- Step 1 Select a Location for Deleted Files. Launch Recoverit Data Recovery Software.To restore deleted files and folders on Mac, you need to select a location or hard disk where your data were deleted or lost. Step 2 Scan the Partition or Disk. The deleted files recovery tool will start scanning the selected partition or hard drive to search for your deleted files and folders on Mac.
- Part 2: Restore Deleted Downloads Folder Mac from Trash. The keyboard of Mac is the same as of Windows’. They both have the Delete key that is used to delete items on your computer. That’s why if Windows users can unintentionally delete folders in their computer, Mac users can also do the same.
- Steps to retrieve documents on Mac are as follows: Step 1: Download and install the trial version of Mac Undelete software. Start the application by double clicking the desktop shortcut icon. The main screen appears as shown in Figure 1. Step 2: Select 'Recover Files' option from the main screen. To retrieve deleted.
Let’s take a closer look at how to recover deleted files on Mac OS X and macOS with one free file recovery software application and one paid recovery software application. Disk Drill – paid solution to recover deleted files on Mac. Available for Mac OS X 10.11.6+ (Monterey included). Download and install Disk Drill for Mac. Look into the backup for the deleted Downloads folder using the TimeLine or Up/Down arrow. Select the folder and click Restore. In the absence of Time Machine backup, go through the following data recovery method. Recover Deleted Downloads Folder Using Mac File Recovery Software.
As you use your Mac, you’ll be surprised at how fast browser downloads eat away at the internal storage. Program installers, compressed ZIP archives, document file types, and so on can quickly add up to the tens—or even hundreds—of gigabytes. But that isn’t all.
Various native and third-party apps (say Apple TV and Spotify) allow you to download multimedia and other forms of content for offline access. That’s not to mention the various miscellaneous downloads (such as iPhone system software files) your Mac can make during regular usage.
If you are close to running out of storage on the Mac, you can rely on multiple methods to delete downloads on your Mac and free up space fast. We shall explore them in detail below.
Check Mac’s Downloads Folder
By default, all three major web browsers on the Mac (Safari, Google Chrome, and Mozilla Firefox) save files to a specially designated Downloads folder within your user account. You can get to it immediately using Finder.
Simply open a Finder window and select Downloads on the sidebar. If the option appears missing, select Go on the menu bar and pick the Downloads option instead.
You should then see a list of browser downloads on the Mac. Non-native apps may also use the same directory to save files (e.g., Skype and Transmission), so don’t be surprised to see additional downloads scattered inside.
It’s best to switch the Downloads folder to List view and sort files using the Date or Size columns. That should make it easier to identify files that net the most space savings.
To delete a file, control-click and select Move to Trash. You can also hold down the Command key to select and move multiple files to the Mac’s Trash simultaneously.
Follow by emptying the Trash. To do that, control-click the Trash icon on the Dock and select Empty Trash.
Delete Download History
Whenever you perform a download on the internet, Safari, Chrome, and Firefox shall automatically keep a record of it. However, deleting the downloaded file using Finder does not remove the corresponding entry from your web browser. If privacy is a concern, you must delete the download history separately.
Delete Download History – Safari
Open the View menu and select Show Downloads. Then, select Clear to delete Safari’s download history. Or, control-click and choose Remove from List to delete individual entries from the list.
Delete Download History – Chrome
Open the Chrome menu and select Downloads. Then, select the More icon to the top-right of the screen and choose Clear all to remove Chrome’s download history. Should you want, you can delete entries individually by selecting the x-shaped icon next to each download.
Delete Download History – Firefox
Open the Firefox menu, point at Library, and select Downloads. Then, select Clear Downloads to get rid of the download history. To remove individual entries, control-click and select Remove From History instead.
Use Storage Management Utility
Finder aside, you can use the built-in Storage Management utility to delete downloads on your Mac. You can get to it by opening the Apple menu and selecting About This Mac > Storage > Manage.
Pick Documents on the Storage Management sidebar and switch to the Downloads tab to bring up a list of downloads on your Mac.
