How to Clear "Other Users and Shared" Storage on Mac [Full Guide]

"Other Users and Shared taking up all my storage and I don’t know what it is. Can I delete this?"

- From Reddit

As you're checking your Mac's storage, you've probably noticed that the "Other Users & Shared" category consumes a significant amount of space. You can understand other storage categories like Documents, Photos, and Applications, but what is "Other Users and Shared"？

Let's dive into what "Other Users and Shared" means in Mac storage and find out how to free up space on your Mac when this category gets too big.

What is "Other Users and Shared" on Mac Storage?

Mac allows multiple users to access the same device via separate user accounts. Each user's data and files are stored within their respective user folders and are inaccessible to others.

Within Mac storage, “Other Users and Shared” represents the storage space used by multiple users or shared across different accounts on a Mac, excluding the files created by the currently logged-in user. This category includes data from administrator accounts, standard user accounts, sharing-only accounts, and guest accounts.

Why Does "Other Users and Shared" Take Up So Much Storage on Mac?

As users on the same Mac computer share the same hard drive, files generated by other users can gradually accumulate, consuming considerable storage space over time. Here are a few reasons why "Other Users and Shared" might be occupying a large amount of space.

You have a cluttered Shared folder

To facilitate collaboration among various users, users can add files to a designated folder on the Mac known as the Shared Folder. If both you and other users have uploaded numerous files to this shared location, they will be grouped under the "Other Users" category within your Mac's storage.

Your Mac is hosting or hosted multiple users

When multiple users are using the same Mac computer and have created, stored, or downloaded many files, it's expected that these files will gradually consume a substantial amount of space.

However, if you discover that there are no active additional user accounts but other users are taking up Mac storage, it's probable that user accounts were deleted, leaving their home folders intact on your Mac.

Large files are misplaced in the Users folder

The Users folder holds the home folders of each user account on your Mac. Its size greatly impacts the "Other Users" category in Mac storage. It's possible that when downloading applications or files, you've chosen the Users folder as the destination. Alternatively, you could have accidentally transferred large files to this folder, causing it to expand in size.

How to Clear "Other Users and Shared" Storage on Mac

When the data from other users is taking up too much space, it's time to clear out the files of other users to free up disk space.

Remove unnecessary files in the Shared Folder

All Mac users can access files in the shared folder, but only the file owner can edit or delete them. You can remove unwanted files you added yourself using these steps.

Step 1. Open the Finder app (the smiley face) on your Mac.

Step 2. Click Macintosh HD from the left sidebar. If Macintosh HD doesn't appear, click Finder in the top menu bar, and choose Settings. Under Sidebar, check the box next to Hard disks in Locations.

Step 3. Open the Users folder and then the Shared folder.

Step 4. Right-click on the files you and other users no longer need and choose Move to Trash.

Step 5. Empty the Trash can.

Delete other user accounts on your Mac

If you're the only person using your Mac, you can delete any other user accounts and their home folders. Once deleted, those accounts won't be accessible anymore. You must be using an Administrator account to do this.

Step 1. Click Apple menu > System Settings > Users & Groups.

Step 2. Locate the user account you want to delete and click the information icon.

Step 3. Click Delete User.

Step 4. Enter your administrator password and click Unlock.

Step 5. Select "Delete the home folder" and click Delete User to confirm.

Step 6. If a guest user is allowed on your Mac, click the information icon and turn it off.

However, if there is no other user account in the Users & Groups settings but the "Other Users" category takes up much space, go ahead to open Finder > Macintosh HD > Users and directly delete all home folders that belong to other users.

Move misplaced items out of the Users folder

If the "Other Users and Shared" becomes excessive in Mac storage due to misplaced files, applications, or folders, you can simply move these items to another folder or the trash bin if you don't need them.

Reduce the Size of "Other Users and Shared" Data Efficiently

If you're facing the daunting task of sifting through thousands of files to delete 'other users' data manually, there's a more efficient solution: BuhoCleaner. This professional Mac cleaner tool swiftly identifies and removes unwanted files. Moreover, it can visualize your disk space usage, making disk space management on your Mac a breeze.

Why you should use BuhoCleaner:

• Quickly find and delete large files in the Users folder
• Scan and remove duplicate files that belong to other users
• Completely uninstall any apps misplaced in the Users folder
• Clear out junk files to free up your Mac storage
• Visually manage your disk space usage to identify huge files from other users

This tool is completely safe and free to use. Run it now to reclaim the free storage space on your Mac that was occupied by other users.

Conclusion

The "Other Users and Shared" data on Mac storage is the data created by other user accounts on your Mac. If your storage is filling up due to this data, you have the option to delete their data from the shared folder and individual user home folders or relocate misplaced data from the Users folder. BuhoCleaner can streamline this process and help free up your Mac storage.