You may not think much about disk space analyzers until the day you need one. When the error message pops up on your desktop telling you that you don’t have enough room on your hard disk, it might be tempting to start tossing old songs or going over your photos to see if you’re holding on to some blurry ones.

That’s where a disk analyzer comes in. This type of utility looks at your hard disk as a whole and breaks down what’s taking up the most space. Different disk analyzers sort and organize this information in different ways, but they’re all designed to help you understand what you’re devoting the most storage (and, hopefully, where you can get rid of some disk-hogging data). So what are our favorite disk analyzers?

Disk Space Analyzer is not only a hard drive space visualizer but also a storage space cleaner. Besides the option to show the disk usage map, it can be used to quickly free up disk space on Mac. The application shows the size and other information for specific files and folders just by moving your mouse over the charts sections. With a proper wifi analyzer Mac computers can stay online via the strongest signal available. Reasons why you might need to use WiFi Analyzer App. You may be wondering why you need a Mac OS WiFi analyzer. Finding the best wifi analyzer Mac computers can use will help you stay online, discover why your internet signal is poor, and how to fix it. Much easier to use than most disk space analyzers. Categorizes files in several ways.

Rating	Name	Features	Info
1	CleanMyMac X	The most powerful visual disk analyzer	Link
2	DaisyDisk	Provides handy storage categories	Link
3	Grand Perspective	Rectangle-shaped storage map	Link

A disk analyzer is an important part of your storage management arsenal, but it’s not the only part. Combined with a tool that can scan for junk data and do deep and permanent deletion, it can substantially improve your Mac’s performance. It can give you a bird’s-eye view of your hard disk and help you come up with a storage strategy that reflects your priorities.

Choosing the best disk space analyzer for Mac

How can you tell which storage manager will work for you? After all, the default Finder feature on your desktop has pretty decent functionality. Why not just use that?

To get a sense of what’s out there, we went in search of the best disk space analyzers for Mac:

1. CleanMyMac X: A top-tier Mac disk analyzer

• It has a free version — a link download it from the developer’s site
• Important system folders are protected
• Easy multi-level navigation and other disk maintenance tools

One of the standout disk analyzers available is CleanMyMac X’s Space Lens feature. Part of the app’s wider set of powerful utilities, Space Lens helps to visualize the relative sizes of different folders. Representing each area of storage as a bubble, this module helps you map and explore the different parts of your drive. Each bubble’s size corresponds to the total storage it’s using.

The interface lets you move smoothly between files, either by clicking with the mouse or using the arrow keys. This makes it simple to move through your disk and see what areas are using the most storage. The Quick Look tool gives you more detailed information about a file without actually opening it.

CleanMyMac X integrates file cleanup tools right into Space Lens. A pop-up window lets you select unwanted apps for deletion without leaving the file viewer. You can add files to a running hit list as you go, then permanently remove them all with a click once you’ve got enough to free up some room on your disk.

It’s this level of slick functionality that makes CleanMyMac X our pick for disk analyzer. Click the link to try it for free.

CleanMyMac X is a disk space analyzer that’s fully notarized by Apple.

2. DaisyDisk: a stylish Mac disk analyzer

The beautiful mapping features of DaisyDisk certainly win style points. The app represents your hard disk as a colorful wheel divided into segments.

You navigate by clicking into individual segments to zoom in on particular storage areas. A simple drag-and-drop tool lets you assemble the files that you’d like to delete, while a counter adds up the space you’ll free up by deleting them.

DaisyDisk’s integrated preview function lets you check the contents of selected files, even videos, so you can be sure that you’re not deleting anything you’d rather keep.

3. Finder: The classic Mac disk analyzer

Finder is the standard-issue storage manager on every Mac computer. Its smiling blue face icon has been synonymous with Mac OS for years, and it’s not a bad disk analyzer for the casual user.

Finder lacks the bells and whistles of some of the other apps listed here, but it’s more than capable of sorting your hard drive by file size, giving you a rough but useful picture of what’s hogging the most storage.

