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How to download and install OneDrive on Mac

OneDrive for Mac syncs your files with Microsoft’s cloud and comes from Microsoft’s website or the Mac App Store. Here is which to pick, how to install it and how to set it up so it doesn’t fill your disk.

OneDrive

  • macOS 14.4 or later
  • One file for Apple Silicon and Intel
  • 5 GB free, more with Microsoft 365
Official OneDrive websitemicrosoft.com ↗

Or the installer straight from the developer’s server:

For any Mac.pkg

The links go to the developer’s website (microsoft.com, go.microsoft.com). MacWashing is not affiliated with the developer and keeps no installers.

Open Terminal (Applications › Utilities) and run:

brew install --cask onedrive

Homebrew downloads the app from the developer’s server, checks the file and puts the app in Applications.

No Homebrew yet? How to install Homebrew: one command from brew.sh.

Website or App Store

Microsoft offers the same OneDrive app in two places: as an installer package on its website and in the Mac App Store. The App Store version updates with your other apps. Either way it is one app for Apple Silicon and Intel Macs. Install only one of them. If you installed the full Microsoft Office package, OneDrive may already be in Applications.

You sign in with a Microsoft account: 5 GB are free, and Microsoft 365 plans add more. A work or school account works too.

OneDrive needs macOS 14.4 Sonoma or later. The website installer is a .pkg that runs with administrator rights, so download it only from microsoft.com.

How to install OneDrive

  1. Open OneDrive.pkg in your Downloads folder.
The first screen of the OneDrive installer
  1. Click Continue, then Install.
  2. Enter your Mac password and click Install Software.
  3. When the installer says it is done, click Close.
  4. Open OneDrive from Applications and sign in with your Microsoft account.

From the App Store, search for OneDrive, click Get, then Install. It appears in Applications by itself.

What to set up after the first launch

  • Where your files are. OneDrive appears in the Finder sidebar under Locations. The folder itself lives in ~/Library/CloudStorage, named after your account, such as OneDrive-Personal.
  • Files On-Demand. Files stay in the cloud and download when you open them. In Finder, Control-click a file or folder and choose Always Keep on This Device to keep it offline, or Free Up Space to send it back to the cloud.
  • Desktop and Documents. OneDrive can also back up these folders. Turn it on in OneDrive’s settings, under backup.
  • Opening at login. OneDrive starts with your Mac so it can sync. If you use it only now and then, turn it off in System Settings › General › Login Items.
  • The installer. Move OneDrive.pkg from Downloads to the Trash once OneDrive runs.

If OneDrive won’t install or open

  • The installer stops with an error. Check your macOS version in About This Mac: OneDrive needs macOS 14.4 or later. Make sure you are signed in to macOS as an administrator and download the package again.
  • OneDrive doesn’t appear in Finder. Quit OneDrive, restart your Mac and open OneDrive again.
  • Nothing helps. Remove OneDrive completely, with its cache and settings, and install it again. Your files stay in the cloud: see how to uninstall OneDrive on Mac.

Alternatives to OneDrive

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Questions and answers

Is OneDrive for Mac free?

The app is free, and a Microsoft account comes with 5 GB of storage. Microsoft 365 plans add more space along with the Office apps.

Should I install OneDrive from the website or the App Store?

Both are Microsoft’s own app and work the same. The App Store version updates together with your other apps. The website package is handy if you don’t use the App Store. Don’t install both.

Does OneDrive take space on my Mac?

Only for files you open or keep on the device. The rest stay in the cloud and show in Finder without taking space. Free Up Space sends downloaded files back.