How do I check the size of a folder quickly?

Select it in Finder and press ⌘I. Or select it and press Space: Quick Look shows the size too.

Does Calculate all sizes slow Finder down?

A little, on folders with many subfolders, because Finder has to count every file. Turn it on only for windows where you need it if it bothers you.

Why is a folder size different on two Macs?

Block sizes, compression, iCloud-only files and APFS clones all change what a folder uses on disk, even when the files are the same.

Mac file guides

How to see folder sizes on a Mac

By Vishva Variya · Updated November 2, 2026 · 4 min read

Short answer

Select the folder and press ⌘I: Get Info shows its size. To see every folder’s size at once, open the parent folder in list view (⌘2), choose View › Show View Options (⌘J) and turn on Calculate all sizes, then sort by Size. In Terminal, du -sh followed by a folder’s path prints its size.

Why doesn’t Finder show folder sizes?

Adding up every file in a folder takes time, so Finder shows “--” for folders by default. It calculates a size when you ask for one with Get Info, or for every folder once you turn on Calculate all sizes in a list-view window.

How do I show sizes for all folders in Finder?

1Open the folder that contains the folders you want to measure.
2Switch to list view with ⌘2.
3Choose View › Show View Options (⌘J) and tick Calculate all sizes.
4Click Use as Defaults to apply it to every list-view window, then click the Size column to sort.

Sizes appear one by one as Finder works them out. Large folders on a slow disk take a while.

How do I see folder sizes in Terminal?

This prints the size of every folder in your home folder, largest first:

du -sh ~/* 2>/dev/null | sort -hr

For one folder, use du -sh followed by its path. Folders macOS protects show “Operation not permitted” unless Terminal has Full Disk Access.

Why do Get Info and Storage settings show different numbers?

Files stored only in iCloud count at full size in Get Info but use almost no disk.
APFS clones and snapshots share space, so copies can look bigger than what they use.
Storage settings round and group by category, not by folder.

Folder sizes in Peekaboo

Peekaboo’s Disk Usage page measures every folder on the disk and lists them by size, so you can click down from the top of the disk to the folder that’s actually big, then show it or move it to the Trash from the same list. It also shows the space macOS frees on its own, like iCloud copies and snapshots. Space Map draws the same thing as a sunburst you can click into.

1Open Disk Usage to list folders by size.⇧⌘U
2Or open Space Map to see the disk as a clickable map.⇧⌘M

Questions

How do I check the size of a folder quickly?: Select it in Finder and press ⌘I. Or select it and press Space: Quick Look shows the size too.
Does Calculate all sizes slow Finder down?: A little, on folders with many subfolders, because Finder has to count every file. Turn it on only for windows where you need it if it bothers you.
Why is a folder size different on two Macs?: Block sizes, compression, iCloud-only files and APFS clones all change what a folder uses on disk, even when the files are the same.