What is GrandPerspective?
GrandPerspective is a small, free disk usage analyser for macOS that draws the contents of a volume as a tree map: every file is a rectangle whose area matches its size, so the biggest space users are the biggest blocks. It has been published since 2005 and is released as open source under the GNU General Public License. The current release requires macOS 14 or newer and runs on both Apple silicon and Intel Macs. It is free to download from SourceForge, while the identical app costs $2.99 on the Mac App Store — a charge the developer says covers the Apple Developer Program membership.
Verified product facts
- Type
- disk usage analyserEditorially reviewed
- Platform
- macOS
- Apple Silicon
- Yes
- Pricing
- Open sourceDeveloper-stated
- Open source
- Yes
- Developer
- Erwin BonsmaDeveloper-stated
- Relationship to Nuanyue
- Third-party product — not published by NuanyueEditorially reviewed
- Licence
- GPL
- Current version
- 3.8.1Developer-stated
- Official website
- grandperspectiv.sourceforge.net
Last updated . Facts marked developer-stated come from the developer and are not independently confirmed; editorially reviewed marks a Nuanyue judgement.
Key features
What GrandPerspective does at a glance.
Disk usage visualised as a tree map, where each file is a rectangle whose area matches its size
Colour files
By name, extension, file type, parent or top folder, hierarchy level, size, or creation, modification and access time
Filter and mask files
Using tests on name, path, size, type, hard-link status and package status
Navigate the folder hierarchy, search
By name, preview with Quick Look, and reveal or delete files from the view
Analyses Time Machine backups
By following hard-linked files and folders
Saves and reloads scans, and exports results as an image or text
What you can use GrandPerspective for
- Finding which files and folders take up the most space on a volume
- Analysing Time Machine backups by following hard-linked files
- Comparing disk usage before and after a cleanup by reloading a saved scan
- Exporting a disk usage scan as an image or text
- Deleting or revealing files straight from the tree map
Who is GrandPerspective for?
- Mac users who want a free, open-source disk usage analyser
- Users who prefer a tree map of the whole volume over a ring chart
- People who need to inspect how much space Time Machine backups occupy
Who is GrandPerspective not for?
- Anyone who needs automated cleanup — GrandPerspective visualises usage and leaves deletion to the user
- Users on macOS 11 to 13 — the latest release requires macOS 14, and those systems must stay on GrandPerspective 3.7.2
- Windows or Linux users — GrandPerspective is macOS only
Limitations
- The latest release requires macOS 14 or newer; older macOS versions are served only by older releases
- The tree-map layout is dense and takes more practice to read than a ring-chart analyser
- It identifies files but does not clean automatically
Strengths and trade-offs
What GrandPerspective does well, and what to weigh before choosing it. Points marked developer-stated come from the developer’s own material and have not been independently confirmed.
Strengths
- Runs on both Apple silicon and Intel Macs and requires macOS 14 or newer.
- Free and open source from SourceForge; the developer states the $2.99 App Store build is the same app.
- Can analyse hard-linked files and folders, which the developer presents as the way to inspect Time Machine backups.Developer-stated
Trade-offs
- The latest release requires macOS 14 or newer; users on macOS 11 to 13 must stay on GrandPerspective 3.7.2, and earlier systems on older releases still.
- The tree-map layout packs files into rectangles whose placement is otherwise arbitrary, so the view is dense and takes more practice to read than a ring-chart analyser.Editorially reviewed
First-use experience
What the app asks of you when you set it up. Only established facts appear here; anything we could not confirm is left out rather than guessed at.
- Installation
- Download free from SourceForge, or buy the same app from the Mac App Store for $2.99.
- First launch Developer-stated
- Choose a folder or volume to scan; the result is drawn as a tree map, and the app ships extensive built-in help documentation.
- System integration Developer-stated
- Works with Finder and Quick Look — reveal items in Finder, preview with Quick Look, and delete from the view.
- Apple Silicon
- Supported
What it does
GrandPerspective is a disk usage analyser. It scans a file system and draws what it finds as a tree map: every file is a rectangle whose area is proportional to the file’s size, and files in the same folder are grouped together. That makes the biggest space users visible as the biggest blocks, which is the whole point of the app — the developer’s description is that it helps you “easily spot which files and folders take up the most space.”
