How to Fix a Slow Mac

With time you may have noticed that your Mac has gotten significantly slower than before. There are many reasons that could explain this deterioration in performance ranging from apps taking up most of the CPU output and available RAM, to lack of free space on the hard drive or having too many auto-start items. 

To easily check for apps that are hogging up too much CPU power or RAM, use the built-in Activity Monitor tool. Go to your Applications folder, open Utilities, and start Activity Monitor. When the app launches, click 'View' in the Menu bar and select 'Windowed Processes.' Now, click on the CPU tab and look through the running processes for any that take up too much CPU usage. To close those processes, select each one and click on the 'X' button. After freeing up the CPU, move on to the Memory tab and repeat the process to clear up some RAM.  

If you have been using your Mac for a prolonged period of time without shutting it down or restarting, it may have resulted in the creation of massive temporary files that eat up the RAM. Restarting is not always a convenient option, so another method that achieves the same result is to use the Terminal app to clear the RAM. Just open Terminal, type the sudo purge command and press Enter. If prompted, input your admin password to confirm your decision. 

If you have noticed that your Mac is taking unusually long to become operational after booting up, it may be caused by having too many auto-start items that the system can't handle. To disable some of the apps set to automatically launch at login, start by going to 'System Preferences' followed by 'User & Groups.' Now, open 'Login Items' and you will be presented with a list of all apps set to start at system boot. Uncheck or delete any apps that you do not necessarily need.