Nothing is ever deleted.
A disk cleaner can hurt people. So MacClearings has one way to make room, moving things to the Trash, and only after you’ve seen the list. These rules are enforced in the app’s code, checked on every build and covered by tests.
One way out: the Trash
Every cleanup goes through a single function that asks macOS to move the item to the Trash and records where it landed. There is no other code path that removes, replaces or empties anything.
A check runs before every build of the app and fails if code that could permanently remove a file appears anywhere in it, tests included. It even checks the app’s wording, so the app never offers to empty the Trash.
You review everything first
There’s no “clean everything” button. Suggestions, Duplicates, the Map, Find and Applications all stage items into one Cleanup tray. Review & Clean Up lists every item with its size, grouped by kind, and you can take anything out. Only then does Move to Trash run.
A rule checks items for you only when they’re safe to lose and don’t come straight back, like Xcode’s DerivedData or package caches. App and browser caches, old downloads, large old files and iPhone backups are never checked for you.
Checked again at the last moment
Right before an item moves, MacClearings checks it again and skips it, telling you why, if it:
- no longer exists,
- is now on the protected list,
- changed since it was measured, in size, file count or any modification date inside it,
- is open in a running app (the app is named), or
- macOS refuses to move it.
Every cleanup can be undone
History keeps each cleanup with the original location of every item. Undo restores a whole cleanup; Put Back restores one item. If something new is in the way, the item is restored next to it, so a restore never overwrites anything either.
The tests move real files to the real Trash, undo, and compare a checksum of every restored file with the original.
What MacClearings will never move
One list in the app decides. It resolves symbolic links first, so a link can’t sneak a protected folder past it, and it’s checked when you stage an item and again just before it moves.
- macOS itself
- /System, /usr, /bin, /sbin, system databases and Apple's folders in /Library. Part of macOS.
- The top of the disk and shared folders
- /Applications, /Users, /Library/Caches and the like, as folders. What's inside them is judged item by item.
- Your home folder and its standard folders
- ~/Library, Documents, Desktop, Pictures, Downloads, Caches and others, as folders. Never the folder itself.
- Keychains
- ~/Library/Keychains and any keychain file, anywhere. They hold your passwords.
- Your Mail store
- ~/Library/Mail.
- Your Photos library
- Your main Photos library is fully protected. Other libraries can only be moved whole, never picked apart.
- iCloud Drive and cloud folders
- ~/Library/Mobile Documents, ~/Library/CloudStorage and cloud placeholders. Removing them there would remove them on every device.
- Apps that come with macOS
- Any app with an Apple bundle identifier, wherever it is, even an app that only pretends to be Apple's.
- Anything inside an app
- Removing part of an app would break it. Third-party apps can only be moved whole.
- Disks and mount points
- /Volumes and every mounted disk's root.
- Locked and SIP-protected items
- Anything locked in Finder or protected by System Integrity Protection.
- The Trash itself
- Items already in the Trash. MacClearings never empties it.
- MacClearings' own files
- The app and its data folder.
- Folders you exclude
- Anything you add to the exclusion list in Settings.
What it can’t protect you from
- Your own picks. Items you add yourself from the Map or Find are limited only by the protected list. The review list shows all of them; read it.
- An emptied Trash. Once you empty it, nothing can bring an item back, including MacClearings.
- Folders it can’t read. Without Full Disk Access, macOS hides some folders. MacClearings tells you what it couldn’t measure and never guesses.
Questions about safety
Is it safe to use MacClearings on my work Mac?
MacClearings only moves what you've reviewed, only to the Trash, and keeps a record of every cleanup so you can undo it. It can't move system files, apps that come with macOS, anything inside an app, your keychains, your Mail store, your main Photos library or anything in iCloud Drive. If your organization manages the Mac, check its policy on third-party utilities first.
What if I move something to the Trash by mistake?
Open History and click Undo on that cleanup, or Put Back on a single item. If something new now sits where the item came from, it's restored next to it with "(restored)" in its name, so nothing is overwritten. This works for as long as the item is still in the Trash.
Can MacClearings break an app?
It can't remove part of an app, and apps that come with macOS are refused entirely. Uninstalling a third-party app stages the app and its support files together for you to review. Launch agents and daemons start unchecked. Caches an app rebuilds are listed, but app and browser caches are never checked for you, because they come straight back.
Why doesn't MacClearings empty the Trash for me?
Because the Trash is the safety net. Once it's emptied, nothing can bring an item back, so that decision stays with you. Your disk gets the space back when you empty the Trash.
How do I know the safety rules are really enforced?
They're enforced in code, not just in copy. A check runs before every build of the app and fails if any code that could permanently remove a file appears anywhere in it, tests included. The test suite moves real files to the real Trash, undoes the cleanup and compares a checksum of every restored file with the original.
Make room, knowing everything can come back.
MacClearings explains your disk in plain words and moves only what you review to the Trash, with Undo. Paid once, every update included.
$12.50 launch price for the first 25 buyers, then $25.
macOS 15+ · Apple silicon and Intel