How to Clear Mac Disk Space: Uncovering Hidden Storage Issues

When you're running out of storage space on your Mac, it can be frustrating and confusing to figure out where all the space is going. In this article, we'll explore a common issue that many Mac users face: how to clear disk space by identifying and deleting unnecessary files.

One of the most significant contributors to 'other' files on your Mac is the DARWIN_USER_CACHE_DIR directory. This hidden cache directory is located outside your Home directory, and each user account has its own copy. To find the location of this directory, you'll need to execute the getconf DARWIN_USER_CACHE_DIR command in Terminal.

The DARWIN_USER_CACHE_DIR directory is a relic from the early days of MacOS and is well-known among Mac professionals. Many online tutorials recommend quitting all programs and deleting the contents of this cache directory if you're running low on storage space. The good news is that these files can be safely deleted without losing any valuable data.

Cache files are not considered valuable, as they can be recreated by redownloading them from the internet or performing a local operation on another set of files. This directory is where programs are supposed to store cache files, and it's excluded from Time Machine and other backup programs.

However, many users may not even know this directory exists, let alone how to find it. The 'primary' user cache directory is stored in ~/Library/Caches/ directory in your Home folder. This article will explore where to find this directory, what it's for, and what Apple can do better to prevent storage space issues.

My personal experience with clearing disk space was a frustrating one. After noticing that my MacBook had only 250 GB of available storage, I spent months trying to figure out where all the space had gone. It wasn't until I dug deeper into my files and directories that I discovered the missing storage space.

In this case, I found that the DARWIN_USER_CACHE_DIR directory was taking up a whopping 135 GB of space. This was not the only issue, however, as I also discovered another 'user cache' directory that was contributing to the overall storage space problem.

By identifying and deleting unnecessary files, you can free up valuable disk space on your Mac. In this article, we'll explore how to do just that, and provide tips for keeping your disk space clear in the future.

How to clear mac disc space