Smart folders in macOS allow you to create folders of files from anywhere on your Mac that follow specific rules. The options are endless, so it’s easy to become overwhelmed deciding which smart folders to create. Here are 6 useful smart folders that are always worth creating.

1 A Large Files Smart Folder

Davidson’s Law states that no matter how large your hard drive is, you’ll always manage to fill it with junk (that’s me, I’m the Davidson). If you find yourself running short on storage, being able to locate large files is an easy way to quickly free up some space on your Mac. By creating a large files smart folder, you can immediately see all the files on your Mac that are over 1GB or any other size you wish.

Open Finder and go to File > New Smart Folder. Click the “+” icon in the top right of the screen.

Click the “Name” dropdown and select “Other.” Select “File Size.” Click the “Equals” dropdown and select “Is Greater Than.”

Click in the text field and enter “1” and select “GB” from the dropdown. Click “Save” to give your smart folder a name and save it. Uncheck “Add to Sidebar” if you don’t want the smart folder to appear in the Finder sidebar.

You now have a smart folder that lists all files larger than 1GB. You can change this to 5GB, or 500MB if you want.

2 A Downloaded Media Smart Folder

Another thing that can eat up your hard drive space is media that you download, such as large movie files. It’s useful to create a smart folder that houses all of your downloaded media so that the files are easy to find and play but also easy to remove, too.

Open Finder and navigate to the Downloads folder. Go to File > New Smart Folder. At the Click the “+” icon in the top right of the screen. Ensure that “Downloads” is selected at the top of the screen.

Hold down the Option key and the “+” (plus) icon at the end of the row will change to three dots. Click this icon. Click the “-” (minus) button in the top row to remove it.

Select the first dropdown in the second row and select “Kind.” Click the “Any” dropdown and select “Movie.”

Click the “+” (plus) icon at the end of the row, and repeat the process, this time selecting “Image.” Repeat it a third time and select “Music.” Click “Save” to save the Smart Folder.

3 A Screenshots Smart Folder

If you take a lot of screenshots, you can end up with hundreds of files you no longer need that somehow go missing on your Mac. A smart folder that collects together all your screenshots makes it quick and easy not only to find the screenshots you need but also to delete the ones that you don’t. By default, Mac screenshots are saved with the word “screenshot” in the file name, so a smart folder can be created to include all files that contain this word.

Open Finder and go to File > New Smart Folder. Click the “+” icon in the top right of the screen.

Click the first dropdown and select “Name.” Select the second dropdown and choose “Contains.” In the final field, type “screenshot.” Click “Save” to save the Smart Folder.

4 A DMG Smart Folder

When you install apps on your Mac, you will often do so by first downloading a DMG file. It’s all too easy to forget to delete these once the app has been installed. A DMG smart folder makes it easy to find and remove any DMGs you no longer need, as well as the ones you do.

Open Finder and go to File > New Smart Folder. Click the “+” icon in the top right of the screen.

Click the dropdown and select “Other.” Scroll through and select “File Extension.” In the text field, enter “DMG.” Ensure that “This Mac” is selected at the top of the screen. Click “Save” to save the Smart Folder.

5 A Duplicate Files Smart Folder

You may be surprised to learn just how many duplicate files you have on your Mac. It’s easy to download a file, forgetting that you’ve already downloaded it before. You end up with multiple copies of the same file, filling up hard drive space unnecessarily. A duplicate files smart folder makes it easy to find and delete any duplicate files on your Mac.

Open Finder and navigate to the Downloads folder. Go to File > New Smart Folder. At the top of the screen, ensure that “This Mac” is selected. Click the “+” icon in the top right of the screen.

Hold down the Option key and the “+” (plus) icon at the end of the row will change to three dots. Click this icon. Click the “-” (minus) button in the top row to remove it.

Ensure that the first row is set to “Any.” Select the first dropdown in the second row and select “Name.” Click the second dropdown in the row and select “Contains.” In the text field, enter “(1)” which is the number appended to a duplicate file.

Click the “+” (plus) icon at the end of the row, and repeat the process, this time entering “(2)” in the text field. Repeat it a third time and enter “(3)” in the text field. You can add further rows if you wish. Click “Save” to give the Smart Folder a name and save it.

6 An Unused Apps Smart Folder

If you’re like me, you’ll occasionally go on a spree of downloading apps that you think will be useful, only to never even open half of them, or open them once and then don’t touch them again. You can create an unused apps smart folder that will show you any apps that you’ve not opened within the last year. You can then decide to start using them or delete them from your Mac.

Open Finder and go to File > New Smart Folder. At the top of the screen, ensure that “This Mac” is selected. Click the “+” icon in the top right of the screen.

Hold down the Option key and the “+” (plus) icon at the end of the row will change to three dots. Click this icon. Click the “-” (minus) icon at the end of the first row to delete it.

Ensure that the first row is set to “All.” Select the first dropdown in the second row and select “Last Opened Date.” In the second dropdown, select “Before.” Change the year of the date to last year.

Click the “+” (plus) at the end of the row. In the first dropdown, select “Kind.” In the second, select “Application.” Click “Save” to save the Smart Folder.

You can do so much with smart folders that it’s often hard to know where to begin. The best approach is to think about what you really need, and then see if you can create a Smart Folder to match. Hopefully, the suggestions above have given you some inspiration.