Sort through your downloads using the Kind, Last Accessed, and Size columns. Then, select a file and use the Delete button to remove it from your Mac. Hold down the Command key to select and remove multiple items.
The Storage Management utility also allows you to get rid of various non-browser downloads located outside the Downloads folder on the Mac. Work your way through the sidebar options (Messages, Music, iOS Files, etc.) to identify downloads specific to the various apps and services on your Mac.
For example, iOS Files lets you remove iPhone system software installers from the internal storage.
Additionally, you may want to head over to the Recommendations screen and enable Optimize Storage. That should prompt your Mac to free up space by automatically removing old Apple TV video downloads and email attachments.
Remove or Manage Downloads Within Apps
Most apps that allow you to download content offline also provide built-in options to delete them. For instance, in Apple Music, you can select a downloaded album and use the Remove Download option to delete the tracks from your Mac.
If an app doesn’t present such an option, you can check for the offline storage location in the app’s Preferences or Settings pages. Then, manually visit the directory using Finder to remove the files.
Cloud-based apps and services that sync files to your Mac may also offer options to change how they store files locally. In iCloud Photos, for example, open the Photos menu, select Preferences, and switch to Optimize Mac Storage.
That should automatically delete local photos and replace them with low-resolution placeholders when your Mac’s close to running out of storage.
Search for Downloads in Finder
If you can’t locate a specific file under the Downloads folder in Finder or within the Storage Management utility, you must try searching for it instead.
Start by opening a new Finder window. Then, type the filename or extension into the Search bar at the top-right corner of the window. Finder should start filtering matching files on your Mac immediately.
If you see the file you’re looking for within the search results, control-click it and select Move to Trash.
Additionally, you can type downloads into the search bar to reveal any hidden download folders on the Mac. For example, you can locate the Mail Downloads folder (which stores email attachments) that way.
Use OmniDiskSweeper and Onyx
Deleted Downloads Folder Mac
OmniDiskSweeper and Onyx help you deal with elusive downloads on the Mac. Both apps are lightweight and completely free to use.
OmniDiskSweeper
OmniDiskSweeper provides a navigator that displays the storage sizes of every file and folder on your Mac. It lets you conveniently drill down locations and identify anything unusual (such as a concealed download directory). You can then select items and delete them permanently using the Trash icon.
OnyX
OnyX doesn’t allow you to interact with the files on your Mac directly. But it gives you the ability to flush out content such as the browser cache, download history, Mail Downloads, and so on, easily. It also allows you to delete the Mac’s application and system caches.
OnyX can be a somewhat complex application to use. We recommend checking our OnyX guide for more details.
Mac Downloads Deleted
You shouldn’t have difficulty locating the various browser and app downloads on your Mac for the most part. So it’s a good idea to delete them routinely to keep the internal storage under control. If you still need additional free space, you should look into reducing the “Other” storage and “System” storage on your Mac.
One of the most basic computer functions — deleting files and folders — is also one of the most essential. If you never get rid of anything, soon enough all those extra gigabytes will take a toll on your Mac’s processing power, RAM, and hard drive, not to mention your digital life will resemble a dreadful episode of Hoarders.
So deleting files is good and healthy. But how do you do that? Most people right-click on what they need gone and choose Move to Trash from the menu or use the File option in the menu bar. Others employ the ⌘ + Delete shortcut, which works across the system (even within dialog windows). Experts, however, often find themselves defaulting to the command line delete directory feature. Let’s see how and why you should learn it too.
How to remove directory with Terminal
Since macOS is a Unix-based system, nearly all system tasks you do every day with the help of its graphic interface can also be performed via the command line tool called Terminal.
Why delete file command line feature is important
With regards to delete file or delete folder command line functionality, Terminal lets you:
- Effortlessly erase one or multiple files, folders, and apps, bypassing any error messages you can get when you go the traditional route.
- Remove files from Trash, including ones you can’t delete by simply emptying the trash.
