Guides · Caches

What Freshist cleans

27 kinds of cache, log and leftover data — each with the exact folder it lives in and how careful you should be with it. Only low-risk items are ever selected for you, and you see every file before anything moves.

Low risk

Pre-selected

Rebuilt automatically by macOS or the app that made it. Freshist selects these for you — you still see every item before anything moves.

  • App Caches

    ~/Library/Caches

    Caches apps rebuild automatically — first launches may feel slightly slower.

  • Logs

    ~/Library/Logs

    Diagnostic log files. Safe to delete.

  • Crash Reports

    ~/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports

    Old crash and diagnostic reports. Safe to delete.

  • Saved Application State

    ~/Library/Saved Application State

    Window-restore state — apps simply open with fresh windows.

  • Xcode Derived Data

    ~/Library/Developer/Xcode/DerivedData

    Xcode build products — next builds recompile from scratch and take longer.

  • Xcode Device Support

    ~/Library/Developer/Xcode/iOS DeviceSupport

    Debug symbols from iPhones/iPads you connected — NOT device backups. Xcode re-downloads them when you plug the device in again.

  • Go Build Cache

    ~/Library/Caches/go-build

    Go build cache — next builds recompile and take longer.

  • Homebrew Cache

    ~/Library/Caches/Homebrew

    Downloaded install archives. Homebrew re-downloads them if ever needed.

  • JetBrains Cache

    ~/Library/Caches/JetBrains

    IDE cache — IntelliJ/PyCharm/etc. rebuild it automatically.

  • VS Code Cache

    ~/Library/Application Support/Code/CachedData

    Editor cache — VS Code rebuilds it on next launch.

  • Browser Caches

    ~/Library/Caches/com.apple.Safari + 3 more

    Web caches for Safari, Chrome, Firefox, Brave — rebuilt as you browse.

  • External Drive Metadata

    /Volumes/<drive>/.Spotlight-V100 + 6 more

    macOS index & metadata left on external drives (.Spotlight, .fseventsd, .DS_Store) — rebuilt when you reconnect the drive.

Medium risk

Review first

Safe to remove, but the tool that owns it re-downloads or rebuilds it on next use, which costs time and bandwidth. Listed, never pre-selected.

  • npm Cache

    ~/.npm/_cacache

    Package cache — future npm installs re-download packages.

  • pnpm Store

    ~/Library/pnpm/store

    Shared package store — projects re-download dependencies on next install.

  • Bun Cache

    ~/.bun/install/cache

    Package cache — future bun installs re-download packages.

  • Cargo Registry Cache

    ~/.cargo/registry/cache

    Rust dependency download cache — cargo re-downloads crates on next build.

  • Gradle Cache

    ~/.gradle/caches

    Build cache — next Gradle builds re-download dependencies.

  • CocoaPods Cache

    ~/Library/Caches/CocoaPods

    Pod cache — next pod install re-downloads.

  • Composer Cache

    ~/Library/Caches/composer

    PHP dependency cache — Composer re-downloads packages on next install.

  • Conda Package Cache

    ~/.conda/pkgs

    Conda package cache — future installs re-download packages.

  • Deno Cache

    ~/Library/Caches/deno

    Deno dependency cache — re-downloaded on next run.

  • PyTorch Cache

    ~/.cache/torch

    PyTorch model/dataset cache — re-downloaded when next needed.

  • Playwright Browsers

    ~/Library/Caches/ms-playwright

    Test browser binaries — Playwright re-downloads them on next install.

  • System Caches (requires helper)

    /Library/Caches + 1 more

    System-wide caches under /Library — deleted permanently by the signed helper (not the Trash). Regenerated automatically.

High risk

Review first

Large stores — whole dependency repositories or downloaded AI models — that take a long time to get back. Listed, never pre-selected.

  • Maven Repository

    ~/.m2/repository

    Java dependency repository — LARGE; Maven re-downloads every dependency on next build.

  • Hugging Face Models

    ~/.cache/huggingface

    Downloaded AI models & datasets — LARGE; re-downloaded when a model is next used.

  • Ollama Models

    ~/.ollama/models

    Local AI models — LARGE; Ollama re-downloads a model when you next run it.

Everything in your user folder goes to the Trash, so you can undo. Root-owned system caches are the one exception — see what Freshist never deletes. Leftovers from uninstalled apps are covered in the Library folder guide.