What does Unclutter by 5x5 Labs do?

Unclutter by 5x5 Labs is a native macOS app that scans your Mac for hidden junk files, system and browser caches, and leftover data from uninstalled apps, then safely removes them. It typically reclaims between 20 and 100 GB of storage on a Mac that has been in use for a year or more.

How much does Unclutter cost?

Unclutter costs $25 as a one-time purchase. There is no subscription. The price includes lifetime updates.

Is it safe to delete the files Unclutter finds?

Yes. Unclutter only targets files that macOS itself treats as safe to remove: cache files, log files, temporary files, and orphaned data from uninstalled apps. It never touches user documents, system-critical files, or application binaries.

Does Unclutter send my data anywhere?

No. Unclutter runs entirely on your Mac. The app does not upload file lists, scan results, or any personal data to a server. The only network requests it makes are license validation and update checks.

Will Unclutter work on Apple Silicon Macs?

Yes. Unclutter is a native universal binary that runs on both Apple Silicon (M1, M2, M3, M4) and Intel Macs, on macOS 12 (Monterey) or later.

How is Unclutter different from CleanMyMac?

CleanMyMac is a subscription product priced at around $40 per year. Unclutter is a one-time $25 purchase that covers the same core cleanup tasks: junk files, caches, and app leftovers. Unclutter is intentionally focused — it does not bundle malware scanning, performance optimizers, or other features that overlap with macOS built-ins.

Does Unclutter offer a refund?

Yes. Email hello@5x5labs.com within 14 days of purchase for a full refund, no questions asked.

Can I install Unclutter on more than one Mac?

Yes. A single Unclutter license can be activated on up to three Macs that you personally own.

What if I lose my download link?

Enter the email address you used at checkout into the re-download form on unclutter.sh and we will email you a new download link immediately.

Where can I download Unclutter?

Only from unclutter.sh. Unclutter by 5x5 Labs is not distributed through the Mac App Store, Setapp, or any third-party marketplace. We sell directly so the price stays a one-time $25 and we control the release cadence. The download is signed with a Developer ID certificate and notarized by Apple, so macOS Gatekeeper opens it without warnings.

← All articles

May 10, 2026 · 4 min read

Why your Mac says storage is full when it isn't

macOS reports 'Disk Almost Full' even when most files are in caches and leftovers. Here's what's actually using the space and how to find out.

You open About This Mac, see the angry red disk gauge, and the obvious user content — photos, documents, downloads — only accounts for a fraction of what's used. Where is the rest?

The macOS storage UI hides almost everything

The Apple-menu storage view groups storage into broad categories: Documents, Applications, Photos, Mail, System, Other. The "System" and "Other" buckets are where the actual problem usually lives. Those two buckets can easily be 100–200 GB on a Mac that has been in use for a year.

What lives in System / Other:

All cache directories (browser, system, app)
Application support data for apps you have installed and uninstalled
Time Machine local snapshots (yes, even when not actively backing up)
Mail database (can be 30+ GB)
iOS device backups
Xcode derived data and simulator state
Logs

macOS does not give you tools to break this down by directory.

How to actually see where the storage went

There are three honest ways:

Terminal: du -sh ~/Library/*/ | sort -h shows you the size of each top-level Library subdirectory. The biggest entries are where to start.
Finder Get Info: Right-click a folder → Get Info to see size. Slow on big folders because Finder calculates recursively.
A dedicated tool: Unclutter scans the right directories and ranks findings by size in 10–30 seconds, then offers cleanup.

The biggest reclaim opportunities

In the order they typically pay off:

Browser caches — 20–50 GB
App leftovers from uninstalled apps — 10–50 GB
Xcode derived data and simulators (developers only) — 50–100 GB
Old Time Machine local snapshots — 5–30 GB
Mail attachments — 5–20 GB

If you handle the top two of these, the storage warning usually goes away.

Want the one-click version?

Unclutter does everything in this guide in 30 seconds.