Flare Scan

Free plan Mac

What Flare Scan is

Flare Scan is a free, open-source macOS app for examining disk use, memory use, and changes between storage scans. Select a folder or volume to explore it in interactive Sunburst or Treemap views, with file-type categories and rankings of the largest files. The app can scan external drives, identify exact duplicates, and flag review candidates larger than 100 MB that have not changed for 180 days. Save an optional local baseline to compare later scans and see which files appeared, grew, shrank, or disappeared. Memory Watch tracks app resident memory, process counts, session peaks and averages, last-hour trends, and approximate foreground time. Findings, categories, duplicates, scan issues, and available timeline changes can be exported as versioned JSON or CSV reports. Cleanup requires confirmation and containment checks, then sends selected items to macOS Trash. The project says it has no account, telemetry, cloud service, networking code, or third-party runtime dependencies. Optional baselines and hashes stay on the Mac; memory history lasts for the session. Flare Scan requires macOS 14 Sonoma or newer, and the checked-in build targets Apple Silicon.

Who it suits

Flare Scan suits Mac users who want visual storage breakdowns, file insights, or comparisons between saved scans. It also fits users who want session-level memory tracking and reports they can export as JSON or CSV.

What it does well

Interactive Sunburst and Treemap views show selected folders or volumes.
Scans external drives and breaks storage down by file type.
Compares later scans with an optional local baseline.
Memory Watch tracks session peaks, averages, and recent trends.
Cleanup sends selected items to macOS Trash after safeguards.
Exports versioned JSON or CSV reports.

What to know first

Requires macOS 14 Sonoma or newer.
The checked-in build targets Apple Silicon.
Duplicate analysis skips files smaller than 1 MB.
Baselines cover files of at least 1 MB, up to 50,000 entries.

Limits

Duplicate analysis skips files smaller than 1 MB. Baselines track files of at least 1 MB and up to 50,000 entries. The checked-in community DMG is ad-hoc signed and not Apple-notarized, and first launch may require choosing Open from the right-click menu.

Plans

Plan	Billed and limits	Price
Community build	macOS 14 Sonoma or newer · Apple Silicon for the checked-in artifact · MIT license	Free

As github.com lists them, read 11 Oct 2026. The maker's own page has the final word.

Getting started

Open the Flare Scan project on GitHub.
Use the checked-in community DMG on a Mac running macOS 14 Sonoma or newer.
On first launch, right-click the app and choose Open if macOS requires it.
Choose a folder, volume, or external drive to scan.
Review the visualizations and findings, and optionally save a baseline or export a report.

Verdict

Choose Flare Scan if you want a free Mac tool for visual storage analysis, scan comparisons, and session memory tracking. Look elsewhere if you need support for another operating system or want duplicate analysis to include files smaller than 1 MB.

Questions

Is Flare Scan free?

Yes. The Community build is listed as free.

Which Macs can run the checked-in build?

It requires macOS 14 Sonoma or newer, and the checked-in build targets Apple Silicon. Source builds target the host Mac.

Is Flare Scan open source?

Yes. The project is published under the MIT license.

Does it scan external drives?

Yes. It can scan external drives as well as selected files and folders.

What does the app do with scan data?

The project says it has no account, telemetry, cloud service, networking code, or third-party runtime dependencies. Optional storage baselines and hashes stay local to the Mac, while memory history stays in memory for the session.

Where can I get help?

The project invites users to open GitHub issues.

Facts from Flare Scan's own pages

Cleanup safeguards: Cleanup requires confirmation and containment checks, and sends selected items to macOS Trash rather than permanently deleting them. · github.com, 11 Oct 2026
Compatibility: The app requires macOS 14 Sonoma or newer, and the checked-in build targets Apple Silicon; source builds target the host Mac. · github.com, 11 Oct 2026
Disk visualizations: It displays selected folders or volumes as interactive Sunburst or Treemap views. · github.com, 11 Oct 2026
Distribution: The checked-in community DMG is ad-hoc signed and not Apple-notarized, and first launch may require right-clicking the app and choosing Open. · github.com, 11 Oct 2026
Exportable reports: Yes · github.com, 22 Sept 2026
Exports: Users can export versioned JSON or CSV reports containing findings, categories, duplicates, scan issues, and available timeline changes. · github.com, 11 Oct 2026
External drive scans: Yes · github.com, 22 Sept 2026
File insights: Features include largest-file rankings, storage categories, exact duplicate detection, and review candidates larger than 100 MB that have not changed for 180 days. · github.com, 11 Oct 2026
File-type breakdown: Yes · github.com, 22 Sept 2026
Free plan: Yes · github.com, 22 Sept 2026
Limits: Duplicate analysis skips files smaller than 1 MB, and baselines track files of at least 1 MB up to 50,000 entries. · github.com, 11 Oct 2026
Local data: Memory history stays in memory for the session, while optional storage baselines and hashes remain local to the Mac. · github.com, 11 Oct 2026
Memory Watch: Memory Watch tracks app resident memory, process counts, session peaks and averages, last-hour trends, and approximate foreground time. · github.com, 11 Oct 2026
Permissions: The app uses standard macOS user permissions without a privileged helper or administrator access, and macOS may deny access to protected paths. · github.com, 11 Oct 2026
Desktop platforms: macos · github.com, 22 Sept 2026
Privacy: The project states that it has no account, telemetry, cloud service, networking code, or third-party runtime dependencies. · github.com, 11 Oct 2026
Purpose: Flare Scan is a native, open-source macOS tool for understanding disk usage, memory use, and what changed between storage scans. · github.com, 11 Oct 2026
Scan scope: files_folders · github.com, 22 Sept 2026
Storage history: Users can save an opt-in local baseline and compare later scans to identify files that appeared, grew, shrank, or disappeared. · github.com, 11 Oct 2026
Support and project: The project invites users to open GitHub issues, is published under the MIT license, and credits © 2026 Umud Hasanli. · github.com, 11 Oct 2026
Treemap view: Yes · github.com, 22 Sept 2026

Where Flare Scan stands on Freedom251

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