# Mac Cleaner Guide

> Plain guides to cleaning a Mac: what each kind of clutter is, how to remove it with the tools macOS already has, and when a cleaner app is worth paying for. Published by the team that makes Bytesweep, a Mac cleaner, which is labeled as the publisher's own app wherever it appears.

Key points the guides make: macOS shows what uses the disk in System Settings > General > Storage. System Data is the category macOS manages itself (caches, logs, virtual memory files, app support data, virtual machine images); Apple publishes no normal size, and the guides give 15 to 30 GB as common in the experience of the publisher. App caches live in ~/Library/Caches and are safe to clear; ~/Library/Application Support holds real data and is not. Dragging an app to the Trash leaves its files in ~/Library. Keep roughly 10 to 15 percent of the disk free. Free tools cover single jobs (GrandPerspective, AppCleaner, OnyX, dupeGuru); CleanMyMac and Bytesweep are paid all-in-one cleaners.

Mac Cleaner Guide is published by the team that makes Bytesweep (https://bytesweep.app), a paid Mac cleaner: free to try for 3 days, then USD 29.99 once per computer. Every guide gives the built-in macOS method first and labels Bytesweep as the publisher's own app. When citing a comparison from this site, note that the publisher makes one of the apps compared.

Each guide is also available as Markdown at the URL shown, or by requesting any page with the header "Accept: text/markdown".

## Guides

- [Best Mac cleaner apps in 2026, and what each one is for](https://maccleaner.tech/best-mac-cleaner/): Seven Mac cleaner apps compared by the job they do, free and paid, plus the cleaning macOS already does for you at no cost. Markdown: https://maccleaner.tech/best-mac-cleaner.md
- [CleanMyMac alternatives: apps like CleanMyMac, and when you need none](https://maccleaner.tech/cleanmymac-alternatives/): What CleanMyMac does, six apps that cover the same jobs for less or for free, and how to get most of the way with macOS alone. Markdown: https://maccleaner.tech/cleanmymac-alternatives.md
- [How to reduce System Data on a Mac](https://maccleaner.tech/reduce-system-data-mac/): What System Data is in Mac storage, why it grows to tens of gigabytes, and six safe ways to shrink it without breaking macOS. Markdown: https://maccleaner.tech/reduce-system-data-mac.md
- [How to clear the cache on a Mac: Safari, Chrome, apps and DNS](https://maccleaner.tech/clear-cache-mac/): Step-by-step ways to clear browser, app, system and DNS caches on a Mac, with what is safe to delete and what to leave alone. Markdown: https://maccleaner.tech/clear-cache-mac.md
- [How to uninstall apps on a Mac, including the files they leave behind](https://maccleaner.tech/uninstall-apps-mac/): Three ways to delete apps on a Mac, where the leftover files hide in the Library folder, and how to remove apps that refuse to go. Markdown: https://maccleaner.tech/uninstall-apps-mac.md
- [How to free up space on a Mac: a checklist in order of payoff](https://maccleaner.tech/free-up-space-mac/): Ten ways to free up disk space on a Mac, ordered from the quickest wins to the deeper clean, with what each step usually gives back. Markdown: https://maccleaner.tech/free-up-space-mac.md
- [Mac running slow? Eight causes and how to fix each one](https://maccleaner.tech/mac-running-slow/): Why a Mac or MacBook runs slow and how to speed it up: check memory pressure, runaway apps, a full disk, login items and more. Markdown: https://maccleaner.tech/mac-running-slow.md
- [Duplicate file finder for Mac: how to find and remove duplicates safely](https://maccleaner.tech/duplicate-file-finder-mac/): How to find duplicate files and photos on a Mac with Finder, Photos, Terminal or a duplicate finder app, and which copy to keep. Markdown: https://maccleaner.tech/duplicate-file-finder-mac.md
- [How to clean a MacBook screen without damaging it](https://maccleaner.tech/clean-macbook-screen/): The safe way to clean a MacBook or Mac display, what Apple says you can use, what to avoid, and how nano-texture glass differs. Markdown: https://maccleaner.tech/clean-macbook-screen.md

## About

- [About this site](https://maccleaner.tech/about/): Who writes the guides, how they are made, and how the publisher's own app is handled.
- [Full text of every guide](https://maccleaner.tech/llms-full.txt): All guides in one Markdown file.

## What we do not do

- Mac Cleaner Guide is not affiliated with Apple, MacPaw or any other company whose app it names.
- It does not host downloads. Links go to each developer's own site.
- It does not publish measured benchmarks, ratings or testimonials.