---
title: "What is the .lmstudio/models folder on Mac? (LM Studio)"
description: ".lmstudio/models belongs to LM Studio. What’s inside, how big it gets (4 – 200 GB), whether it’s safe to delete, and the right way to shrink it."
url: https://tidymac.space/folders/lm-studio-models/
updated: 2026-10-16
---

[Home](/) [Folders](/folders/) .lmstudio/models

# What is the .lmstudio/models folder on my Mac?

It belongs to **LM Studio**. Here’s what’s inside and the right way to deal with it.

Your choiceUsually 4 – 200 GBUpdated October 2, 2026By the Tidy Mac team

Short answer

This folder holds the AI models you downloaded in LM Studio, often several gigabytes each. They aren’t caches: removing one means downloading it again to use it. Delete the ones you don’t use from LM Studio’s My Models list.

**Location:** `~/.lmstudio/models · ~/.cache/lm-studio/models`

## What’s inside

-   GGUF and MLX model files
-   One folder per publisher and model

**Our verdict: Your choice.** You downloaded this on purpose. Remove it if you don’t use it; you can download it again.

## The LM Studio way

Open LM Studio, go to **My Models**, and delete the models you don’t use.

## Or remove a model folder

Each model is a folder under `~/.lmstudio/models/<publisher>/<model>`.

![](/img/brand/tidy-128.png)

### Find every folder like this on your Mac

Tidy Mac’s Space Map shows every big folder at its real size, and Apps › Leftovers finds folders left by apps you already deleted.

[Download](/download/TidyMac.dmg) [Buy for $9.99 once](/buy/)

## Frequently asked questions

Can I delete .lmstudio/models?

Your choice: You downloaded this on purpose. Remove it if you don’t use it; you can download it again. This folder holds the AI models you downloaded in LM Studio, often several gigabytes each. They aren’t caches: removing one means downloading it again to use it. Delete the ones you don’t use from LM Studio’s My Models list.

Where is .lmstudio/models on my Mac?

~/.lmstudio/models · ~/.cache/lm-studio/models. In Finder choose Go › Go to Folder and paste the path.

How big does .lmstudio/models get?

Usually 4 – 200 GB.

## Keep reading

[What is com.apple.idleassetsd?macOS (Aerial wallpapers and screen savers)](/folders/com-apple-idleassetsd/)[What is Android/sdk?Android Studio](/folders/android-sdk/)[What is .ollama/models?Ollama](/folders/ollama-models/)[What is .cache/huggingface?Hugging Face tools (transformers, diffusers, hf CLI)](/folders/huggingface-cache/)

Share:[X](https://x.com/intent/post?text=What%20is%20the%20.lmstudio%2Fmodels%20folder%20on%20my%20Mac%3F&url=https%3A%2F%2Ftidymac.space%2Ffolders%2Flm-studio-models%2F)[Reddit](https://www.reddit.com/submit?url=https%3A%2F%2Ftidymac.space%2Ffolders%2Flm-studio-models%2F&title=What%20is%20the%20.lmstudio%2Fmodels%20folder%20on%20my%20Mac%3F)[Hacker News](https://news.ycombinator.com/submitlink?u=https%3A%2F%2Ftidymac.space%2Ffolders%2Flm-studio-models%2F&t=What%20is%20the%20.lmstudio%2Fmodels%20folder%20on%20my%20Mac%3F)[LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Ftidymac.space%2Ffolders%2Flm-studio-models%2F)

#### On this page

[What’s inside](#whats-inside)[The LM Studio way](#the-lm-studio-way)[Or remove a model folder](#or-remove-a-model-folder)[FAQ](#faq)

**Tidy Mac**

See this on your own Mac in under a minute. $9.99 once, 2 Macs.

[Download](/download/TidyMac.dmg)