Your Mac's storage is still full after you deleted files

Why it happens

Deleting a file only moves it to the Trash, so it keeps using space until you empty it. Photos does the same with its Recently Deleted album, which holds photos for up to 30 days. macOS also keeps some space as purgeable, like recent Time Machine snapshots and caches, and the Storage screen can take a few minutes to update.

How to fix it

1. Empty the Trash. Click the Finder menu and choose Empty Trash…, then confirm. This can't be undone, so take out anything you still need first.

   Finder›Empty Trash…

2. Deleted photos or videos? Open Photos, click Recently Deleted in the sidebar, use Touch ID or your password to open it, and click Delete All.

   Photos›Recently Deleted

3. Open the Apple menu, choose System Settings, then General, then Storage. Wait for the bar at the top to finish adding up. It can take a few minutes to show the new free space.

   General›Storage

4. If part of the bar is shown as purgeable, you don't need to do anything. macOS clears it by itself when an app or update needs the room.

Still not fixed?

1. Restart your Mac. It tidies up temporary files and lets the Storage figures refresh.

2. Look at the biggest categories in Storage and click the info button next to one to see what's in it. Mail, Messages and old downloads often hold more than you'd expect.

3. If you use Time Machine, recent backup snapshots can sit on your Mac's own drive for about a day. They go by themselves in that time, or sooner when space runs low.

4. If the space still doesn't come back after a restart and an empty Trash, contact Apple Support. They can help you find what's using it.