Documentation

Everything you need to get started with DiskCopilot on macOS.

laptop_mac System Requirements

check_circle macOS 12 (Monterey) or later
check_circle Apple Silicon (M1/M2/M3/M4) or Intel Mac
check_circle 50 MB of free disk space
check_circle Full Disk Access permission (for complete scans)

download Installation

1 Download DiskCopilot from the homepage or the Mac App Store.
2 Open the .dmg file and drag DiskCopilot to your Applications folder.
3 Launch DiskCopilot. On first run, grant Full Disk Access when prompted (System Settings → Privacy & Security → Full Disk Access).
4 Click Start Scan to begin your first scan.

rocket_launch Quick Start

After installation, DiskCopilot presents your Mac's volumes. Select a volume and click Scan. The scanner will traverse your disk and build a complete map of all files and folders with their real on-disk sizes.

Once the scan completes, you can:

chevron_right Browse the heatmap barchart to see which categories use the most space.
chevron_right Search for large files to find the biggest space hogs.
chevron_right Select any file and use AI Consult to find out if it's safe to delete.
chevron_right Use the inspector panel to see file details and take quick actions.

auto_awesome AI Consult

AI Consult is DiskCopilot's signature feature. It lets you ask an AI assistant whether a file or folder is safe to delete, without leaving the app.

How it works

1 Right-click any file or folder in the scan results.
2 Select Ask AI and choose your provider: Claude, ChatGPT, or Perplexity.
3 Your browser opens with a prefilled prompt containing the file path, size, and context. The AI gives you a clear, human-readable answer.

AI Consult is available in both the Free and Pro versions. No API keys required — it uses the web interfaces of the AI providers directly.

search Large File Search

After a scan completes, use the large file search to quickly find the biggest files on your drive. Files are sorted by size, with the largest at the top. You can filter by file type and navigate directly to any file in Finder.

This is the fastest way to reclaim disk space — the top 10 largest files often account for a significant portion of your used storage.

bar_chart Heatmap Barchart

The heatmap barchart gives you a visual breakdown of disk usage by category — Applications, Developer tools, Caches, Documents, and more. Each bar is proportional to the space used, so you can instantly see which areas deserve attention.

Click on any category bar to drill down into its contents and see individual files and folders.

tune Exclusions & Settings

DiskCopilot offers extensive configuration options:

shield Folder exclusions — protect important directories from being flagged. Excluded folders are also skipped during scans, speeding things up.
layers Scan depth — limit how deep the scanner traverses into nested directories.
filter_alt File filters — include or exclude files by extension or name pattern.
history Scan history — review past scans with their size totals and durations.

Access all settings from the menu bar: DiskCopilot → Settings or press ⌘,.

vpn_key Licensing

Free

check Core disk scanning
check Heatmap barchart view
check AI Consult

Pro — $19

check Everything in Free
check Large file search
check Advanced exclusions
check Unlimited scan history
check Up to 3 Macs

To activate Pro, go to DiskCopilot → Settings → License and enter your license key. Each license supports up to 3 Macs. To transfer a license, deactivate it on the old Mac first.