How to clear cache on Mac
A cache is a set of temporary files an app keeps to work faster: downloaded images, previews, compiled code. Apps rebuild it on their own, so clearing it is safe — and on a Mac in use for a couple of years, caches often take tens of gigabytes.
- Open MacWashing and choose System Junk in the sidebar.
- Click Start Scan.
- Look through what it found and click Clean. Anything debatable stays unchecked.
Free trial · macOS 14 or later
Is it safe to clear cache?
Yes. Quit the apps whose cache you clear, and expect them to start a little slower the first time while they rebuild what they need. The steps below keep your passwords, history and website sign-ins.
Clearing cache frees space. It won’t make a healthy Mac faster. When a single app misbehaves, clearing its cache is a good first step.
Clear app caches
- Quit the apps you want to clean.
- In Finder, choose Go › Go to Folder (Shift-Command-G), type
~/Library/Cachesand press Return.
- Each folder here belongs to one app and is named after it or after its identifier, like
com.spotify.client. To find the biggest ones, choose View › as List, then View › Show View Options, turn on Calculate all sizes and sort by size.
- Open a folder you want to clear, select everything inside it and move it to the Trash. Delete what’s inside, not the folder itself.
- Restart your Mac, then empty the Trash.
Some apps keep caches inside their own data: App Store apps in ~/Library/Containers/<app>/Data/Library/Caches, and Chrome, Slack, Discord, VS Code and other apps built on Chromium or Electron in ~/Library/Application Support/<app>. Those folders also hold real data, so there delete only the folders named Cache, Code Cache and GPUCache.
Clear browser cache
Browsers clear their cache from their own settings, leaving passwords and history in place:
- Safari: choose Safari › Settings › Advanced and turn on Show features for web developers. Then choose Develop › Empty Caches (Option-Command-E).
- Chrome: open
chrome://settings/clearBrowserData, choose a time range, check only Cached images and files and click Delete from this device.
System caches and logs
macOS keeps caches for all users in /Library/Caches, and logs in ~/Library/Logs, /Library/Logs and /private/var/log. They are usually much smaller than app caches, macOS cleans many of them itself, and clearing them by hand needs an administrator password. Don’t try to clear /System/Library/Caches: it’s on the protected system volume.
Developer caches
If you build apps in Xcode, its data often outweighs every other cache. ~/Library/Developer/Xcode/DerivedData alone can reach tens of gigabytes, and it’s safe to delete: Xcode rebuilds it on the next build. Package managers keep caches too: npm in ~/.npm, Homebrew in ~/Library/Caches/Homebrew (or run brew cleanup).
What not to delete
- The
Cachesfolder itself or other folders in Library — only what’s inside the cache folders. - Anything in
/System. - Caches of apps that are open right now: quit them first.
- Keychains and the Mail, Messages and Photos libraries: they are your data, not caches.
Leftovers of apps you deleted long ago take space too: see how to uninstall apps on Mac completely.
With MacWashing, it’s one click
System Junk in MacWashing finds the caches of every app it knows, including those hidden inside app data, plus logs, Xcode junk and leftovers of deleted apps. It shows how much each takes and clears them in one go. Anything debatable stays unchecked until you decide.
Free trial · macOS 14 or later
Questions and answers
Will MacWashing delete my own files when it cleans?
No. It removes only what it can match to a known app or a known kind of junk, in places apps leave files; macOS and Apple’s files are never touched. Anything debatable is marked and stays unchecked until you decide.
What about apps that are open?
If an open app holds files being cleaned, MacWashing waits for it to quit or quits it at your request, and opens it again afterwards.
Is it free?
Yes, within the free trial: System Junk and the Uninstaller free up to 25 GB in total, with no account or card needed.
Will clearing cache delete my data?
No. Caches hold copies of things an app can download or compute again. Your documents, photos, passwords and settings are kept elsewhere.
How often should I clear cache on my Mac?
There’s no need to do it on a schedule. Clear caches when you need space or when an app misbehaves.
Why does the cache grow back?
Apps rebuild what they use. A cache that refills quickly belongs to an app you use a lot. Its space stays free only as long as the app doesn’t need those files again.