This isn’t an ideal workaround, though. Finder is a general-purpose workhorse, and finding big files isn’t its main job.

4. Grand Perspective: A great Mac storage manager

A longtime fixture for Mac disk management, Grand Perspective might look a little outdated. Its boxy, heat-map style display, though, is a surprisingly effective way to visualize blocks of data on your disk.

You can adjust the app to show more than just file size: the heatmap can be coded to file age, last change and more. However, it’s more technical than its younger competitors, and takes a little more effort to decipher the results.

5. Disk Inventory X: a useful disk storage tool for Mac

Disk Inventory X is another disk analyzer that’s been around for a while. Its age shows in its somewhat dated display, but its tree mapping of your hard drive is an excellent way to see where your storage is being used.

Disk Inventory X misses out on a leading spot because it’s due for an update and because its tree mapping feature can be tricky to adjust to.

6. OmniDiskSweeper: a technical disk manager for Mac

Like the other apps discussed here, OmniDiskSweeper scans and interprets your hard disk data. Unlike the others, it doesn’t visualize that data in any way.

While it gives users lots of raw information and control, the app also requires a higher level of technical skill than the others to operate. It relies on you, the user, to make decisions about what can be safely deleted.

More up-to-date disk analyzers can generally recommend files that are safe to delete.

Conclusion

Choosing the best storage manager depends on your user skills. Of course, you can always use Finder but you can do infinitely more with dedicated tools. If Omnisweeper is too geeky for you, you can look at CleanMyMac X’s Space Lens — it’s visually appealing and powerful at the same time.

Optimized Storage in macOS Sierra and later* can save space by storing your content in iCloud and making it available on demand. When storage space is needed, files, photos, movies, email attachments, and other files that you seldom use are stored in iCloud automatically. Each file stays right where you last saved it, and downloads when you open it. Files that you’ve used recently remain on your Mac, along with optimized versions of your photos.

* If you haven't yet upgraded to macOS Sierra or later, learn about other ways to free up storage space.

Find out how much storage is available on your Mac

Choose Apple menu  > About This Mac, then click Storage. Each segment of the bar is an estimate of the storage space used by a category of files. Move your pointer over each segment for more detail.

Click the Manage button to open the Storage Management window, pictured below. This button is available only in macOS Sierra or later.

Manage storage on your Mac

Space Analyzer App Mac Desktop

The Storage Management window offers recommendations for optimizing your storage. If some recommendations are already turned on, you will see fewer recommendations.

Store in iCloud

Click the Store in iCloud button, then choose from these options:

• Desktop and Documents. Store all files from these two locations in iCloud Drive. When storage space is needed, only the files you recently opened are kept on your Mac, so that you can easily work offline. Files stored only in iCloud show a download icon , which you can double-click to download the original file. Learn more about this feature.
  
• Photos. Store all original, full-resolution photos and videos in iCloud Photos. When storage space is needed, only space-saving (optimized) versions of photos are kept on your Mac. To download the original photo or video, just open it.
  
• Messages. Store all messages and attachments in iCloud. When storage space is needed, only the messages and attachments you recently opened are kept on your Mac. Learn more about Messages in iCloud.

Storing files in iCloud uses the storage space in your iCloud storage plan. If you reach or exceed your iCloud storage limit, you can either buy more iCloud storage or make more iCloud storage available. iCloud storage starts at 50GB for $0.99 (USD) a month, and you can purchase additional storage directly from your Apple device. Learn more about prices in your region.

Optimize Storage

Click the Optimize button, then choose from these options.

• Automatically remove watched movies and TV shows. When storage space is needed, movies or TV shows that you purchased from the iTunes Store and already watched are removed from your Mac. Click the download icon next to a movie or TV show to download it again.
  
• Download only recent attachments. Mail automatically downloads only the attachments that you recently received. You can manually download any attachments at any time by opening the email or attachment, or saving the attachment to your Mac.
  
• Don't automatically download attachments. Mail downloads an attachment only when you open the email or attachment, or save the attachment to your Mac.

