Freeing up space · Caches and clutter
Which developer caches does Free Up Space clear?
Short answer: Xcode derived data and module caches, Homebrew's download cache, npm, pip, cargo and yarn caches, and Docker and Podman build caches — each shown with its size so you can untick what you want to keep.
Free Up Space's cache step looks at the well-known developer locations:
- Xcode's derived data and module caches
- Homebrew's download cache
- npm, pip, cargo and yarn caches
- Docker's layer cache and Podman's build cache
You see each with its size and can untick any you want to keep. All of these are rebuilt by the tools that use them; the cost is a slower next build or install, not lost work.
Larger developer data that isn't a cache — Xcode simulators, archives, device support files, iOS device backups — is listed in What's Using Space, where it can be moved to your fast drive rather than deleted.