- Free software to speed up a slow Mac. In this block we will share some free programs or apps with Trial that can help you increase your Mac’s speed even more. Memory Cleaner - a free RAM cleaner that can be a good alternative to Activity Monitor. It allows you to see which apps use the most resources, clear memory on Mac, quit.
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Is your once-powerful Mac running slower and slower every day? Sounds like you have a need for (Mac) speed.
Rest assured that you are not alone. All Mac owners experience this sooner or later. As the months and years go by, their best buddy that used to do everything at the speed of light begins to slow down and take ages to load.
Slow Mac issues and speed up solutions
Before heading for the solutions, one needs to understand the underlying problems causing a Mac to slow down. Often, running heavy-consuming applications at the same time makes your Mac laggy and slow. New Macs, such as 16-inch MacBook Pro (2019) with up to 64GB of RAM, promise flawless performance even if you’re editing a video or developing a game. But, even what it seems like a perfect Mac at a time can slow down with age.
However, don’t worry, your Mac can get back to its initial speed so don’t give up on it just yet. Continue reading and you will discover what are the issues causing the slowdown and some of the best tips and tricks on how to speed up your Mac and improve performance in no time.
So, are you ready to learn how to clean out your Mac to make it run faster? Here are the most effective tips on speeding up your Mac:
Your system slows your Mac down
There are two components that make up your Mac: hardware and software. Let’s take a look at your software first. An updated macOS is essential to your Mac working fast. Every next system brought performance improvements and bug fixes, so it’s a good idea to keep up.
However, old Macs can’t always update to the latest OS. To check your version, click on the Apple icon in the top left corner and go to “About This Mac.” If you can’t update to the latest version (macOS Mojave) then at least update to the latest version possible.
Update your software
A slow application can make your whole Mac feel slow. Regular updates often contain bug fixes and improvements for programs, and if you updated your apps a long time ago, you are probably missing new features as well.
You can usually update any app by opening it and clicking its name next to the Apple menu. Here look for the option “Check for Updates.”
Update your OS
To update your OS, open App Store, and click on the Updates tab. If you’re not running the latest possible OS, you should see the next one you can update to on the list.
Speed Up Computer Mac
Keep in mind that updating OS takes time. In order to avoid frustrations, choose a proper time to update, preferably when you can leave your Mac to do its job unhindered: maybe right before bedtime or when you’re going out for the day.
Run Maintenance Scripts
Maintenance Scripts are helpful under-the-hood optimizations that your macOS runs to clean itself. This procedure rotates certain libraries and system logs, replaces old file paths — hundreds of small operations to shake up and refresh the system.
When your Mac gets slow and weary you can force initiate the Maintenance Scripts.
To do it with one button:
- Grab a free edition of CleanMyMac X
- Click on the Maintenance tab
- Click Run Maintenance Scripts
This is so easy and it works every single time to make a Mac speedier.
Turn off visual effects to speed up a slow Mac
The Dynamic Desktop feature changes your desktop picture automatically and may slow down your Mac a bit.
To disable the new Dynamic Desktop, click System Preferences > Desktop & Screen Saver. Here, set a desktop picture instead of Dynamic Desktop. Make sure the option “Change pictures” is turned off.
One more tip for older Macs is to turn off some of the visual animations. Sure, they look pretty, but who cares when your system is grinding to a halt? Definitely not the person using the Mac at that moment.
So try turning off some of the worst offenders to make Mac run faster. Open up Terminal (Applications > Utilities) and try these commands:
Turn off dock animations - defaults write com.apple.dock launchanim -bool false
Turn off window animations - defaults write NSGlobalDomain NSAutomaticWindowAnimationsEnabled -bool false
Turn off quick look animations - defaults write -g QLPanelAnimationDuration -float 0
Turn off windows adjustment animations - defaults write -g NSWindowResizeTime -float 0.001
After you enter each command, copy and paste this line into Terminal: killall Finder Dock QuickLookUIService. This will close all active windows of your apps to apply changes.
Your hard drive is nearly full
According to a test performed by MacWorld magazine, nearly full hard drives perform 17% slower than less occupied ones. In addition to this, the more large files are there on your drive, the slower your disk runs. Looks like large old files are like massive stones that weigh down your Mac’s memory.
A full hard drive creates multiple troubles: slow startup, slow Finder, and slow apps. Everything is lagging and dragging like it’s siesta in the very heart of Spanish riviera.
To check how your hard drive storage is doing, open the Apple menu, and click “About this Mac.” Choose the Storage tab and wait for it to calculate the space division. At the very least systems need 10% of free space on a startup disk.
Restart your Mac
Macs are so stable and energy-efficient that it seems like restarting them isn’t necessary. But as practice shows, rebooting your computer regularly does help boost its speed. It shuts down apps that work in the background and clears lots of caches accumulated by all your apps.