Optimizing storage for movies, TV shows, and email attachments doesn't require iCloud storage space.

Empty Trash Automatically

Empty Trash Automatically permanently deletes files that have been in the Trash for more than 30 days.

Reduce Clutter

Reduce Clutter helps you to identify large files and files you might no longer need. Click the Review Files button, then choose any of the file categories in the sidebar, such as Applications, Documents, Music Creation, or Trash.

You can delete the files in some categories directly from this window. Other categories show the total storage space used by the files in each app. You can then open the app and decide whether to delete files from within it.

Learn how to redownload apps, music, movies, TV shows, and books.

Where to find the settings for each feature

The button for each recommendation in the Storage Management window affects one or more settings in other apps. You can also control those settings directly within each app.

• If you're using macOS Catalina, choose Apple menu  > System Preferences, click Apple ID, then select iCloud in the sidebar: Store in iCloud turns on the Optimize Mac Storage setting on the right. Then click Options next to iCloud Drive: Store in iCloud turns on the Desktop & Documents Folders setting. To turn off iCloud Drive entirely, deselect iCloud Drive.
  In macOS Mojave or earlier, choose Apple menu > System Preferences, click iCloud, then click Options next to iCloud Drive. Store in iCloud turns on the Desktop & Documents Folders and Optimize Mac Storage settings.
• In Photos, choose Photos > Preferences, then click iCloud. Store in iCloud selects iCloud Photos and Optimize Mac Storage.
• In Messages, choose Messages > Preferences, then click iMessage. Store in iCloud selects Enable Messages in iCloud.

• If you're using macOS Catalina, open the Apple TV app, choose TV > Preferences from the menu bar, then click Files. Optimize Storage selects “Automatically delete watched movies and TV shows.”
  In macOS Mojave or earlier, open iTunes, choose iTunes > Preferences from the menu bar, then click Advanced. Optimize Storage selects “Automatically delete watched movies and TV shows.”
• In Mail, choose Mail > Preferences from the menu bar, then click Accounts. In the Account Information section on the right, Optimize Storage sets the Download Attachments menu to either Recent or None.

Empty Trash Automatically: From the Finder, choose Finder > Preferences, then click Advanced. Empty Trash Automatically selects “Remove items from the Trash after 30 days.”

Other ways that macOS helps automatically save space

With macOS Sierra or later, your Mac automatically takes these additional steps to save storage space:

• Detects duplicate downloads in Safari, keeping only the most recent version of the download
• Reminds you to delete used app installers
• Removes old fonts, languages, and dictionaries that aren't being used
• Clears caches, logs, and other unnecessary data when storage space is needed

How to free up storage space manually

Even without using the Optimized Storage features of Sierra or later, you can take other steps to make more storage space available:

• Music, movies, and other media can use a lot of storage space. Learn how to delete music, movies, and TV shows from your device.
• Delete other files that you no longer need by moving them to the Trash, then emptying the Trash. The Downloads folder is good place to look for files that you might no longer need.
• Move files to an external storage device.
• Compress files.
• Delete unneeded email: In the Mail app, choose Mailbox > Erase Junk Mail. If you no longer need the email in your Trash mailbox, choose Mailbox > Erase Deleted Items.

Learn more

Best Wifi Analyzer App

• The Storage pane of About This Mac is the best way to determine the amount of storage space available on your Mac. Disk Utility and other apps might show storage categories such as Not Mounted, VM, Recovery, Other Volumes, Free, or Purgeable. Don't rely on these categories to understand how to free up storage space or how much storage space is available for your data.
• When you duplicate a file on an APFS-formatted volume, that file doesn't use additional storage space on the volume. Deleting a duplicate file frees up only the space required by any data you might have added to the duplicate. If you no longer need any copies of the file, you can recover all of the storage space by deleting both the duplicate and the original file.
• If you're using a pro app and Optimize Mac Storage, learn how to make sure that your projects are always on your Mac and able to access their files.