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A clean Mac is not a one-time achievement. It is a small routine that takes less time than scrolling through a social feed. Set a timer for 20 minutes and do these four passes in order.
1. The desktop (4 minutes)
Put every loose file into one of three places: the active project folder, a decision folder, or the Trash. If a file has been on the desktop for a month without being opened, it probably belongs in an archive.
2. Downloads (4 minutes)
Sort by date and delete anything older than two weeks that you have not touched. Installers and disk images are safe to remove after the app is installed. Keep a single folder for things you still need to read.
3. Apps (6 minutes)
Open Applications, sort by size, and look for apps you have not launched in months. Uninstall one or two, including their support files. If you are unsure, leave it — this is not a competition.
4. Storage (6 minutes)
Run a Smart Care scan, preview the categories, and clean only what you understand. Empty the Trash. Restart once. That is the whole routine; repeat it once a month and the big clean-ups stop being necessary.
The best cleaning routine is the one you actually repeat.— Mira Kovalenko