How To Permanently Delete Downloads on Mac

Posted by Geeks Callout
Posted by Geeks Callout

@geekscallout

 26 July, 2022

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How To Permanently Delete Downloads on Mac​

Downloading documents, apps, images, movies, and music audios is common among Mac users. However, you often forget to delete the files you don’t need anymore, which takes a lot of space in your Mac storage. Moreover, the performance issues start creeping in once there’s not much space left on the storage.

This also creates problems when you have to download other stuff but can’t find the space to do so. That’s when you realize that it’s time for cleaning up and permanently deleting unnecessary downloaded files on Mac.

This article will explain how to delete useless data residing in your downloads folder and make more space in storage.

How can I delete Mac downloads?

Deleting Mac downloads is pretty straightforward and takes less than a minute if you already know which files you have to delete. It is also recommended that you organize your files beforehand, so you don’t make a mistake by deleting an important file you want to keep safe.

For deleting several files in a go, follow the steps below.

  1. Go to your Downloads folder via Finder.
  2. Select all files you want to delete while pressing the Command key.
  3. Release the key and right-click. In the pop-up menu, choose “Move to Trash.”

For clearing out the whole folder at once, follow these steps.

  1. Press the Command key with “A” to select every file in the Downloads folder.
  2. Now, right-click and choose the option Move to Trash.

Empty the Trash Bin:

After you clear out all the files from the downloads folder, you’d have to empty the Trash Can (Recycle Bin) to delete all files permanently. To do so, follow these quick steps.

  1. Open the Trash Can from your Mac’s Dock.
  2. Ensure there are only those files you wanted out.
  3. Select all files by pressing Command + A.
  4. Right-click and choose Empty the Trash Can.

Remember that after you empty the Trash Can, all files will be deleted permanently. So, checking the Trash Can before emptying it will be your last chance to ensure no important file got there by mistake

Another Method:

Another quick method helps permanently clear out all your downloads or other files, taking up space in your Mac storage. However, this method will delete all files without sending them to the Trash Can first. So, you can only choose this method if you’re sure you want to delete a certain file.

  1. Go to the Apple menu by clicking on its icon.
  2. Click on About this Mac and tap on the Storage tab. Then select Manage.
  3. You can go to the Documents from the sidebar to inspect storage.
  4. For deleting files, particularly from the Downloads folder, click on its tab.
  5. Select files you want to clear out, and tap on Delete.
  6. To delete many files at once, press Command while selecting files and tap on Delete.

Final Thoughts:

Unnecessary files can fill up a lot of space on your Mac storage, especially the downloads you don’t need. For instance, after you install an application, keeping its .dmg file is useless because it is required to run the program and install the app. After it does its part, you won’t need it anymore. So, there are many files like that which are sitting in the downloads folder for no reason, occupying space. You can make a routine to delete all useless data twice a month and free up storage space.  

 

 

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