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Viber on a Mac saves media twice over: in its data folder and in a downloads folder

Viber for desktop keeps chat media in its own data folder and saves files to a downloads folder. Where both are, and how to trim them.

4 min read

Viber on the Mac syncs your chats with your phone and keeps a copy of media locally. It also has a downloads folder where files and some media land. Both grow without limits.

Where it keeps things

# Size of each place this app keeps data
du -sh ~/Library/Application\ Support/ViberPC 2>/dev/null
du -sh ~/Documents/ViberDownloads 2>/dev/null

Folder names change between versions. If a path above shows nothing, this finds anything with the app's name in your Library:

find ~/Library ~/Documents -maxdepth 2 -iname '*viber*' -exec du -sh {} + 2>/dev/null

What to clear

PlaceSafe to clear?
Downloads folderYes, after saving what you want
Media cache inside the data folderYes, from Viber's settings
The chat databaseNo, that is your message history on this Mac
  1. Open the downloads folder in Finder, sort by size and delete what you no longer need.
  2. In Viber, open Settings and look under Media or Privacy for options to clear media or stop automatic downloads.
  3. Turn off automatic media download on the desktop so large videos only download when you open them.

Other chat apps: LINE, Signal Desktop, Discord.

Common questions

Where does Viber store files on a Mac?

Chat data in ~/Library/Application Support/ViberPC, and saved files in a ViberDownloads folder, usually inside Documents.

How do I stop Viber filling my Mac?

Turn off automatic media download in Viber's settings and clear the downloads folder regularly.

Will deleting ViberDownloads delete my chats?

No. It only removes saved files. Your message history is kept in Viber's data folder.

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