Where apps hide your files
The TV app keeps its library database and your imported videos under Movies, while protected store downloads are handled by the app itself. This explains what is where and how to locate any one file.
The TV app's library and your imported videos live in your Movies folder:
~/Movies/TV/A typical TV folder holds three items:
~/Movies/TV/TV Library.tvlibrary
~/Movies/TV/Media.localized/
~/Movies/TV/Previous Libraries.localized/If you open the TV app and go to Library > Downloaded, the quickest route to any single file is to select it, click the ⋯ (More) button and choose Show in Finder. The command is part of the TV app on Sequoia, though it may not be offered for every kind of item. When it is, it reveals where the file really is, whatever the setting.
One caveat: films bought or rented from Apple are protected and managed by the app. Apple does not document where the data of a protected download is kept, so use Show in Finder and the removal options described below rather than trusting a path from a forum thread.
| Item | What it is |
|---|---|
TV Library.tvlibrary | A package holding the library database (.tvdb files) and a preferences plist. It records what is in your library and where files are. Leave it alone. |
Media.localized | The Media folder. Home movies and files you add yourself are stored inside it. The .localized suffix only makes Finder show a translated name. |
Media.localized/Home Videos | Where files you import from your own collection land, when the app is set to copy them. |
Media.localized/Automatically Add to TV.localized | A drop folder. Files put here are imported by the app on its own. |
Previous Libraries.localized | Dated copies of older library databases, named like TV Library [2025-05-07 15.04.51].tvlibrary. |
The library package is small: about 16 KB on the Mac checked for this article, with the whole Previous Libraries folder at about 56 KB. The weight is in the media itself, and a collection of downloaded films is where the gigabytes go.
The location is a setting, not something you edit in Finder. Open the TV app, choose TV > Settings (older macOS releases call it Preferences), and go to the Files tab. Apple's guide describes these options there:
Changing the folder affects what the app does from then on. Files already in the old place stay there. Rather than dragging them across in Finder, which can leave the library pointing at the old paths, use File > Library > Organize Library and tick Consolidate files: the app's own description says this copies the files into the Media folder, leaving the originals where they were for you to trash once everything plays. Apple's guide adds that holding ⌥ while you drag a file into the app temporarily reverses the copy setting, which is handy when you want to link a file rather than duplicate it.
Anything you added yourself is an ordinary file in Media.localized. Copy it out in Finder. For clips you want to keep outside the library, that is the simplest backup.
Protected store purchases are different. They are copy protected and tied to your Apple Account, so a copied file is not a useful backup. The supported route is to keep the purchase in your account and download it again on the new Mac, with the same Apple Account signed in.
Do not trash files out of TV Library.tvlibrary to save space. There is nothing worth reclaiming in it, and a damaged database can leave the library looking empty. The Previous Libraries.localized folder is a set of fallbacks if the current library ever misbehaves. It is tiny, so leave it unless you have a specific reason.
For your own imported files, copy the whole ~/Movies/TV folder to the same place on the new Mac, with the TV app closed on both. For anything bought from Apple, sign in with the same Apple Account on the new Mac and redownload. Migration Assistant also carries the Movies folder when you move the whole user account.
Before Catalina, video on the Mac lived in iTunes, and its files went in the iTunes media folder inside Music. If you upgraded from that era and still have ~/Music/iTunes/iTunes Media/Movies, your older purchases and imports may be there rather than in the folder above. Check the Files settings to see which folder the app is using today.
Files in ~/Movies/TV are in ordinary user space, so Spotlight indexes the videos you imported. The .tvlibrary package is a package, so Spotlight does not look inside it, and anything the app keeps in ~/Library is left out of results too.
Once Everywhere has Full Disk Access (macOS protects the Movies folder), type TV Library or Home Videos to jump straight to these folders, or .tvlibrary to find every TV library database on the Mac, including the dated ones in Previous Libraries. ⌘↵ reveals the result in Finder. It matches names only, so for a video you imported, search for the file name rather than a title shown in the app.
Your TV library and imported videos are under ~/Movies/TV. For a specific download, select it in Library > Downloaded, click the More button and choose Show in Finder, since Apple does not document where protected store downloads are kept.
Open TV > Settings (Preferences on older macOS) and go to the Files tab, where you can change the Media folder location. It applies to new files; to bring existing ones across, use File > Library > Organize Library with Consolidate files.
There is no need to. Purchases are protected and tied to your Apple Account, so the supported route is to sign in on the other Mac and download the film again.
It holds dated copies of older library databases and is tiny, so deleting it saves almost nothing. Leave it unless you have a reason, and quit the TV app before moving anything.
Everywhere keeps track of every file on your Mac — including the folders Spotlight hides and drives you have unplugged. Free for a day, then $19 once.
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