Downloads
The ~/Downloads folder stores files you download from browsers, apps, and shared links, and it often accumulates installers and documents over time.
What is Downloads?
Downloads is the standard user folder at ~/Downloads on macOS. It is commonly used by web browsers, email clients, messaging apps, and other software to save files you download, export, or receive, such as installers, PDFs, images, archives, and media files.
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Safety overview
Status: Mostly safe
This is a normal user data folder, not a system component. Deleting files here is usually safe for macOS itself, but you may lose documents, installers, disk images, or other downloaded items you still need.
Recommendation: Keep anything you still need, such as downloaded documents, installers you plan to reuse, or files waiting to be sorted. It is generally reasonable to review this folder periodically and remove old downloads you recognize and no longer need.
File path
~/Downloads
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