Where apps hide your files

Finding Minecraft worlds and mods on macOS

Updated 2026-10-28 · 6 min read

Minecraft on a Mac stores worlds, mods and settings in a hidden Library folder, not in Documents. Here is the path and what to do with it.

The folder

For Minecraft Java Edition on a Mac, everything lives in one hidden folder:

~/Library/Application Support/minecraft

Worlds are in saves, mods in mods, resource packs in resourcepacks:

~/Library/Application Support/minecraft/saves
~/Library/Application Support/minecraft/mods
~/Library/Application Support/minecraft/resourcepacks

Note the lowercase minecraft with no leading dot. The Minecraft Wiki, which documents the game directory, gives ~/Library/Application Support/minecraft for macOS; the dotted .minecraft name is what Windows and Linux use, and a Mac has no ~/.minecraft.

Opening it

1. In Finder choose Go > Go to Folder (⇧⌘G).
2. Paste ~/Library/Application Support/minecraft and press Return.

Or in Terminal: open ~/Library/Application\ Support/minecraft. In the Minecraft Launcher, the Installations tab has a folder icon next to each installation that opens its game directory, but the Finder route works even when the launcher will not start.

What is inside

Name	What it holds
saves/	One folder per world. Each contains level.dat, the region files, playerdata and more.
mods/	Mod .jar files. It is created by the mod loader (Forge, Fabric or NeoForge) or by you.
resourcepacks/	Resource packs, as .zip files or folders.
shaderpacks/	Shader packs, if you use a shader mod. Also created by that mod.
screenshots/	Pictures taken with F2 (fn-F2 on many Mac keyboards).
logs/, crash-reports/	latest.log and dated logs, plus crash reports.
versions/	One folder per installed game version.
libraries/, assets/	Files the game downloads for itself, including sound and language data.
options.txt	Your settings and key bindings.
launcher_profiles.json	Your launcher installations.
backups/	Zip backups made with the game's Make Backup button, once you have made one.

mods may not exist on a fresh install. If it does not, create a folder with exactly that name once a mod loader is installed. Do not hand-edit files in versions or libraries.

Adding and removing mods

Install the loader first (Fabric, Forge or NeoForge), run the game once so it builds its folders, then drop mod .jar files into mods. Two things catch people out. Each mod is built for a specific Minecraft version and loader, so a Fabric mod does not load under Forge, and a mod built for one game version usually will not load on another. And a mod that needs another mod will fail to start without it, so read its description for dependencies.

To disable a mod, move its file out of mods instead of deleting it. If the game crashes at launch, start there and read logs/latest.log or the newest file in crash-reports. Treat those logs as private when you ask for help online and check them for anything personal first.

Backing up a world

Worlds are plain folders, so a backup is a copy.

1. Quit Minecraft completely so the world is not being written.
2. In Finder open saves and copy the world's folder (for example New World) somewhere safe, or compress it for a zip.
3. To restore, put the folder back in saves.

The game also has a built-in route: in the world list, select the world, click Edit, then Make Backup. According to the Minecraft Wiki this writes a zip to the backups folder, named with the date, time and world folder name, and Open Backups Folder on the same screen takes you there. To share a world, zip its folder and send that.

One trap: renaming a world in the game changes only its display name. The folder in saves keeps the name the world was created with, so look for that.

Space and safe cleanup

Worlds and versions take the room. A world grows as you explore, because each new region of terrain is written to disk, and a long-lived survival world can reach hundreds of megabytes or more.

• Safe to remove, after quitting the game: old logs, crash-reports, screenshots you have copied elsewhere, and old folders inside versions. Minecraft downloads a version again when you pick it in the launcher.
• Never delete without a copy: saves, options.txt and mods if you have collected a particular set.
• Be careful with launcher files about your account, such as launcher_msa_credentials.json. They relate to your Microsoft sign-in, so never share them or attach them to bug reports.

Use the Trash rather than Terminal. Deleting an installation in the launcher's Installations tab removes that entry; the version's files in versions can stay behind until you remove them.

Moving the game folder

In the launcher, open Installations and edit an installation (the setting may sit under More Options). Its Game directory field, with a Browse button, points that installation at a different folder. That is how you keep one set of mods per installation, or put a big world collection on an external drive. Copy the existing contents there first. Third-party launchers such as Prism or MultiMC keep their own separate instance folders, so check their settings for where they put worlds.

Other editions

Java Edition is the version with the folders above. The Bedrock version is not sold for Mac, and Minecraft Education has its own app and data location, which this guide does not cover. If your folder looks different, check which edition you run.

Why Spotlight shows nothing

~/Library is excluded from Spotlight results, so a search for your world's name finds nothing even though the folder is there. Go to Folder or the launcher's folder icon are the usual ways in.

Finding it again

In Everywhere, type the world's original name, or level.dat to list every world on the Mac at once, and the matching folders inside minecraft appear straight away. Worlds in a custom game directory on an external drive are included once Everywhere has Full Disk Access. Press ⌘↵ to reveal one in Finder. Everywhere only matches names, so it will not look inside a mod or a log for words.

Common questions

Where is the Minecraft folder on a Mac?

Java Edition keeps everything in ~/Library/Application Support/minecraft. Press ⇧⌘G in Finder and paste that path, as Library is hidden.

Where do I put mods in Minecraft on a Mac?

Put the mod .jar files in ~/Library/Application Support/minecraft/mods, after installing a mod loader such as Fabric, Forge or NeoForge. Create the folder if it does not exist.

How do I back up a Minecraft world on Mac?

Quit the game, then copy the world's folder from the saves directory to somewhere safe. Restore it by putting the folder back in saves.

Is there a .minecraft folder on a Mac?

No. On macOS the game directory is called minecraft, without the dot, and sits in ~/Library/Application Support.