Telegram Files: Saved Where on Mac?

Here’s where Telegram saves files on your Mac and how to delete them:

When it comes to Telegram files on your Mac, they will be saved in a few locations. 

Most are in the following location: 

~/library/Group Containers/6N38VWS5BX.ru.keepcoder.Telegram. 

If you want to delete things, you can move them from that folder to the trash, or you can delete downloaded items from the downloads folder.

So if you want to learn all about Telegram’s files on a Mac, then this article is for you.

Let’s get started!

Telegram Files: Saved Where on Mac? (How to Delete?)

What Is the Deal With Telegram?

Telegram is a hybrid between a messaging app and a social media app. 

It allows for many forms of direct communication between users (like chats, sharing videos, etc.), and it has resources for large-scale outreach (similar to the Twitter experience).

A few things make Telegram appealing to a lot of users. 

One is the commitment to privacy. 

According to Telegram, the company has never shared private data with any third party. 

That’s a pretty big statement in the world of social media and major tech companies.

Another is security. 

Telegram offers encrypted services, basically vowing to protect your conversations and data as rigorously as possible without sacrificing the user experience. 

It’s hard to say that Telegram is more secure than other messaging apps, but it definitely doesn’t skimp on security.

Ultimately, Telegram is easy to use, fast, secure, and private.

That’s enough for the many millions of users who participate on the platform.

How Does Telegram File Saving Work on Mac?

Now that you know a little more about Telegram, we can get into some of the technical details of how it works. 

Like any app, it has to save files on your Mac in order to function. 

On top of that, it allows you to manually or automatically download content from the platform so that you can access it as you see fit.

As an example, if someone sends you a picture that you like, you can download the picture. 

When you do, you gain access to that picture even if your Mac is offline.

To understand file saving through Telegram, we have to look at these functions separately.

When it comes to system files and automatic saves, Telegram looks a lot like any other app on your Mac. 

It will create a folder in your System Library that houses most of the critical, operational software.

It will also create a folder in your user library that houses your preferences. 

Automatically saved information will also be in the Telegram folder in your user library.

If, however, you manually download information, then things are a little different. 

By default, Telegram will put these files in your downloads folder.

So, this will be like downloading anything else from the internet. 

You can highlight a picture (or any other content) and choose to save it. 

When you do, it will go to the downloads folder, and you can access it as you like.

You can also change where Telegram saves these items. To do that, you’ll need to access the preferences in the Telegram app. 

Specifically, load Telegram. 

While it is the active app (it should say “Telegram” next to the Apple symbol in the top left of your screen), you can click on “Preferences.” 

From there, you are looking for “Data and Storage.” Depending on your Telegram version, you might have to go through “Advanced” before you will see “Data and Storage.”

In the Data and Storage settings, you will have multiple options.

Among these, you can choose how Telegram saves files (I’ll be coming back to this a little later).

How Do You Delete the Telegram Files? (2 Things)

We’ve covered Telegram and how it manages files pretty well at this point. 

Moving forward, I’ll show you how you can actually delete things that you don’t want to keep on your Mac.

Before that, it’s probably important to explain how Telegram uses the cloud. 

By default, all Telegram conversations are saved on cloud servers (there are exceptions for secret chats, but those aren’t currently available on Macs). 

So, if you delete things from your Mac, they will still be saved on the cloud.

Deleting things from the Telegram cloud servers requires you to use the Telegram app. 

Here’s how:

  • Open the Telegram app on your phone.
  • Go to the chat where you want to delete the media from.
  • Tap and hold the media you want to delete.
  • Tap on the trash bin icon in the top right corner of the screen when the checkmark on the left side of the file is green.
  • Select Also delete for … (name of the contact), if you wish to delete the file for both of you.
  • Tap Delete.

It’s also possible to delete a single message when it comes to media by tapping on the three-dot icon in the top right corner of the file or simply tapping on it. 

You’ll see a pop-up window.

Tap Delete to confirm.

When it comes to deleting files from your Mac, you want to clear the Cache or manually delete them from your downloads folder.

#1 Clear the Cache

One way to control Telegram files is to clear your cache. 

You can do this from the preferences you were managing in an earlier section. 

Among the “Data and Storage” settings, there is an option to “manage local storage.” This pulls up a checklist that you can manually control.

Anything on this list with a checkmark next to it will be cleared out when you finalize the process. 

You can clear everything or some things as you see fit. 

Doing this eliminates a lot of automatically saved Telegram data, and it can free up space on your Mac.

You can also manually clear the cache.

To do this, you need to navigate to your user library. This library is hidden by default on a Mac, so there’s a trick to it. 

Open up Finder (it should say “Finder” next to the Apple at the top left of your screen). 

Click on “Go” on the menu bar at the top of your screen.

This should bring down the menu. 

If you look at the menu, you won’t see an option that says “Library.” 

That’s because it’s still hidden.

To reveal the library on this list, you need to hold the “option” key. 

If you hold it and then let go, you will see the library appear and disappear according to how you use the key.

So, holding the option key down, click on the library choice in this menu. This will open a Finder box with your user library. 

There’s going to be a lot of stuff here. 

You’re looking for something called “group containers.” 

Open that folder, and you’ll see a new long list of folders. 

You want one that ends with “Telegram.” 

The first part of the folder name will be a serial number. You can ignore that.

If it ends with “Telegram,” it’s the right one.

You can open that folder, and then you’ll see more content. 

You can manually delete anything in this folder, or you can delete all of it. 

Anything you want to remove can be dragged into the trash.

That’s all it takes.

#2 Delete the Old-Fashioned Way

When it comes to your individually downloaded items, you have to manage those yourself. 

So, open up your downloads folder. 

You can do this through the Finder app, or you can click on “downloads” at the bottom right of your screen.

Either way, this will pull up all of your downloads. 

You’ll have to browse through them to find anything you downloaded from Telegram. 

If you see anything you want to get rid of, simply drag it into the trash.

By doing this, you can manage your downloads and get rid of stuff you don’t want.

Author

  • Theresa McDonough

    Tech entrepreneur and founder of Tech Medic, who has become a prominent advocate for the Right to Repair movement. She has testified before the US Federal Trade Commission and been featured on CBS Sunday Morning, helping influence change within the tech industry.