloaded data the Music app saves so they load faster next time.
Safe · Moves it to the Trash
~/
Library/ iTunes/ {iPhone,iPad,iPod} Software Updates iPhone and iPad software updates
Software files that were downloaded to update or restore an iPhone, iPad or iPod touch connected to this Mac.
Safe · Moves it to the Trash
The Music cache is Safe: Music recreates it, so it starts checked and counts in the safe-to-remove total. The media folder is Review first, because imported songs may exist only there; the app explains how to remove downloads in the Music app and never removes songs itself. The library package is never removed at all.
iPhone and iPad software updates are Safe too. Seeing what your music takes is free; moving the cache and update files to the Trash, with a review sheet and Undo, is PRO.
Frequently asked questions
How do I remove downloaded music from my Mac but keep it in my library?
In the Music app, click Songs or Albums, click the More button next to a song or over an album, and choose Remove Download. The music stays in your library, plays when you're online and can be downloaded again at any time.
Does removing a download delete the song from my iPhone?
No. Remove Download deletes the file from the Mac you're using only. Delete from Library is the one that removes music from your library, and with Sync Library on, Apple says it's deleted from your other devices too.
Where is the Music library stored on a Mac?
In the Music folder in your home folder, at ~/Music/Music. The Media folder there holds the songs, and Music Library.musiclibrary holds the library's database. Music › Settings › Files shows the media location your library really uses.
Is it safe to delete the Music cache on a Mac?
Yes. The com.apple.Music folder in your Library's Caches folder holds artwork, Apple Music pages and other downloaded data, and Music recreates it. Quit Music first; artwork may load more slowly for a while.
Why does Apple Music use so much storage on my Mac?
Usually because of downloads: Automatic Downloads can bring in every song you add on your iPhone, and lossless downloads are much larger than standard ones. Check Music › Settings › General and Playback, then remove downloads you don't play offline.
Can I delete the old iTunes folder after moving to Music?
Not without checking. A library converted from iTunes may still keep its songs in the iTunes Media folder inside ~/Music/iTunes. Look at Music › Settings › Files, and use Song › Get Info on a few songs to see where they really are.
Does lossless audio take more storage on a Mac?
Yes, significantly, Apple says, and higher resolutions take more than lower ones. Music in 256 kbps AAC, the quality of iTunes Store purchases, takes about 115 MB per hour, while lossless files take hundreds of megabytes or more per hour.