- Get rid of files that are invisible to you within Finder (usually system or root files, for example, .htaccess).
- Delete files and folders in cases when Finder is unresponsive.
Note: The Mac command line delete file feature is final and irreversible. While it lets you avoid any error messages, it also removes the files completely, without any possibility of retrieving them later on.
Tip: Delete unneeded system files on Mac
Some files are hard to delete in a normal way because they sit deeply in system folders. These are such files as logs, broken downloads, caches, remains of old apps, etc. Still, deleting them could give your Mac an extra boost — that's because they are outdated and clutter your macOS.
To dig these files out, try a free version of CleanMyMac X. Among other things, this app has an impressive System Junk detector. When you download CleanMyMac X (this free version is notarized by Apple), you need to click on System Junk.
Just take a look at the sheer amount of files it unearthed. To delete them, click on Clean.
How to use delete file command line feature
Removing files from your Mac forever using Terminal is deceptively simple: just use the rm command followed by the name of the file. Here’s how it works in practice:
- Launch Terminal from your Utilities folder in Applications.
- Check which directory you’re in by typing ls -la
- Then navigate down a directory with cd [directoryname] or up a directory with cd ../
- When you’re in the same directory as the file you want to delete, type rm [filename.extension]
- If you want to delete multiple files at once, list them all, but make sure there’s a space between each one.
- Press Enter to execute the command.
Now all the files you specified after rm are gone for good. Navigate directories in your Mac and repeat the process as many times as you want.
Surprised there was no confirmation before your files were deleted? Luckily there’s a way to add one as a safeguard for not deleting the wrong file by accident. Just use -i after the rm but before the first filename, like this: rm -i [filename.extension]. Terminal will then ask you whether you’re sure you want to delete the file. Reply y or yes followed by Enter and the file will be gone. This also works for multiple files, but you’ll have to confirm the removal of each one separately.
How to make command line delete directory
Surprisingly, you can’t delete a folder using the rm command because it has its own: rmdir.
Otherwise, rmdir works exactly the same as rm:
- Navigate to the appropriate directory using Terminal.
- Type rmdir [directoryname]
- Hit Enter.
Sadly, you can’t use the -i hack when you’re deleting folders, so be extra careful!
Another thing to keep in mind is that rmdir only deletes the directory, but can’t delete any files or folders located within that directory.
To delete a folder with everything in it, you need to use rm -r followed by the folder’s name. Using -i to create a warning here is possible and done like this: rm -ir [foldername].
When it’s too difficult to find a folder or file via Terminal, but you can detect them in Finder, simply drag and drop the file onto the Terminal window to generate its path.
Delete large and old folders using CleanMyMac X
Deleted Downloads Folder Mac Desktop
As it happens with folders, they are easy to mess up and lose track of. That's why many apps provide an alternative interface for searching and deleting files which is more flexible than the Finder. For example, using CleanMyMac X (the app we've mentioned above) you can find massive folders that might have been evading you. You also can filter them by file type and other criteria.
The latest released version of this tool looks like this:
This app by developer MacPaw is available for a free download here. Using this app, files are removed for good, and as far as we know, it's irreversible.
Other ways to delete files and folders on Mac
The shortcut combination
We are sure you know how to drag your files to the Trash. But here is an alternative way that deletes files at once, bypassing the Trash. There’s one less step involved (you don’t have to empty the bin). And you cannot reverse this action.
Select a file, and press [Option + ⌘ + Delete]
Delete hidden folders on Mac
Some folders on your Mac are made invisible to protect them from accidental deletion. They are system and support files you would ignore most of the time. But what if a folder seems empty but still takes up space? You can apply another shortcut combination to highlight these unseen objects. Then, you can delete them at your own risk.
To highlight hidden folders: [Press Shift + ⌘ + . dot key]
This best works if you open some system folder, like Library
Again, delete these folders only if you are sure what they are.
That was how to remove files and folders on your Mac, shown in multiple ways. Want to know more? Explore our blog for a whole universe of Mac tips!