Struggling to Download My Data from iCloud Drive – Any Solutions?

I've been relying on iCloud Drive for over a terabyte of important creative files like photos, documents, and client work. Now that I need to download everything back, I'm running into a huge issue. You can't download entire folders from iCloud Drive, so I have to click each file individually, which is a nightmare! Even when I select all, downloads fail randomly, making it hard to track what's missing. I've tried different browsers, devices, and networks but had no luck. Apple Support told me that's just how it operates. I've spent weeks trying to manually download thousands of files while trying to manage the space on my macOS. When I tried syncing everything locally, it just led to my drive getting cluttered with unmanageable cached data. Apple won't assist because my Mac is considered 'vintage,' even though the same model is still available today. I'm desperate for solutions: Has anyone come up with a workaround for downloading entire folders or automating the process? Are there any third-party tools or scripts that could simplify this? Is there any faster or more reliable way to retrieve my data? If you've had any success or advice, I'd love to hear it!