{"id":"external-drives.does-a-moved-folder-take-the-same-space-on-the-drive","url":"/faq/external-drives/does-a-moved-folder-take-the-same-space-on-the-drive","category":{"id":"external-drives","title":"External drives"},"subcategory":{"id":"space-on-the-drive","title":"Space on the drive"},"question":"Does a moved folder take the same amount of space on the external drive?","alt_questions":["Why is the folder bigger on the external drive?","Moved files use more space on SSD","Does Storage Studio keep sparse files small?","virtual machine disk size after moving","space used on fast drive vs mac","disk image takes more room after move"],"short_answer":"Roughly the same. Sizes are measured as space used on disk, and space-efficient files such as some virtual-machine disks and disk images stay efficient on the fast drive. The drive's format can cause small differences.","answer_markdown":"Roughly, yes. Folder sizes in Storage Studio are measured as the room they take on disk, which is also the room you get back by moving them. Space-efficient files — some virtual-machine disks, disk images and pre-allocated databases that use less than their apparent size — keep that efficiency when moved to the fast drive instead of growing to their full size.\n\nSmall differences can come from the drive's format (APFS and exFAT store small files differently), and an APFS drive can show slightly different numbers to your Mac's drive.","answer_html":"

Roughly, yes. Folder sizes in Storage Studio are measured as the room they take on disk, which is also the room you get back by moving them. Space-efficient files — some virtual-machine disks, disk images and pre-allocated databases that use less than their apparent size — keep that efficiency when moved to the fast drive instead of growing to their full size.

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Small differences can come from the drive's format (APFS and exFAT store small files differently), and an APFS drive can show slightly different numbers to your Mac's drive.

","answer_text":"Roughly, yes. Folder sizes in Storage Studio are measured as the room they take on disk, which is also the room you get back by moving them. Space-efficient files — some virtual-machine disks, disk images and pre-allocated databases that use less than their apparent size — keep that efficiency when moved to the fast drive instead of growing to their full size.\n\nSmall differences can come from the drive's format (APFS and exFAT store small files differently), and an APFS drive can show slightly different numbers to your Mac's drive.","tags":["space","sizes","sparse files"],"related":[{"id":"external-drives.what-happens-when-my-fast-drive-is-full","question":"What happens when my fast drive runs out of space?","url":"/faq/external-drives/what-happens-when-my-fast-drive-is-full"},{"id":"moving-folders.why-didnt-my-free-space-go-up-after-a-move","question":"Why didn't my free space go up after I moved a folder?","url":"/faq/moving-folders/why-didnt-my-free-space-go-up-after-a-move"},{"id":"external-drives.can-i-delete-things-from-the-storage-studio-folder-on-the-drive","question":"Can I delete files from Storage Studio's folder on the drive to make room?","url":"/faq/external-drives/can-i-delete-things-from-the-storage-studio-folder-on-the-drive"}],"applies_to":"all","last_reviewed":"2026-10-01","title":"Does a moved folder take the same amount of space on the external drive? — Storage Studio FAQ","description":"Roughly the same. Sizes are measured as space used on disk, and space-efficient files such as some virtual-machine disks and disk images stay efficient on the fast drive. The drive's format can cause small differences.","crumbs":[{"name":"Home","path":"/"},{"name":"FAQ","path":"/faq/"},{"name":"External drives","path":"/faq/external-drives/"},{"name":"Does a moved folder take the same amount of space on the external drive?","path":"/faq/external-drives/does-a-moved-folder-take-the-same-space-on-the-drive"}],"jsonld":{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","url":"https://storagestudio.us/faq/external-drives/does-a-moved-folder-take-the-same-space-on-the-drive","inLanguage":"en","dateModified":"2026-10-01","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"Does a moved folder take the same amount of space on the external drive?","alternateName":["Why is the folder bigger on the external drive?","Moved files use more space on SSD","Does Storage Studio keep sparse files small?","virtual machine disk size after moving","space used on fast drive vs mac","disk image takes more room after move"],"acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Roughly, yes. Folder sizes in Storage Studio are measured as the room they take on disk, which is also the room you get back by moving them. Space-efficient files — some virtual-machine disks, disk images and pre-allocated databases that use less than their apparent size — keep that efficiency when moved to the fast drive instead of growing to their full size.\n\nSmall differences can come from the drive's format (APFS and exFAT store small files differently), and an APFS drive can show slightly different numbers to your Mac's drive.","url":"https://storagestudio.us/faq/external-drives/does-a-moved-folder-take-the-same-space-on-the-drive"}}]},"fragment":"
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External drives · Space on the drive

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Does a moved folder take the same amount of space on the external drive?

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Short answer: Roughly the same. Sizes are measured as space used on disk, and space-efficient files such as some virtual-machine disks and disk images stay efficient on the fast drive. The drive's format can cause small differences.

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Roughly, yes. Folder sizes in Storage Studio are measured as the room they take on disk, which is also the room you get back by moving them. Space-efficient files — some virtual-machine disks, disk images and pre-allocated databases that use less than their apparent size — keep that efficiency when moved to the fast drive instead of growing to their full size.

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Small differences can come from the drive's format (APFS and exFAT store small files differently), and an APFS drive can show slightly different numbers to your Mac's drive.

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