What is photoanalysisd on a Mac, and why does it use CPU?
photoanalysisd builds Photos' Memories and People from your library. On our Mac, with a small library, it was not running at all. When it runs and why.
What is photoanalysisd?
It works on your Photos library itself: grouping people, building Memories, picking featured photos and suggestions. It uses what mediaanalysisd finds in each photo and organises the library around it. It runs as you, in the background, while the Mac is idle.
On our Mac, whose Pictures folder held only 38 MB, photoanalysisd was not running when we looked. It only has work when there is a library to organise.
Why is photoanalysisd using CPU?
- A large import or a first sync of iCloud Photos.
- A macOS update that changes how Memories or People are built.
- A big library being opened on a new Mac.
Can I stop it?
Quit it and macOS starts it again. Turning off features in Photos, Settings, such as Show Featured Content, reduces some of the work. The steady fix is letting it finish while the Mac is on charge. What it stores is covered in the Photos analysis cache, and the library itself in Photos library taking up space.
See it live
Free Mac's System tab ranks every process by processor use and energy impact, once a second, and marks the ones macOS will not let you quit as protected. See also mediaanalysisd.
Related: the bird process and cloudd.
Common questions
What is photoanalysisd on a Mac?
A Photos process that builds Memories, People and featured photos by organising what is in your library.
Why is photoanalysisd using CPU?
It is processing new or changed photos, usually after an import, an update or a first iCloud Photos sync.
Is photoanalysisd always running?
No. On our Mac, with a tiny library, it was not running at all. It starts when there is work.