Mac storage basics · Finding big files, Downloads and the Trash
Does compressing files into a zip save space on a Mac?
Short answer: For documents and text, often yes; for photos, video, music and apps, which are already compressed, barely at all. Right-click and choose Compress.
It depends on the files. Text, documents, spreadsheets and some raw data shrink well. Photos (JPEG, HEIC), videos, music and most app files are already compressed, so zipping them saves little or nothing.
To zip, right-click and choose Compress. Zips are handy for archiving many small files into one, but you'll need to unzip to use them, so they suit archives rather than working files.