Free up space on your Mac by storing files in iCloud

Why it happens

Your Mac's drive fills up with years of documents, photos and messages. Store in iCloud moves the older ones to iCloud and leaves a small placeholder on the Mac, so you still see every file. When you open an older file, your Mac downloads it again. It uses your iCloud storage, so a big library may need more than the free 5 GB.

How to fix it

1. Click the Apple menu and choose System Settings, then click General in the sidebar and open Storage.

2. Under Recommendations, click Store in iCloud.

   macOS 26 Tahoe General›Storage›Store in iCloud

   macOS 27 Golden Gate General›Storage›Store in iCloud…

3. Tick what you'd like to keep in iCloud, such as your Desktop and Documents folders, Photos or Messages, then confirm. Your Mac may ask you to sign in to iCloud first.

4. Leave your Mac online and plugged in for a while. Uploading a lot of files can take hours, and the space comes back as they finish.

On macOS 27 the button reads Store in iCloud… with three dots. It opens the same choices.

Still not fixed?

1. If your Mac says there isn't enough iCloud storage, you need a bigger iCloud plan or fewer files in iCloud. You can see and change your plan in Apple Account settings under iCloud.

   macOS 26 Tahoe Apple Account›iCloud›Manage…›Change Storage Plan

   macOS 27 Golden Gate Apple Account›iCloud›Manage Plan

2. Photos often takes the most room. In the Photos app, open Settings, click iCloud and choose Optimize Mac Storage so full-size photos live in iCloud.

   Photos›Settings›iCloud›Optimize Mac Storage

3. Still short of space? Go back to General, then Storage, and look at the biggest categories. Empty the Trash and move large files you rarely use to an external drive.

   General›Storage

4. If files stay stuck uploading for days, or Store in iCloud won't turn on even with enough iCloud space, contact Apple Support. They can look at your iCloud account with you.