I've heard that deleting everything in the cache folders can free up a lot of storage, but I'm worried about removing something important. Is it generally safe to delete these files, and are there any limits or precautions I should know about? I'm using an 11-inch MacBook Air from early 2014. The storage category labeled "Other" is taking up around 30 GB, so I'm wondering whether caches are responsible.
2 Answers
Cache files are designed to be disposable, but wiping them directly from the filesystem isn’t always the best first step. Some applications may still be using temporary cached data, and the files will eventually be recreated anyway. It’s better to identify what is actually using the storage and remove large, unnecessary files rather than deleting every cache indiscriminately.
If the files are genuinely caches, deleting them is generally safe because macOS and individual apps can recreate them. However, it usually isn’t necessary and may only free space temporarily. Rebuilding the caches can also make apps or the system feel slower for a while. Rather than manually deleting everything, try restarting the Mac first, since running processes may clean up or flush temporary data during housekeeping.
That makes sense. I was mainly looking at the “Other” storage category, which is around 30 GB, so I assumed the cache folders were probably the cause.