Messages Taking Up Space on Mac, How to Clear Storage?

For most Mac users, Messages is not one common place to check for junk data and do a thorough clean-up. Therefore, they are often shocked when they find out how much space Messages has taken up on Mac. With times of accumulation, Messages can store large amounts of data, including attachments, conversations, and media. These files consume significant disk space, making your Mac slower and less efficient. How to clear Messages storage on Mac? You can find the ultimate answer in this post.

Why Are Messages Taking Up So Much Storage on Mac?

You may wonder, aren’t those texts supposed to be small? While Messages on macOS stores text conversations, it also covers all the media shared through chats, such as images, videos, audio files, and PDFs. These files can quickly add up and occupy your precious Mac storage - they are not small files for sure. Besides, the app itself can create a cache.

If you have iCloud syncing enabled for Messages, one copy of the content is saved locally on your device. So, enabling iCloud for Messages doesn’t stop it from taking up Mac storage.

With so many conversations and media files taking up Mac storage, how to delete messages on Mac to free up space? We’ve listed quite a few workarounds for you.

Delete Messages Conversations

Deleting old conversations that you no longer need can help clear up space. By deleting the entire conversation, you remove all chats, files, images, and attachments. Follow these steps:

1. Open the Messages app on your Mac.
2. Right-click on a conversation in the sidebar and select Delete Conversation.

Remove Attachments Manually

Instead of deleting entire conversations, you can remove specific attachments that are taking up large space. This approach is more precise and saves the chats.

1. In any conversation, find the Attachments.
2. Browse through attachments and select large files manually, such as photos and videos. Right-click on the attachments and choose Delete.

However, if you don’t want to spend time searching for attachments one by one, there are two alternative ways to remove Messages attachments on macOS.

How to Delete Messages Attachments via Finder

1. Close the Messages app and open Finder.
2. Click on Go in the menu bar and select Go to Folder.
3. Type ~/Library/Messages/Attachments and press Enter.

   

4. Right-click on any attachment files or folders you wish to delete and select Move to Trash. Further Empty Trash if you want.
5. Restart the Messages app and the attachments should be gone.

How to Delete Messages Attachments via Storage Overview

• If you are running macOS Ventura or later:

  1. Close the Messages app.
  2. Open the Apple menu and select System Settings.
  3. Navigate to General and then Storage. Wait for your Mac to analyze.
  4. Click on Messages for detailed info.
  5. Select the attachments you want to remove, right-click, and choose Delete.
  6. Reopen the Messages app.

• If you are running macOS Monterey or earlier:

  1. Quit the Messages app.
  2. Go to the Apple menu and select About This Mac.
  3. Click on the Storage tab and then Manage.
  4. Select Messages from the sidebar.
  5. Right-click on any unnecessary attachments and select Delete.
  6. Restart the Messages app.

Delete All Messages via Terminal

Terminal is always helpful if you are not dreaded of typing commands. You can delete all messages on a Mac at once using Terminal by following these steps:

1. Quir the Messages app.
2. Open Terminal from Launchpad > Others.
3. Type in the following command line and hit Enter to delete all messages:

rm -r ~/Library/Messages/chat

4. To further remove message attachments, execute the prompt:

rm -r ~/Library/Messages/Attachments/??

Clear Out the Cache and Rebuild the Library

If you’ve tried deleting messages and attachments but still notice that the Messages app is using too much space, consider the possibility of the application cache. The cache can sometimes hold onto data long after it’s been deleted. To get rid of cache on Mac:

1. Go to Finder, then press Shift + Command + G to open the Go to Folder prompt.
2. Type ~/Library/Messages and press Enter.

   

3. Delete the contents of the Attachments and chat.db files by moving them to Trash.

How to Prevent Messages Taking Up Space on Mac

After the above-mentioned methods, you should fix Messages taking up space on Mac easily. In future use, how can you prevent this issue from happening again? macOS offers quite a few features to free up space.

Turn on the Automatically Delete Old Messages

To manage your storage in the Messages app on your Mac, take advantage of the Reduce Clutter feature. Implementing this strategy can automatically erase old messages after a certain period.

1. Launch the Messages app.
2. Access the main Messages menu and go to Settings > General.
3. In the Keep Messages section, select your desired duration: Forever, One Year, or 30 Days.

Enable Optimize Mac Storage

There is a feature known as ‘Optimize Mac Storage’ that helps manage your files by saving older documents in iCloud and retaining only the most recently accessed files on your Mac. Although this feature activates only when your Mac is low on storage space, it still prevents your messages from worsening the situation. To enable it, go to System Settings > Apple ID > iCloud > Optimize Mac Storage.

Disable Automatic Media Downloading

To prevent new media files from automatically downloading and consuming space, you can adjust the settings manually:

1. Open Messages on your Mac.
2. Go to Messages in the menu bar and select Preferences.
3. Under the General tab, uncheck the option to download media attachments automatically.
4. Choose Manually download media when needed, or set it to download only when you're connected to Wi-Fi.

FAQs about Messages Taking Up Space on Mac

1. Will deleting messages on my Mac remove messages on my iPhone?

   If iCloud is active for Messages on both your Mac and iPhone, then deleting a message on one device will also remove it from the other. If you want to delete messages on your Mac without affecting your iPhone, iPad, or other Apple devices, turn off the iCloud sync.

   To do so, open the Messages app, go to Messages > Settings/Preferences from the top-left menu bar, select iMessage, uncheck the box next to ‘Enable Messages in iCloud’, and then click Disable This Device.

2. How to check how much space my messages take up?

   1. Click on the Apple logo in the top-left corner of your screen.
   2. Select ‘About This Mac’ from the drop-down menu and go to the Storage tab.
   3. You will see a breakdown of the storage used by different categories (e.g., Apps, Documents, System, etc.).
   4. Look for “Messages” in the list to see how much space the app is using.

Conclusion

Messages can consume a significant amount of storage on your Mac without causing your attention, especially when you regularly exchange media and attachments. For any Mac user who wants to clear Messages storage on Mac, try the four effective approaches to free up space on Mac. Besides, regular maintenance and mindful management of your messages will ensure your Mac continues to run smoothly and efficiently. By following our expert tips, you’ll know how to prevent Messages from taking up too much space again.