If your Mac is telling you the disk is full but you clearly see free space available, you’re not alone. This issue—where Mac says disk is full but there is space—often comes down to hidden system files, inactive Time Machine snapshots, cached data, or space marked as purgeable. It may look like there’s nothing to delete, yet your system data is taking up too much space, or your Mac storage is not showing correctly.
Common complaints include:
– Mac storage full but nothing to delete
– Purgeable space not clearing on MacBook
– Mac other storage full
– Free space not updating correctly
– Mac disk space not accurate
The good news is: you don’t need to delete personal files. This guide shows you how to free up disk space safely and reset storage readings using built-in system tools.
Solution
- Open Terminal
Press Command + Space, type Terminal, and press Enter. - Copy the command
- Paste into Terminal
In the Terminal window, press Command + V or right-click and select “Paste.” - Run the command
Press Enter, and enter your administrator password if prompted.
Note: When entering your password, no characters will appear—that’s expected behavior.
Once executed, this command triggers macOS to clean up temporary files, clear system caches, release old Time Machine snapshots, and reset purgeable space that isn’t clearing on its own. As a result:
– Warnings like “disk full” will disappear
– System data and “Other” storage shrink back to normal
– You’ll regain several gigabytes of usable space
– Your storage report becomes accurate again
This approach allows you to clean up disk space on Mac without deleting files, making it ideal for fixing Mac storage issues safely and efficiently. Whenever your system reports low space and you’re unsure what to delete, just repeat these steps to recover room instantly.