Use Mac cleanup tools to remove junk and get a faster Mac
Mac creates heaps of junk files like cache and logs, and while they start small, over time they take up gigabytes of your precious space. As a result, you do not have enough storage space for apps to function, so your Mac starts slowing down.
CleanMyMac X is a professional Mac cleaning utility that can fix your slow Mac. It scans every inch of your system to find all the hidden system junk for easy, one-click removal. Moreover, it frees up your disk space and saves the time you’d spent looking for cache and user log files manually.
Download it for free and run a Smart Scan. You can then click Review Details to see what CleanMyMac X has found and press the Run button to clear your Mac. That’s all it takes!
You got too many items in your Preference panes
Preference panes are where your system widgets and macOS utilities are kept. Many third-party apps add their own widgets to your System Preferences. This creates an extra load for your macOS. The most common example is Flash Player that integrates with your macOS and, in some cases, causes software conflicts.
- Go to Apple logo> System Preferences
- Look through the list of widgets at the bottom of the window.
- Control-click the item you want to delete, and confirm the deletion.
Remove startup items: the fast way
Startup items are applications that launch automatically when you boot up your Mac. These programs load your Mac’s memory unless you directly disable them. When you minimize your startup items your Mac should boot faster and become more responsive.
An easy way to get rid of extra startup items is to use CleanMyMac X. It also allows you to permanently remove the app from the startup items list if you feel that you don’t need it there.
Follow these steps:
- Open CleanMyMac X
- Go to Optimization > Login Items
- Disable the items you don’t want loading
- Done!
Remove startup items manually
To manually remove apps as startup items (don’t worry, the apps will still be installed) you need to visit your System Preferences.
Follow these steps:
- Go System Preferences > Users & Groups
- Select your name
- Click on Login Items
- Select startup items that you know you don’t need loading on start
- Then click the “-“ at the bottom to remove them from startup
- Reboot your Mac
You have too many apps running
Remember the startup items problem? Too many apps are a bad thing whether we’re talking startup or regular work. When you’re having a browser with a hundred tabs open, a photo editor, and a video player running together with a dozen other everyday apps, your Mac is going to raise a white flag. It’s heating up and trying to tell you that you should choose some apps you really need and close the rest.
Close memory-hogging apps to speed up macOS
When your Mac is running slow because of app overload, you need to find the ones that cause the problem.
Follow these steps:
- Navigate to Applications > Utilities > Activity Monitor
- Click on the Memory tab
- Click on the Memory column to sort the memory hogs from worst to least
Now you can simply highlight an app and then click the X in the top left corner to close it. You want to make sure you’re not closing an app you either a) need open or b) don’t know what it is.
Disable notifications from apps and websites
Nowadays, almost every app is trying to trick us into seeing their notifications. We are annoyed by pushes and news updates from websites and hardly anybody knows how to switch this madness off. What does it have to do with a slow Mac? These notifications bite away a portion of your virtual memory and slow down your browsers.
How to disable notifications on a Mac:
- Open your System Preferences
- Click Notifications
Look through the list and uncheck “Show notifications” in the right menu.
Your hardware is old
We’ve finally arrived at the hardware part. We’re here because drive cleaning and software updates can only do so much. If your Mac is very old then it’s going to get slower, no matter what you do. Before you bite the bullet and buy a new Mac, there are a couple of hardware upgrades that you should consider. They won’t cost a lot but they could give your tiring Mac a new lease on life.
Upgrade memory to speed up a Mac
Memory is a massive factor in how smoothly your Mac runs. It’s also one of the easiest upgrades as adding a new RAM module is simple. Nothing else needs to be done to your system. Even better, it’s also not going to hurt your wallet too much.
To make your Mac faster check out our guide to Mac RAM installation here.
Add SSD to give your Mac a big speed boost
Compared to RAM installation, adding a SSD (Solid State Drive) is a bit more expensive (but still much cheaper than a new Mac). It is also more disruptive (you’ll need to make it your system drive), and challenging to install. But if your Mac runs slowly, this will provide a big performance boost.
And that’s how you speed up Mac
If your Mac was running slower over time, these solutions should immediately make your Mac faster. It could even feel like you bought a new Mac, without a hefty bill. Remember to run occasional system cleanups with CleanMyMac X so that your Mac remains clean and fast.
/Mac Cleaner /How to Speed Up Mac? 11 Tricks to Make Your Mac Run Faster
I heard that there has a solution to speed up mac. Is really?
Yes! Many Mac users would have experienced that their device is running slow and sluggish. Because of this, users would tend to find a way for them to know some causes that trigger their Mac to run slow and how they could fix it.
Well, worry no more because we all have here the answer to your questions. Here, we are going to show you how to speed up Mac in the easiest way possible so just keep on reading.
