macOS Finder Not Responding — Frozen Finder Fix

What Does This Error Mean?

When Finder is not responding on your Mac, the desktop, folder windows, and file navigation all stop working. Finder is the app that manages the macOS desktop and file browsing — it is always running in the background. It can freeze due to a corrupted preference file, a network drive that stopped responding, too many files in one folder, or low disk space. Restarting Finder usually fixes it in seconds.

Affected Models

MacBook Air
MacBook Pro
iMac
Mac Mini
Mac Pro
Mac Studio

Common Causes

A network drive or external disk that Finder is trying to access is not responding
The Finder preferences file (com.apple.finder.plist) has become corrupted
A folder contains an extremely large number of files that is taking too long to load
macOS is very low on RAM or disk space, causing Finder to hang waiting for resources
A recent macOS update introduced a bug affecting Finder stability

How to Fix It

Force quit and relaunch Finder immediately. Press Command + Option + Escape to open Force Quit Applications. Select Finder and click Relaunch. Finder will restart in a few seconds.

Unlike other apps, Finder cannot be fully quit — relaunch is always the option shown instead of Force Quit.
Disconnect any network drives or external disks. If Finder froze when you tried to access a network location or external drive, eject all external volumes. Use the keyboard shortcut Command + Option + Escape to force quit Finder, then relaunch it.

A network drive that went offline is one of the most common causes of Finder hanging. Disconnecting it immediately frees Finder.
Delete the Finder preferences file. Open Finder (force relaunch if needed), then press Command + Shift + G to open Go to Folder. Type: ~/Library/Preferences/ and press Enter. Find and delete com.apple.finder.plist — then relaunch Finder.

A fresh preferences file is rebuilt automatically. This fixes hangs caused by corrupted Finder settings.
Free up disk space if the startup disk is nearly full. Go to Apple menu > About This Mac > More Info (or System Settings > General > Storage). Delete large files you no longer need to get the disk below 90% capacity.

macOS needs free disk space to run Finder and all other apps reliably. Less than 10–15 GB free can cause persistent Finder issues.
Restart your Mac. Apple menu > Restart. A full restart clears system caches, frees RAM, and resolves most transient Finder problems.

If Finder freezes regularly, note what you were doing right before it froze. The pattern will help identify the specific trigger.

When to Call a Professional

Finder issues are almost always fixable without professional help. If Finder freezes constantly after trying all fixes, and you have already reinstalled macOS, contact Apple Support.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does Finder always seem to freeze when I access a network folder?

Finder tries to connect to network locations synchronously — meaning it waits for a response before doing anything else. If the network drive is slow, offline, or having trouble, Finder sits and waits, which looks like a freeze. As soon as the connection times out or you disconnect the network drive, Finder becomes responsive again. The solution is to disconnect network drives when not in use, or map them using a more resilient connection method.

Finder keeps crashing after every restart. What is wrong?

Recurring Finder crashes usually point to a corrupted preference file or a problematic folder that Finder opens at startup. Delete the com.apple.finder.plist file as described above. Also check if Finder is set to open a specific folder at startup — go to Finder > Settings (or Preferences) and change 'New Finder windows show' to 'Desktop' or 'Home' to avoid problematic startup folders.

Can a bad external drive cause Finder to freeze?

Yes, absolutely. If an external drive is failing or has file system errors, Finder can hang indefinitely while trying to read the drive's directory. Eject the drive using the Eject button in Finder's sidebar before disconnecting it. Run First Aid on the drive using Disk Utility to check for and repair errors.