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Guide

How to clear the Lightroom Classic cache on a Mac

Lightroom Classic keeps two kinds of files you can clear: the Camera Raw cache, 5 GB by default, and the previews stored next to your catalog. Previews often grow far larger than the cache.

Purge the Camera Raw cache

  1. Open Lightroom Classic > Settings (Preferences in older versions).
  2. Go to the Performance tab. In older versions it's under File Handling.
  3. Under Camera Raw Cache Settings, click Purge Cache.

The same section sets the Maximum Size and, with Choose, the folder. Adobe says the cache is only used by the Develop module.

Discard previews

  • 1:1 previews: select photos, then Library > Previews > Discard 1:1 Previews.
  • Automatically: in Catalog Settings > File Handling, set Automatically Discard 1:1 Previews to 1 Day, 1 Week or 30 Days.
  • Smart Previews: select photos, then Library > Previews > Discard Smart Previews.

Where the files live

Previews sit next to the catalog (.lrcat), by default in ~/Pictures/Lightroom:

  • [Catalog name] Previews.lrdata: standard and 1:1 previews.
  • [Catalog name] Smart Previews.lrdata: small editable copies of your photos.

The Camera Raw cache is in the folder shown in its settings.

The files Lightroom Classic keeps next to a catalog, and which are made again.

What's safe

The Camera Raw cache and Previews.lrdata are both rebuilt when needed. With Lightroom Classic closed, you can delete the whole Previews.lrdata, never single files inside it. Browsing is slower until previews are rebuilt.

Think before discarding Smart Previews. They let you edit photos whose drive isn't connected. Your edits are in the catalog, but without the original or a Smart Preview you can't keep editing that photo. Never delete the .lrcat file.

The faster way: Caretaker

Caretaker finds Lightroom Classic's cache and each catalog's Previews.lrdata, shows their size, and clears them in one click. Smart Previews are listed but left unticked unless you choose them. They are deleted for good, since Lightroom makes them again.

Caretaker's Clean page: safe to clear, system junk and creative app caches, in dots.
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Questions

Is it safe to delete Previews.lrdata?

Yes, with Lightroom Classic closed. It's rebuilt as you browse. Your photos and edits are not in it.

Does purging the Camera Raw cache delete my edits?

No. Edits are stored in the catalog. The cache only speeds up the Develop module.