Mac is one of the most popular brands when it comes to a laptop gadgets. This is because it has features that suit other people's needs. You as one of the Mac users, are pretty sure that you handle your Mac care and would want it to be clean as possible. You maybe have the habit of wiping off your screen or dusting its keyboard because you would want it to look as if it is still brand new.
However, there are instances that your Mac might appear new on the outside but the question is, does it still work like it's new? The following are the strategies that you will understand how to speed up Mac in this article.
Article GuidePart 1. How Can I Speed up My Mac 2021? Part 2. How Do I Clean up My Mac to Make It Run Faster?Part 3. Conclusion
Part 1. How Can I Speed up My Mac 2021?
We are sure that you are tired of your Mac/MacBook/MacBook Pro that is getting slow and you would want to stop seeing that annoying ball whenever you are trying to launch something on your Mac. Here are some tips and tricks on how to speed up Mac without spending anything for some additional RAM or spending on getting an additional hard drive. As we all know, Apple has an operating system that is actually good at optimizing itself but of course, that does not mean that you cannot do anything for you to do the same for your Mac.
So why is my Mac so slow all of a sudden? Below will show you how to fix it.
TIP 1. Have Your Mac Update
Apple had provided all its users a free update on its operating system and updating the OS of your Mac will help fix some bugs and system glitches that you are experiencing on your Mac. Also, having your OS be up to date will let you use some new features on your Mac. Here is how to speed up Mac by updating your Mac to the latest version.
- Have the version of Mac located and see if your Mac is actually supported and if there is enough space on your Mac to make the update.
- After that, it is always good to make sure that all your data is safe so why not try to backup your data from your Mac. This is for you to prevent some data loss.
- Choose the Apps Store icon on your Mac and then select Updates. You can also go ahead and try to click on the Apple logo that is found in the top left corner of your screen and then after that go ahead and choose Software update. (Here, you have to make sure that you are logged in on your iCloud account using your Mac).
- After that, go ahead and search Mac OS and then download it. Just go ahead and follow the prompts shown on your screen so you can have the latest OS version for your Mac.
TIP 2. Try to Clean up Safari, Chrome, Internet Explorer, Opera, Etc
Whatever kind of browser that you are using on your Mac, whether it is Safari, Opera, Internet Explorer, or Chrome, always remember that if you open multiple tabs on your browser, then it also takes up more on your memory storage which will eventually make your Mac slower.
If you are having doubts about this, you can go ahead and open Activity Monitor for you to have this checked. Here is how you can do this:
- Go to your Macintosh HD.
- Choose Applications.
- Select Folder of Utilities.
- Choose Activity Monitor.
- In this tip, go ahead and close any tabs that you are not using.
- You can also go ahead and clean up your caches, cookies and your browsing history on your browser.
Here is how to speed up Mac by deleting datas on some web browsers that you might be using. If you don't want to do it one by one, you can have iMyMac PowerMyMac help you do this quickly.
If you are using the Safari:
- Click on the Safari from the left side of your Mac screen.
- After that, select Clear History and Website Data.
- And then click on All History then Clear History.
If you are using Chrome:
- Select Chrome on your Mac and then click on Browsing Data.
- And then select the beginning of time and then choose the items that you want to clear.
- And then, click Clear browsing data.
If you are using Firefox:
- Go ahead and run Firefox on your Mac.
- After that, go ahead and click on History found in the upper right corner of your screen.
- And then, choose all the history that you want to delete.
- Click on Settings and then click the Delete button.
If you are using Opera:
- Choose Opera from the left side of your Mac.
- Go ahead and choose Clear Private Data and then choose the data that you want to delete.
- Once you have selected the items that you want to clear, go ahead and click on Clear Browsing Data.
REMINDER: When you are going to clear your browsing data on your browser, you can actually choose to save your passwords or if not, you may have to enter them again on those web pages that you logged in to.
TIP 3. Clean Up Your Desktop
How to speed up Mac by cleaning your desktop? Unlike any windows computer, the thing with Mac is that it only has one hard disk and everything that we do with our Mac-only goes on the same hard disk. Some users would think that they would never run out of storage C drive and they will not experience their Mac slowing down. But if you keep your files in an out-of-order manner and if you keep your apps on your screen, then it may trigger your Mac to slow down.
So, you must always keep your desktop clean and here is how to speed up Mac:
- You have to remove all apps that you are not using on your Dock by choosing the app and then right-click on the App then choose Option and then select Remove from Dock.
- Remove all useless files and then put all valuable files in one folder.
- Take off your Apps on your computer because your Apps will take up both your CPU and storage space.
TIP 4. Clean Your Trash
As you know that every time you delete a file or an if you have uninstalled an app on your Mac, they will all go down your Trash. In this case, you can go ahead and check your trash and see if all files or Apps that are in it are all useless, then you can go ahead and clean up your trash for you to speed up Mac. Do this regularly and remove those files from your Trash permanently.
