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What is corespotlightd on Mac? Why it uses so much CPU, and how to fix it

Updated · 2 min read · by

Quick answer

corespotlightd is the service that indexes content apps share with Spotlight, like emails, notes and messages. It's busiest after updates and when an app adds lots of items. Short spikes are normal. If it stays high, something is keeping it busy, and the steps below find and fix it.

What is corespotlightd?

corespotlightd runs Core Spotlight, which lets apps add their own content to Spotlight search. Mail messages, notes, messages and items from many third-party apps reach Spotlight through it, separately from the files that mds_stores indexes.

It mostly works in short bursts. It gets busy when an app hands over a lot of items at once.

Why is corespotlightd using so much CPU?

How to fix high corespotlightd CPU usage

  1. Confirm it in Activity Monitor. Press ⌘ Space, type Activity Monitor, open the CPU tab and sort by % CPU. Watch corespotlightd for a minute: short spikes are normal, only steady high usage needs fixing.
  2. Let it finish while plugged in. It settles once the backlog is indexed.
  3. Wait for big imports to complete, such as a new mail account downloading.
  4. Find a misbehaving app. If it stays busy for days, quit apps one at a time and update the one that makes it stop.
  5. Restart to clear a stuck index job.

More help: Mac slow after an update

Questions people ask

What is corespotlightd on a Mac?

corespotlightd is the service that indexes content apps share with Spotlight, like emails, notes and messages. It's busiest after updates and when an app adds lots of items.

Can I quit corespotlightd?

It restarts automatically when apps need it. Letting the backlog finish is the fix.

Is corespotlightd a virus?

Yes. corespotlightd is part of Spotlight in macOS.