The view is configurable rather than fixed. Files can be coloured by name, extension, file type, parent folder, top folder, level in the hierarchy, size, or creation, modification and access time, with a choice of palettes and per-file-type mappings. Filter tests built from name, path, size, type, hard-link status and package status can mask files in the view, filter them out, or exclude them from a scan entirely, and those filters are saved to the user preferences.
How you work in it
Navigation is keyboard- and mouse-driven: move up and down the folder hierarchy, select files and folders, search by name, preview a file with Quick Look, reveal it in Finder, or delete it straight from the view. Scans can be saved, reloaded and re-run so results before and after a cleanup can be compared side by side, and results can be exported as an image or as text. The interface stays responsive because drawing and scanning run on background threads.
The app also follows hard links, which is what makes it able to analyse Time Machine backups rather than counting each snapshot separately.
Requirements and older macOS versions
The current release requires macOS 14 or higher and an Apple silicon or Intel-based processor. That floor moved recently: the 3.8.0 release raised the deployment target to macOS 14. Older macOS versions are served by older GrandPerspective releases:
| GrandPerspective | macOS |
|---|---|
| 3.8.x | 14 or newer |
| 3.7.2 | 11, 12, 13 |
| 3.3 | 10.14, 10.15 |
| 3.0.1 | 10.9 to 10.13 |
| 1.5.3 | 10.6 |
Two ways to get it
The project has been published since 2005 and marks its 20th anniversary on the site. It is free and open source under the GNU General Public License from SourceForge, and the same app is sold on the Mac App Store for $2.99. The developer’s own framing is that the fee exists to cover the Apple Developer Program membership and other development costs, and that “you’ll get the same app either way.”
Apple Silicon
Recorded as supported. The developer states the latest release requires an Apple silicon or Intel-based processor, so the app runs natively on Apple silicon Macs rather than only under Rosetta.
Release history
Dated releases recorded for GrandPerspective, newest first, each with the source it was read from.
3.8.1
Current release; the developer describes minor improvements to diagnostic logging.
Source: Official website
3.8.0
Raised the deployment target to macOS 14.
Source: Official website
Questions about GrandPerspective
Is GrandPerspective free?
Yes. It is free and open source from SourceForge under the GNU General Public License. The same app is also sold on the Mac App Store for $2.99, which the developer says covers the Apple Developer Program membership and other development costs.
Does GrandPerspective run on Apple Silicon?
Yes. The developer states the latest release requires an Apple silicon or Intel-based processor, and macOS 14 or higher.
Which macOS versions does GrandPerspective support?
The latest release requires macOS 14 or higher. GrandPerspective 3.7.2 supports macOS 11 to 13, and older releases cover earlier versions back to macOS 10.5.
What is the difference between the SourceForge and App Store versions?
Nothing. The developer states you get the same app either way; the App Store version is charged at $2.99 to cover membership and development costs.
What is the latest GrandPerspective version?
3.8.1, released on 13 September 2026.
Alternatives to GrandPerspective
Apps that could replace this one — the same job, a different trade-off.
Neatwise
Analyze storage, clean unnecessary files and keep your Mac organized.
Both map what is using disk space and leave deletion to you, but Neatwise also groups junk files and is a paid Mac App Store app.
DiskWise
Open-source SwiftUI disk cleaner whose only deletion path is the Trash, with undo and a cache knowledge base.
Both are open-source Mac storage tools; DiskWise focuses on reviewing and trashing cache files, while GrandPerspective visualises the whole volume.
Compared with
Head-to-head comparisons Nuanyue has published.
DaisyDisk
Visual disk usage analyser with a one-time licence.
Both are visual disk usage analysers; the two are compared head to head on Nuanyue, with GrandPerspective free and open source using a tree map rather than a ring chart.
Works well with
Not a replacement — apps commonly used alongside this one.
OnyX
System maintenance utility for cleanup, verification, and hidden settings.
OnyX runs system maintenance and clears caches, which is the cleanup work GrandPerspective deliberately leaves to the user.
Links
Sources
Facts on this page are checked against the sources below. Last updated .
