A Complete Guide to Delete Purgeable Space on Mac

Have you peeked into your Mac's storage and seen that mysterious "Purgeable" category? You're probably also wondering what this "Purgeable" space is and how much space it is taking up on your Mac. More importantly, if it's something that can be cleared?

Well, you're in the right place. In this article, we'll break it all down for you in the simplest way possible. By the end, you'll be a pro at wiping out "Purgeable" space, making your Mac run like a charm.

What Is Purgeable Space on Mac?

"Purgeable" space on a Mac refers to the space occupied by data that the macOS system deems can be automatically cleared when needed. This data usually includes files you haven't used for a long time, such as temporary files, cached data, and backup copies of applications.

Its purpose is to make the best use of your disk space. When there is sufficient disk space, these data can remain on the disk for you to access quickly next time. Once your disk space is running out, macOS will automatically clean up these Purgeable data to free up space for other more urgent tasks.

For example, a large number of image caches generated when you browse the web, or temporary installation packages generated during software updates, may be classified into the "Purgeable" space.

How to Check Purgeable Space on Mac

Apple has made the purgeable space visible since macOS Sierra (10.12). Here's how to check it on your Mac:

1. Click the Apple menu and select About This Mac.
2. Click the Storage tab and wait for the system to calculate your storage usage.
3. If you see a white-gray striped section, it indicates the presence of Purgeable space.
4. Hover over the section to view the amount of space it occupies.

However, if you don't see the white-gray striped section, it does not necessarily mean that there is no Purgeable space. On macOS Ventura, Sonoma, and Sequoia, you cannot view purgeable space through Storage. In this case, you can use Disk Utility, a free built-in tool on macOS that allows you to format and repair drives and check storage usage.

1. Open Finder > Applications > Utilities > Disk Utility.
2. Click on Macintosh HD in the left column.
3. Select the Data tab, and you will see the usage of your internal drive in the right column.
4. In the graph, you will be able to identify the space occupied by the Purgeable category.

Purgeable space is dynamic and can be regenerated if needed, so it’s safe to clear. However, most of the time, you don’t need to clear it manually, as macOS will automatically delete it when your storage space is low. If you still want to do it yourself, follow the steps below.

How to Delete Purgeable Space on Mac - Best Way

Freeing up "Purgeable" space on your Mac is easy. All you need is BuhoCleaner - an essential Mac storage cleaning tool designed for Mac beginners. Even if you're not good with tech, you can use it without any trouble.

No need to learn hard commands or search through hidden folders. With BuhoCleaner, you can clean your Mac in just a minute and make it run like new. So, give it a try today!

Here's how it works:

1. Download, install, and launch BuhoCleaner.
2. Click Scan > View Results.
3. Select Purgeable Space and click the Remove button.

In fact, BuhoCleaner offers much more than just purging space. It provides a wide range of cleaning features, including the removal of large and duplicate files, app uninstallation, startup program management, Mac system status monitoring, and much more. With this powerful tool, you can reclaim gigabytes of space in just a few simple clicks.

How to Manually Remove Purgeable Space on Mac

Not everyone likes to use third-party tools, so we have collected some manual cleaning methods for you here.

Optimize Mac Storage

1. Click the Manage button on the storage bar.
2. In the storage management window, you can find four optimization recommendations: Store in iCloud, Optimize Storage, Empty Trash Automatically, and Reduce Clutter. 
   • Click the Store in iCloud and uncheck all the boxes.
   • Disable the Optimize Mac Storage: click the Apple icon > System Preferences>Apple ID > iCloud to uncheck all the possible applications and the Optimize Mac Storage button.
   • Keep Empty Trash Automatically turned on.
   • Click the Review Files button to remove large files and outdated files.
3. Restart your Mac.

Disable Time Machine Backups

If you still reduce the purgeable space, you may check your Time Machine Backup. Follow the following steps to disable it from your Mac.

1. Click the Apple icon > System Preferences > Time Machine.
2. Uncheck the Back up Automatically button.
3. Quit the Time Machine.

Remove Cached Files

Rebooting your Mac will help you get rid of the purgeable space, but it will terminate all the tasks on your computer. If you don't want to restart your Mac, you can delete cache files manually using Finder. 

1. Open the Go menu in Finder and select Library.
2. Click Caches, open it, and delete the files you don't need.
3. Empty your Trash.

However, there is a risk that you may delete an important file by mistake with this method. At this time, you can use a third-party tool like BuhoCleaner to clean up your system cache and system logs, delete large files, and remove unnecessary duplicates in a few clicks.

Here are the steps:

1. Download and install BuhoCleaner on your Mac.
2. Launch it, select a cleaning option in the sidebar, click the scan button, and remove the files you don't need.

It's that easy!

Clear Purgeable Space on Mac via Terminal

There is another complicated but effective method to clear purgeable space. That is to create large files on your Mac to use up your storage space, thereby forcing your macOS to free up space.

1. Open Terminal from Launchpad or Spotlight.

2. Paste the command into Terminal: mkdir ~/largefiles. (This will create a new folder named largefiles in your home directory.)

3. Execute the command: dd if=/dev/random of=~/largefiles/largefile bs=15m. (This will create a file called largefile in the largefiles folder, which contains the random output from /dev/random.)

   Note

   Your Terminal may look frozen as the command runs.

4. A few minutes later, press Ctrl + C in the Terminal to stop the command from Step 3.

5. Run the command: cp ~/largefiles/largefile ~/largefiles/largefile2.

6. Continue to run the copy command from Step 5, but remember to change the largefile2 to a different name each time. 

7. Once you see a message telling you that the disk is critically low, run the command: rm -rf ~/largefiles/ to delete all of the largefiles from your Mac.

8. Empty your Trash.

The Bottom Line

You may have known how crucial it is to manage the purgeable space on your Mac to keep it running at its best. But the process doesn't have to be a headache.

With this amazing tailor-made tool - BuhoCleaner, you can wave goodbye to the stress of figuring out which files are taking up that pesky purgeable space. It quickly and accurately identifies all the unnecessary data, making the cleaning process a breeze.