Is it safe to delete Squirrel update files (ShipIt)?

Updates that apps built with Electron, such as VS Code, downloaded and staged here before installing them, plus the updater's logs.

Safe

Its owner recreates it by itself when it needs it, and nothing you made is lost.

~/Library/Caches/*.ShipIt

What it is

Many apps built with Electron update themselves with Squirrel. It downloads each update into a folder named after the app's bundle identifier, such as com.example.app.ShipIt, and its ShipIt helper installs the update when you quit the app. The folder also holds ShipIt's logs. An update that was downloaded but not installed yet can take up several hundred megabytes.

If it's removed

If an update was waiting to be installed, the app downloads it again the next time it checks for updates.

How it's removed

Moved to the Trash, where you can restore it.

PRO

The free analyzer finds it and explains it. Removing it is Pro, after a review sheet that lists every move and command. It starts checked in the Cleanup checklist, except inside Documents or Desktop.

Sources

Last checked on 26 Sep 2026. Every entry is written and checked by hand; the app and the command-line tool use the same words.