What happened to Other storage on Mac?

If you remember a big grey Other bar in your Mac's storage, that's the same idea as today's System Data. The name changed, the problem didn't.

Other is now System Data

On older versions of macOS, About This Mac › Storage showed a category called Other. In newer versions, Apple's storage view in System Settings shows System Data instead. Both mean the same thing: everything that doesn't fit the named categories like Apps, Documents and Photos.

What was in Other, and what's in System Data

• App caches and temporary files
• App support files and app data
• iPhone and iPad backups
• Logs, fonts and plug-ins
• Developer tools, virtual machines and disk images

The full breakdown, with what's safe to remove, is in What is System Data on Mac?

Why old advice can be risky

Many guides about Other storage were written for much older versions of macOS. Some tell you to delete folders that newer versions use differently. Check that a guide is about your version of macOS before following its folder paths.

How to clear it today

The safe order is the same as ever: see what's big, clear what rebuilds itself, delete old backups, and clean app data from inside the app. Step-by-step guide.

Questions people ask

Is Other storage the same as System Data?

Yes, in practice. Older macOS called the catch-all category Other. Newer macOS calls it System Data.

Where is Other storage on my Mac now?

Open System Settings › General › Storage. The catch-all bar is now labelled System Data.

Related guides

• How to clear System Data on Mac, step by step
• System Data taking 100 GB or more? Here's why
• Mac storage full? Where the space really went