RELATED: How to Force Quit Applications on Your Mac When They're Not Responding Some “cleaning” programs - like the Mac version of CCleaner - can remove temporary files and free up space, but they won’t make your Mac perform faster. Stay away from programs that promise to “optimize” your Mac and make it run faster. As with a Windows PC, there are many reasons a Mac might be slow. If your Mac seems to be running slower than it should, the variety of tips here should help you identify and fix the problem.