TIP 5. Close All Unused Applications That Are Still Running in the Background
If you try to look at your Activity Monitor you will notice that some Apps that are not launched on your Mac are still running in the background which causes your Mac to slow down. With this being said, go ahead and close those Apps for you to be able to speed up Mac.
TIP 6. Close All Unused Widgets on Your Dashboard
Just like your applications and browser tabs, those widgets on your dashboard that you are not actually using can eat up a little bit of your memory. So, for you to free some of your memory and to speed up your Mac, go to your Dashboard and then close all those widgets that you are not using. Here is how to speed up Mac by closing unused Widgets:
- Go to your Launchpad.
- Click on Mission Control.
- Click on your Dashboard and then click '-'.
- And then click on the 'X' button to close the widget that you are not using.
TIP 7. Manage Your Startup Items
In the case that you are experiencing a slow process of booting up your Mac, then maybe you would want to consider checking on the login items on your Mac computer and see if there are much application that is open. Remember that once you have installed an App on your Mac, this app will then automatically be added to your Login Items and they will be automatically launched once you start your Mac computer.
However, if you do not have any idea of what are that Apps that has been added to your Login Items you can have them checked by doing the following steps:
- Go to your Settings.
- Click on the User and Groups.
- And then select Current User and then click on the Login Items.
- Once you are in, go ahead and choose all the items that you want to take off and then click on the '-' button.
TIP 8. Consider Adding A Ram or Upgrade Your Hardware
How do you increase RAM on your Mac? If you think that you have already tried all the methods above on how to speed up Mac but your Mac is still slow, then you can consider upgrading your RAM for you to speed up Mac. As we all know, Mac is a very expensive brand of computer and buying a new one just because your old Mac is running slow would not be a great idea. However, you can consider just buying RAM for your Mac as it will also speed up your Mac computer.
TIP 9. You Can Add an SSD to Your Mac
And SSD is also known as the Solid State Drive which comes in the same shape as the regular drive. The only difference between an SSD from a regular drive is that the SSD uses RAM chips rather than using a spinning hard disk that will allow you to store information. Will more RAM speed up my Mac?
Having an SSD will make your Mac speed up. Many users would suggest having this for you to be able to run just your MacOS and your applications. This will then keep your existing hard disk for your user files. If you do this, your System Files and your Applications will be saved on your SSD but other data on your Mac like your photos and iTunes will remain on your hard disk. Doing this will surely speed up your Mac and as well as when you launch an application on your Mac.
TIP 10. Try To Restart Mac
Restarting your Mac will clear your cache and have your hardware re-initialized. Also, having your Mac reboot on a regular basis can gain benefits. Nowadays, Mac has an SSD which will make your Mac awake quickly when they are put to sleep. With all these being said, once that your Mac is running slow, you can just easily try to restart your Mac and see it gets any faster.
Part 2. How Do I Clean up My Mac to Make It Run Faster?
How to clean out your Mac to make it run faster? There is also another way on how you can do it and this is by downloading third-party software. There is actually a lot of software that you can download for you to be able to clean up your Mac and make it speed up but there is one outstanding software that you can download and rest assured that you will be able to speed up your Mac in the easiest way possible.
The best app to speed up Mac is called the iMyMac PowerMyMac. It will quickly and will also safely erase all your Junk Files from your Mac. This will actually help you find and then remove all your email attachments that are not needed, iTunes backup, and more. Besides, it helps you scan and delete all the large files that you do not need anymore.
Here is a step-by-step guide on how to speed up Mac using the iMyMac PowerMyMac:
Step 1. Have the iMyMac Downloaded and Launch on Your Mac
You can download the iMyMac PowerMyMac from the official website and once you have installed it on your computer, go ahead and launch it. The main screen of the program will show you your Mac system status.
Step 2. Scan Your System Junk
And then, you can just go ahead and click on 'Master Scan' module located at the left panel of your screen. After that, you can go ahead and then click on the 'Scan' button. Wait until the program is done scanning your Mac. Once done, the program will then display all of your junk files.
Step 3. Check Items that You Want to Clean up
The iMyMac PowerMyMac will show all your junk files by categories like Applications, Photo and Mail Junks, System Logs and more. Here, you can simply just select all the data that you want to clean and then click on the 'Clean' button.
Step 4. Clean up Complete
After a few minutes, all of your unused and unnecessary files will then be removed from your Mac. As the process is done, you will see how many files are cleaned and how much storage your disk drive is available now.
Speed Up My Mac Mini
Part 3. Conclusion
Though there are a lot of ways on how to speed up Mac there is one easy solution that you can use and that is by having the iMyMac PowerMyMac on your Mac computer. This program will surely help you to clean and speed up your Mac in the easiest and safest way possible. Free try iMyMac today here!
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