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Where downloaded Mac voices live

Updated 2026-10-28 · 6 min read

Downloaded voices are stored as system assets under /System/Library/AssetsV2, which macOS protects. You manage them in System Settings, not in Finder, and this page shows where to look and how to check the space.

The location

Voices are not kept in your home folder. On recent macOS releases they are system assets, stored here:

/System/Library/AssetsV2

Inside it, each kind of asset has its own folder named com_apple_MobileAsset_..., and a downloaded asset is a folder ending .asset with a long hexadecimal name. The folders that matter for speech include:

com_apple_MobileAsset_TTSAXResourceModelAssets
com_apple_MobileAsset_VoiceServices_*
com_apple_MobileAsset_VoiceServicesVocalizerVoice
com_apple_MobileAsset_MacinTalkVoiceAssets
com_apple_MobileAsset_UAF_Siri_TextToSpeech
com_apple_MobileAsset_Trial_Siri_SiriTextToSpeech

Which folder a voice you download lands in depends on the voice type and the macOS version, and Apple does not publish a mapping, so look at which folders have grown rather than expecting one fixed path. Apple names no per-voice file you are meant to open.

To list the speech folders without changing anything:

ls /System/Library/AssetsV2 | grep -i -E "voice|speech|tts|macintalk"

What was on the Mac used for this guide

On macOS 15.6, with no extra voices downloaded, the folders looked like this:

Folder	What it held
TTSAXResourceModelAssets	About 158 MB: compact voice data with names such as enu_samantha_embedded-compact_...dat and eng_daniel_..., plus short .caf audio files named after each voice, which look like the preview samples
Trial_Siri_SiriTextToSpeech	Three .asset folders, about 360 MB in all, with Siri speech models that macOS fetched by itself
VoiceServices_*, VoiceServicesVocalizerVoice, MacinTalkVoiceAssets	Only small .xml catalogue files, a few hundred kilobytes in all

So even the voices that come with macOS appear under AssetsV2, and an .asset folder is not necessarily a voice you chose. To see sizes, which is a read-only command:

du -sh /System/Library/AssetsV2/com_apple_MobileAsset_*Voice* /System/Library/AssetsV2/com_apple_MobileAsset_TTS* /System/Library/AssetsV2/*Siri_TextToSpeech 2>/dev/null

The synthesizer and the older folders

The one synthesizer bundle in the system Speech folder is /System/Library/Speech/Synthesizers/MacinTalk.SpeechSynthesizer, part of macOS itself and, going by its name, the engine behind Apple's older MacinTalk voices. There is also an empty /Library/Speech/Synthesizers for third-party engines.

Older macOS versions kept voices in /System/Library/Speech/Voices and /Library/Speech/Voices. Neither folder exists on the Mac used for this guide, so on current releases look in AssetsV2 instead.

To see every voice installed, run:

say -v '?'

The say man page documents '?' as the voice name that lists the voices installed in the system. It prints each name, its language and a sample sentence, then exits.

How to add or remove voices

Use System Settings. The pane's name and the buttons changed between releases:

macOS	Where	Add	Remove
Sonoma 14	Accessibility > Spoken Content	System voice pop-up > Manage Voices, then the Download button	Trash button beside the voice in Manage Voices
Sequoia 15	Accessibility > Spoken Content	Info button next to System voice, click a voice name, then Download	Same list: swipe left on the voice, then Delete
Tahoe 26	Accessibility > Read & Speak	Info button next to System voice, click a voice name, then Download	Same list: swipe left with two fingers, then Delete

A download needs an internet connection, and Apple notes that a voice isn't available until the download finishes. Then choose it from the System voice pop-up. If your release does not match the table, search System Settings for "System voice".

Some voices offer no Delete option. Users in Apple's community forums report that certain default Siri voices could not be removed on Sequoia. If a voice has no Delete option, that is how the system treats it; there is no supported way to remove its files by hand.

Space and what not to touch

Download size depends on the voice, and Apple does not list sizes. System Settings > General > Storage shows the totals on your Mac, and the du line above shows the speech folders.

/System/Library/AssetsV2 is protected by System Integrity Protection: on the Mac used for this guide it carries the restricted flag, so you cannot delete its contents by hand even with sudo. That is intentional, and it is why Settings is the only supported way to free space. Do not disable SIP for this.

The same folder holds many unrelated assets (dictionaries, language models, update catalogues), and it measured about 28 GB on the Mac used for this guide, so a big total there does not mean voices are using it.

Backing up or moving to a new Mac

Apple's voices are downloaded from Apple, so on a new Mac you repeat the download in Settings. Note which voice you used and your speaking rate, since those are settings you will set again.

A Personal Voice, the one you record yourself, is different: it is made on your device, not downloaded. Its settings offer Share Across Devices (iCloud) and Export Voice Recordings, which are the supported ways to keep it.

Why a normal search misses them

/System/Library/AssetsV2 is a system folder that Finder and Spotlight searches leave out, and the .asset folders have hexadecimal names, so a search for "Samantha" will not lead you to the files.

Finding the voice folders again

Typing TextToSpeech, VoiceServices or TTSAX into Everywhere finds the speech asset folders in AssetsV2, so after a download you can check which one has grown. It searches names only, so a voice's own name will not match a hexadecimal .asset folder, though it can match a file inside, such as samantha. Press ⌘↵ to reveal a result in Finder.

Common questions

Where are downloaded voices stored on a Mac?

In /System/Library/AssetsV2, in com_apple_MobileAsset_... folders such as TTSAXResourceModelAssets, VoiceServices and Siri TextToSpeech, as .asset folders with hexadecimal names. Older macOS used /System/Library/Speech/Voices.

How do I delete a voice on a Mac?

On Sequoia, open System Settings > Accessibility > Spoken Content, click the Info button next to System voice, swipe left on the voice and click Delete. Tahoe calls the pane Read & Speak, and Sonoma uses Manage Voices with a Trash button.

Can I delete the voice files in Finder?

No. /System/Library/AssetsV2 carries the restricted flag, so System Integrity Protection blocks deletion even with sudo. Use System Settings.

How do I list every voice my Mac has?

Run say -v '?' in Terminal. It prints each installed voice with its language and a sample sentence.