Not enough free space to install macOS update macOS Origin: Platform & cloud OSI layer 7 · Application Last updated 5 Nov 2026

macOS: There is not enough available storage to install this update / Installation of macOS could not continue

Software Update needs several GB of free space (often 25-35 GB) to download and stage the update.

Exact message you may see There is not enough available storage to install this updateInstallation of macOS could not continueNot enough free space to install macOSmacOS update requires more disk spaceAn error occurred while preparing the installation
Explore the map of this error Full error map →
Seen on: macOS

Meaning

Free space: empty Trash, remove Xcode simulators (xcrun simctl delete unavailable), Docker images, old iOS backups, caches (~/Library/Caches), and Time Machine local snapshots (tmutil listlocalsnapshots / then tmutil deletelocalsnapshots DATE). Check About This Mac → Storage.

Common causes

  • Less free space than the installer needs
  • Large Xcode/simulator/Docker data
  • Local Time Machine snapshots
  • iOS device backups
  • Caches and logs

⚡ Quick fix

  1. Free 30+ GB: delete Xcode derived data, simulators, Docker images
  2. tmutil deletelocalsnapshots for old snapshots
  3. Use du -sh ~/Library/* | sort -h | tail

Detailed fix by platform

macOS

  1. df -h / && tmutil listlocalsnapshots / && xcrun simctl delete unavailable

How to diagnose

  1. Free — GB available?
  2. Big — Largest folders?
  3. Snapshots — Local TM?

🔧 Still not fixed?

Many errors look alike. If the steps above didn’t solve it, one of these is probably what you’re facing:

Where this error sits

Origin: Platform & cloud. Errors that are often confused with or caused by this one (click to open):

ENOSPC — no space left on device (Docker / Linux) (Docker)ENOSPCHomebrew Cask: It seems there is already an App at — Homebrew: Error: It seems there is already an App at '/Applications/Chrome.app' (macOS)Homebrew Cask: It see…Homebrew: No available formula with the name — Homebrew: Error: No available formula with the name "x". Did you mean ...? (macOS)Homebrew: No availabl…The installer encountered an error that caused the installation to fail — macOS: The installer encountered an error that caused the installation to fail. Contact the software manufacturer for assistance. (macOS)The installer encount…Time Machine couldn't complete the backup — macOS: Time Machine couldn't complete the backup. / The backup disk image could not be mounted / Backup failed with error 18/19/21/22 (macOS)Time Machine couldn't…Your Command Line Tools are too outdated — Homebrew: Error: Your Command Line Tools (CLT) are too outdated. Update them from Software Update / Please update to the latest macOS (macOS)Your Command Line Too…zsh: bad CPU type in executable — macOS (Apple Silicon): zsh: bad CPU type in executable: ./tool (macOS)zsh: bad CPU type in …Not enoug…

Explore the map of this error Full error map →

🧠 Still stuck? Analyze your error

Paste the full message, response headers or stack trace — we'll detect the platform and point to the most likely cause.

💬 What worked for others

No tips yet — did something else fix this for you?

Share what worked for you

Tips are checked by an editor before they appear. Links are removed.