does icloud drive take up space on your mac?
by sumit paul · last updated
yes, icloud drive takes up space on your mac. with optimize mac storage off, every file in icloud drive is kept in full on the mac as well as in icloud. with it on, files still stay on the mac until space runs low; only then does macos remove the local copies of older files and leave placeholders. you can free space yourself by control-clicking files and choosing remove download.
how much space it uses depends on one setting
the setting is in apple menu › system settings › your name › icloud › drive.
| optimize mac storage | what's on your mac | space used |
|---|---|---|
| off | a full copy of every icloud drive file | the full size of your icloud drive |
| on, plenty of free space | still a full copy of everything | the same as off |
| on, space running low | recently opened files in full; older files as placeholders | only the files that are still downloaded |
that middle row surprises people. apple's own guide says that if space isn't needed, the full contents of icloud drive remain on your mac. optimize is a safety valve, not a way to keep the mac empty.
why it can be bigger than you expect
- desktop & documents folders. if this is on (same settings screen), your desktop and documents folders live in icloud drive. everything you save there counts, both in icloud and on the mac.
- files you opened come back. opening a placeholder downloads the whole file, and it stays until space is needed again.
- keep downloaded. files or folders marked keep downloaded are never removed from the mac.
- app folders. apps that save to icloud, like pages, keynote or preview, keep their documents in icloud drive too.
check how much it's using
open apple menu › system settings › general › storage. the icloud drive row shows its share of your disk. finder's status icons tell you which files are local: a cloud icon next to a name means it's only in icloud and takes almost no space.
for a precise figure, terminal's du measures what's actually on disk, so placeholders count as almost nothing:
du -sh ~/Library/Mobile\ Documents
terminal may need full disk access (system settings › privacy & security › full disk access) to read everything there.
free space without deleting anything from icloud
- make sure your files have finished uploading. hold the pointer over icloud drive in the finder sidebar and click the status icon.
- select files or folders in icloud drive, control-click, and choose remove download. the local copy goes; the file stays in icloud and on your other devices.
- turn on optimize mac storage so macos does this for older files on its own when space runs low.
don't drag files to the trash to free space. deleting from icloud drive deletes the file from icloud and every device. you can restore it from icloud.com within 30 days, but it's an easy mistake to make.
and don't touch ~/Library/Mobile Documents directly. it's where icloud drive keeps its files, and changing things there by hand can confuse syncing.
the catch with large files
icloud drive works well for documents. large files are where it hurts: a removed 15 GB video needs 15 GB free and a full download before it opens, and it then stays on your mac. that's not unique to icloud. google drive for desktop's stream mode and dropbox's online-only files also download the whole file when you open it.
if your large files live in google drive or dropbox, a streaming drive avoids that. feather drive shows them in finder and fetches only the parts an app reads, so get info shows zero bytes on disk even while a video plays. it doesn't work with icloud drive, needs macos 26 or later and an internet connection to open files, only sees files you put in it, and is a paid app with a 3-day free trial. for documents and everyday files, icloud drive with optimize on is simpler and free up to 5 GB.
related
- icloud optimize mac storage: on or off?
- icloud storage full: what's filling it and how to free it
- does google drive take up space on your mac?
- how to open any file from the cloud on a mac without downloading it
common questions
does icloud drive store files on my mac?
yes. with optimize mac storage off, every file in icloud drive is kept in full on your mac. with it on, files stay on your mac until space runs low, then older ones are removed locally and kept only in icloud.
if i delete a file from icloud drive on my mac, is it deleted from icloud?
yes. deleting from the icloud drive folder deletes the file from icloud and all your devices. to free space on the mac only, control-click the file and choose remove download.
where are icloud drive files stored on a mac?
in a folder in your user library, ~/Library/Mobile Documents. finder shows it as icloud drive in the sidebar. don't move or delete files in the library folder directly.
how do i see how much space icloud drive uses on my mac?
open apple menu › system settings › general › storage and look at the icloud drive row. for an exact on-disk figure, run du -sh on ~/Library/Mobile Documents in terminal.