Spotlight problems

Fixing one folder's index

Updated 2026-07-31 · 3 min read

When one folder's results are wrong, rebuilding the whole disk is a sledgehammer. There is a scalpel.

The command

mdimport ~/Documents/Projects

Re-imports everything under that path — seconds to minutes for a folder, versus hours for a volume. No sudo needed for your own files.

Verify what the index holds

Before and after, ask what Spotlight knows about a specific file:

mdls ~/Documents/Projects/report.pdf

mdls prints every indexed attribute. A file that is truly missing from the index prints nothing useful — the clearest possible before/after test.

Testing a specific importer

If one file type is the problem (some app's documents stopped being searchable):

mdimport -t -d2 ~/Documents/sample.thatformat 2>&1 | head -30

-t -d2 shows which importer plugin claimed the file and the attributes it extracted — or reveals that none did, which means the app's importer is missing or broken. Reinstalling the app usually restores its importer; then re-import the affected folders.

Reload the importer list itself

After installing or updating apps whose importers seem ignored:

mdimport -r /Library/Spotlight/SomeImporter.mdimporter

or list all importers macOS knows:

mdimport -L

When the scalpel is not enough

If targeted re-imports keep failing across many folders, the store itself is damaged — that is the case the full rebuild (sudo mdutil -E /) exists for. Try the folder-level fix first; most 'Spotlight is broken' reports are one path, not the whole index.

Common questions

How do I refresh Spotlight for one folder?

mdimport /path/to/folder re-imports it in seconds. mdls on a file confirms the result.

How can I see all installed Spotlight importers?

mdimport -L lists every importer plugin macOS is using.