macOS Update Issue

"Not Enough Space to Update macOS"

You want to update your Mac. Your Mac says no. Here's how to fix it in minutes without deleting your photos.

The Message You're Seeing:

"There is not enough free space on the selected volume to upgrade the OS. An additional 12.4 GB of free space is required."

macOS updates need 15-35GB of free space to download and install. If your Mac is full (like most people's), you're stuck.

Why You Should Update

macOS updates include security fixes. Skipping them leaves your Mac vulnerable to malware and hackers. This isn't optional—you need to find space.

How Much Space Do You Need?

Minor Updates (14.2 → 14.3)

8-15 GB

Security patches, bug fixes

Major Updates (Ventura → Sonoma)

20-35 GB

New features, system overhaul

The Fastest Way to Free Up Space

You could spend hours deleting files, moving things to external drives, clearing caches... Or you could do this:

Shrink your photos and videos (keep everything)

If you have 50GB+ of photos and videos (most people do), you can free up 20-30GB in minutes by making those files smaller. They'll look exactly the same—just take up less space.

Real example:

Photos + Videos

85 GB

After MediaOptim

38 GB

Freed Up

47 GB

That's more than enough for any macOS update.

How to Do It (5 Minutes)

  1. 1

    Download MediaOptim (free)

    Takes 30 seconds. No account needed.

  2. 2

    Use Space Scanner

    MediaOptim shows you exactly what's taking up space. You'll probably see Photos is the biggest culprit.

  3. 3

    Select and optimize

    Pick the biggest files (usually videos), click optimize. Done.

  4. 4

    Run your update

    Now you have space. Go to System Settings → Software Update.

Other Ways to Free Up Space (Slower)

Empty Trash

Files in Trash still take up space. Right-click Trash in Dock → Empty Trash.

Clear Downloads folder

Old installers, PDFs, random files. Open Finder → Downloads and sort by size.

Remove unused apps

Apple Menu → About This Mac → Storage → Manage → Applications.

These help, but usually don't free up enough for a major update. Your photos and videos are almost always the biggest space hogs.

Get Your Update Installed

Free up space in minutes. No deleting memories required.

Get MediaOptim Free

Works on macOS 12 and later.