System Data takes almost 100 GB. How can I clean it up?

When I analyze my storage, I notice that System Data takes almost 100 GB. That is too much for a MacBook Air that I use very little. here is the storage breakdown. You can easily see that is not a complex computer.



I mean it takes almost half of the total storage... quite absurd. I have the latest version of everything, already cleaned the useless files, and followed all the official documentation.


What is the official suggestion to clean-up System Data? That obviously is not going file-by-file, I hope. For sure there are pointless files/logs/cache there, that can be removed by some official tool.

MacBook Air 13″, macOS 14.4

Posted on Jul 2, 2025 12:27 PM

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7 replies

Jul 3, 2025 1:30 AM in response to Revalaver

Part 1 of 3


This is not what you want to hear but needs to be mentioned just the same


System Data technically, has a mount point /System/Volume/Data 


With a mount point of /System , this Volume is part of the Operating System.


It is where your User Account (s)  was made when the computer was First Setup as New


We can point-out what may be included in this Volume much like @muguy has already outlined


Though, how to reduce this is a long and complicated trial and error process


This process does not always prove fruitful 


Part 2 of 3


The more  popular way to address this issue is to Start Over from Scratch 


For Apple Silicon computer >> Use Disk Utility to erase a Mac with Apple silicon.


For Apple Intel computers >>   Use Disk Utility to erase an Intel-based Mac followed by How to reinstall macOS


Always make a Time Machine Backup  before  proceeding 


It is also suggest to  Only Migrating the User Account and nothing more.


Emphasis on User Account Only


Reinstall the Needed and not the Wanted applications from the Apple Apps Store or Directly from the Developers 


Part 3 of 3


From what I have seen on these Forums 


93.72 GB in System Data  seems to be about normal for some but not all 


Generally when this issue is discovered by the User ( you in this case )


It is because the Internal Drive Capacity of this computer maybe on the small size


Meaning, the computer has a 256 GB Capacity Drive


Sorry but running a computer with a 256 GB Capacity Drive in 2025 is akin to when Apple Sold the tiny 128 GB drive for the Entry Level Laptops


It all sounded great at the time but given some years later the Users Needs for additional storage has grown


On you next purchase, make a Custom Purchase and Spend the Extra Money Up Front on a larger Drive Capacity Drive and add more RAM


This may Future Proof the computer for your growing needs for storage


Jul 6, 2025 3:14 PM in response to Revalaver

That sounds about right. Mine is 112 GB. System Data used to be called the Other Category in previous systems. The Other category is a potpourri of files which can include:


• System temporary files

• macOS system folders

• Archives and disk images (.zip, .iso, etc. - often found in the Downloads folder)

• Personal user data

• Files from the user’s library (Application Support, iCloud files, screensavers, etc.)

• Cache files: browser, Mail

• Mail messages & attachments

• Fonts, plugins, extensions

• Safari reading list

• iTunes backups

• Crud resulting from jailbreaking your iDevice

• Game data

• Saved data files

• Call history

• Notes

• Media

• Voice memos

• Other files that are not recognized by a Spotlight search

• Media files that cannot be classified by Spotlight as a media file because they are located inside of a package

• Files created and modified by other user accounts on your Mac.


They can be located anywhere on your hard drive.


The files that you have control over are located in the Documents, Downloads, Pictures, Music and Movies folders.  You can use either of these two free apps, GrandPerspective  or OmniDiscSweeper, to find the largest files on your drive so you can determine if they can be deleted or moved to an external HD for storage.  


Note: you can empty the Downloads folder after the apps and/or updates that were downloaded have been installed or applied.  Many users have found a couple of Gigabytes of files in their Downloads folder which are no longer needed. 


Jul 8, 2025 1:26 AM in response to Revalaver

As i know there are several ways to clear system data on Mac OS.


1: Clear system cache: Go to Finder > Go > Go to Folder, then type in "~/Library/Caches" and hit enter. Select all the folders inside the Caches folder and delete them.


2: Clear system logs: Go to Finder > Go > Go to Folder, then type in "/var/log" and hit enter. Select all the files inside the Log folder and delete them.


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System Data takes almost 100 GB. How can I clean it up?

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