~/Library/Caches on Mac: What's Safe to Delete (and What Isn't)

Yes, it's safe to delete the contents of ~/Library/Caches on a Mac for almost every app. Caches are temporary files apps rebuild when they need them. The safe way is to quit the app first, delete what's inside its folder rather than the folder itself, and leave Apple's own com.apple.* folders to macOS.

~/Library/Caches is the cache folder for your user account, inside the Library folder Finder hides by default. On a Mac that's been in use for a while, a few of its folders can grow to gigabytes each. Everything in it counts as System Data in Storage settings, which is why clearing it shrinks that bar. For browser and system cache, see our broader guide on how to clear cache on Mac.

What is ~/Library/Caches?

~/Library/Caches is the folder where apps store temporary data for your user account: downloaded images, thumbnails, streaming buffers, package downloads and similar files. The ~ means your home folder, so the full path is /Users/yourname/Library/Caches. Each app gets its own subfolder, usually named after the app or its bundle ID, such as com.spotify.client.

It's one of three cache locations on a Mac, and the only one you should clear by hand:

Folder	Whose cache	Clear it by hand?
~/Library/Caches	Your apps, your account	Yes, folder contents
/Library/Caches	Shared by all users on the Mac	Only if you know what the folder is; needs an admin password
/System/Library/Caches	macOS itself	No. Protected; use Safe Mode instead

How to open ~/Library/Caches

The Library folder is hidden, so it won't show up in your home folder by default. Either:

• In Finder, press Cmd + Shift + G, type ~/Library/Caches and press Return, or
• Click Go in the menu bar, hold Option, choose Library, then open Caches.

To see which folders are biggest, switch to List view and turn on View > Show View Options > Calculate all sizes, then sort by size.

Can I delete everything in ~/Library/Caches?

You can delete the contents of almost every app folder in ~/Library/Caches, but you shouldn't select everything and delete it in one go. Quit the apps first, leave the Caches folder and the app subfolders in place, and skip Apple's com.apple.* folders, which macOS manages and uses while you're logged in. Deleting a cache for an app that's still running can make it misbehave until you restart it.

Cache folders that are safe to delete

These folders tend to grow largest. Everything in them rebuilds:

Folder in ~/Library/Caches	What it is	What happens after clearing
Google/Chrome	Chrome's page and image cache	Pages load a little slower at first
com.spotify.client	Spotify's streaming cache	Songs re-download as you play them
Homebrew	Downloaded Homebrew packages	Re-downloaded if needed; brew cleanup does the same
pip, Yarn, CocoaPods	Package manager downloads	Re-downloaded on the next install
JetBrains	IntelliJ, PyCharm and other JetBrains IDE caches	The IDE re-indexes projects on next launch
Folders for apps you've deleted	Leftovers	Nothing, the app is gone

What not to delete in ~/Library

A few things look like junk and aren't:

• com.apple.* folders in Caches. macOS and Apple apps manage these. Leave them alone.
• ~/Library/Containers and ~/Library/Group Containers. These hold data for sandboxed apps, including Mail and Microsoft Office, not only caches.
• ~/Library/Application Support for apps you still use. It holds real app data: databases, saved games, licences.
• ~/Library/Keychains, which holds your saved passwords.

The rule that keeps you safe: if you can't tell which app a folder belongs to, look it up before you delete it.

How to clear ~/Library/Caches safely

1. Quit the apps whose caches you're clearing.
2. Open ~/Library/Caches and sort by size.
3. Open each large app folder and move its contents to the Trash.
4. Wait a day before emptying the Trash. Use your Mac normally. If every app behaves, empty it.
5. Restart so apps start fresh and the space shows up as free.

What happens if I delete ~/Library/Caches?

If you delete the contents of ~/Library/Caches, apps rebuild the files they need the next time they run. Your documents, photos, settings and passwords aren't affected, because they aren't stored there. Expect some apps to open more slowly the first time, streaming apps to re-download media, and a few apps to ask you to sign in again.

Why is ~/Library/Caches so big?

~/Library/Caches gets big when one or two apps cache heavily and never clean up, typically browsers, music and video apps, package managers and IDEs. A single folder can reach several gigabytes. Sorting the folder by size, or scanning it with a disk map, shows which app is responsible, and that's usually the only folder worth clearing.

Is it safe to delete /Library/Caches?

/Library/Caches (without the ~) is shared by every user on the Mac and needs an admin password to change. Some of it is safe to clear, but it's easier to break things there, and the space it takes is usually small. Starting up in Safe Mode clears some system caches for you, which is the safer route.

Find the caches worth clearing

Most folders in ~/Library/Caches are tiny. The two or three big ones are the only ones worth clearing, and Finder makes you calculate sizes folder by folder to find them.

DissectMac shows ~/Library and the rest of your drive as a map where each folder is sized by how much space it takes. The largest caches are the largest blocks. The map is free.

Pro, $12.99 once adds deleting from inside the app, an uninstaller that removes an app together with its caches and leftovers, and a cleanup for files left behind by apps you've already deleted. No subscription, and nothing leaves your Mac.