SORT OUT YOUR STORAGE

How to find things faster and let your Mac tidy itself up

1 BE DESCRIPTIVE

Give files and folders names that make it clear what they are, for easier finding and identification later on. For example, Untitled2.txt or IMG20212.JPG could be anything, but “CV for Apple Genius Job” or “Brad Falling Into The Ocean.JPG” need no explanation.

2 FIX NAMES FAST

If you have a bunch of badly named files, turn them into something more sensible in Finder by using the Batch Rename feature. This enables you to add a prefix or suffix, to add numbering and to replace file names altogether. It works instantly even on lots of selected files.

3 OFFLOAD TO THE CLOUD

If you have iCloud Drive, use it to free up space on your Mac. In addition to mirroring your Desktop and Documents folders (via System Preferences), you can make files iCloud–only by Ctrl–clicking them and choosing Remove Download.

4 MANAGE YOUR STORAGE

Your Mac includes lots of useful housekeeping features. Click the Apple logo in the menu bar then select About This Mac > Storage. This shows your internal and connected drives; click on Manage to start tidying up.

5 REMOVE OLD MEDIA

In About This Mac > Storage, use Optimize Storage to automatically remove files such as the Apple TV+ shows you’ve watched, and to remove large email attachments from your oldest emails. This can free up a lot of space.

6 CLEAR THE CLUTTER

Use Reduce Clutter to see which files are taking up too much room on your Mac. This lets you see what and where the space hogs are, and you can delete them from the window. It’s particularly good at spotting old app installers.