Macs are generally fast, though some versions can perform slower than usual, it is not uncommon for your device to take forever to start or freeze while opening an application. But don’t worry, we have good news for you. Below are five common fixes for your slow-running Macs. Hopefully, after reading, you can start solving the problem on your own.
Free up some space
Did you know that a part of your Mac’s performance relies on the available space of the hard drive? The free space left on the drive allows it to read and write on its files.
Take note that the hard drive contains a number of large files and folders. It includes backups, photos, movies, music, and old versions of some apps that are no longer in use. Now, if you frequently download and save movies on your device, you quickly consume the space.
Ideally, if you want your device to run at its optimal performance, it needs to have at least 10 percent free storage space. Therefore, if you have plenty of files that means slow-running Mac for you and you have to start getting rid of some of them.
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Unfortunately, freeing up some space on your hard drive is not as easy as it sounds. Yes, you can quickly identify the old movie files or high-res photos you want to clean up but the difficult part is identifying the files or system applications that can be safely removed to free up space without causing any issues and your best option here is to use a 3rd-party cleanup tool, which will be discussed in step 5.
Update your software
Is your Mac OS up to date? If not, then it could be the reason why your Mac is slowing down. Do not think that a software update means an added piece of junk to your slow-running computer. Consider it a much-deserved treat from Mac tech gods as it makes your Mac run smoothly. So, always be sure to update your Mac’s OS, as well as the other applications installed on it.
Here’s how to do it:
- Go to the Mac App Store.
- Search for “Mac OS Sierra”.
- Install it for a quick performance boost.
Disable extensions and plugins
If your Mac’s browser freezes whenever you open multiple tabs and enable a couple of extensions, then it’s high time you did some cleaning as these tabs and extensions might be the reason for slowing down your machine.
Unwanted and malicious plugins, extensions, and add-ons are everywhere. You download an application and the next thing you see are odd pop-ups and search bars on your browser. Of course, some are legit and works properly, but know that every plugin you install or extension you enable directly impacts your Mac’s overall speed. Hence, the need to check which ones you need and get rid of the rest.
To remove these extensions on Chrome, do the following:
- Launch the browser.
- Click on the three-dot button located at the top-right corner of your screen.
- Select More Tools > Extensions.
- Disable or delete unwanted extensions completely, especially those you do not recognize.
To remove these extensions on Safari, do the following:
- Launch the browser.
- Click Safari > Preferences.
- Select.
- Get rid of the extensions you do not need.
Turn off unnecessary features
It is true that a Mac has many amazing features. However, some of them might be causing your Mac to slow down such as the Dock visual effects.
To prevent slowdown, you can keep the Dock static by following these steps:
- Go to System Preferences > Dock.
- Uncheck these boxes:
- Automatically Hide and Show the Dock
- Magnification
- Turn Off Accessibility
- Animate Opening Applications
- Select Minimize Windows Using.
- Change the setting from Genie Effect to Scale Effect.
Install tools that improve your Mac’s performance
To keep your Mac secure and clean, you might use specialized tools. Outbyte macAries is designed for MacOS and offers features for system assessment, but it’s important to determine whether it’s the right solution for your specific concerns.
Here are a few things Outbyte’s macAries can do:
- It scans your computer for all sorts of junk, empties the trash, and removes unwanted files from common locations to restore your Mac’s efficiency.
- It clears the RAM to give priority to active and more important apps to help your Mac run faster.
- It suggests tweaks to conserve energy.
- It also locates potential issues and generates a detailed report you can use to come up with a solution.
- It sorts all the installed apps and allows you to delete those that are not needed.
We’ve shared five of the most common fixes for slow-running Macs. All of them suggest one thing – give your Mac enough space to breathe and it will do what it’s supposed to do. In the long run, your Mac will be filled again with tons of junk files and trash that consume so much of the disk space, resources, and memory. Since you already know what to do, you should be able to bring back your Mac’s speed again.