Access your iCloud content on your Mac
iCloud helps you keep your most important information—like your photos, files, and more—safe, up to date, and available across all your devices. It’s built into every Apple device, and everyone gets 5 GB of storage to start. Purchases you make from the App Store, Apple TV app, Apple Books, or iTunes Store don’t count toward your available space. So if you have an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, just sign in on each device with your Apple ID, turn on iCloud, and you have everything you need. You can upgrade to iCloud if you need more storage and premium features including iCloud Private Relay, Hide My Email, Custom Email Domain, and HomeKit Secure Video support.
For system requirements about devices that support iCloud, see the Apple Support article System requirements for iCloud.
Automatically store your desktop and Documents folder in iCloud Drive. You can save files in your Documents folder or on your desktop, and they’re automatically available on iCloud Drive and accessible wherever you are. When working with iCloud Drive, you have access to files on your MacBook Air, on your iPhone or iPad in the Files app, on the web at iCloud.com, or on a Windows PC in the iCloud for Windows app. When you make changes to a file on a device or on iCloud Drive, you’ll see your edits wherever you view the file.
To get started, open System Settings, click on your Apple ID in the sidebar, click iCloud, then turn on iCloud Drive. To learn more, see Set up and use iCloud Drive on all your devices in the iCloud User Guide. Also see the Apple Support article Add your Desktop and Documents files to iCloud Drive.
Store and share photos. Store your photo library in iCloud and see your photos and videos, as well as the edits you make to them, on all your devices. To get started with iCloud Photos, open System Settings, click on your Apple ID in the side bar, click iCloud, then turn on Photos.
Use iCloud Shared Photo Library to share photos and videos with up to five other people. Everyone can make changes—like adding new content, making edits, or adding comments—to the shared library. Smart suggestions make it easy to add particular photos from your collection, such as photos featuring a specific person or taken on a certain date. To get started, go to Photos > Settings, click the Shared Library tab, and follow the onscreen instructions. To learn more about iCloud Photos, see Use iCloud Photos on iCloud.com in the iCloud User Guide.
Enjoy your purchases anywhere. When you’re signed in to your devices with the same Apple ID, purchases you’ve made on the App Store, Apple TV app, Apple Books, and iTunes Store are available at any time, no matter which computer or device you used to purchase them. So all your music, movies, books, and more are available wherever you go.
Locate your MacBook Air with Find My Mac. If your MacBook Air is missing and you have Find My Mac turned on, you can use Find My to locate it on a map, lock its screen, and even erase its data remotely. To turn on Find My Mac, open System Settings, click your Apple ID in the side bar, click iCloud, then turn on Find My Mac. See the Apple Support article If your Mac is lost or stolen.
Note: If your MacBook Air has multiple user accounts, only one can have Find My Mac turned on.
Do more with iCloud . iCloud is a subscription service that gives you all the storage tiers and sharing features of iCloud but with additional features. You can share any size iCloud storage plan through Family Sharing. iCloud also includes iCloud Private Relay, HomeKit Secure Video, and custom email domains for your Mail address on iCloud.com. Here’s what you get with an iCloud subscription:
Storage: 50 GB, 200 GB, or 2 TB of iCloud storage.
iCloud Private Relay: Private Relay is an internet privacy service that hides your IP address in Safari and protects your unencrypted traffic. When it’s on, you can browse the web with extra security and privacy.
Hide My Email: Create unique, random email addresses that forward to your personal inbox, so you can send and receive email without having to share your personal email address.
HomeKit Secure Video: Connect your home security cameras in the Home App to record your footage and view it from anywhere. It’s all end-to-end encrypted, and none of the video counts against your iCloud storage.
Custom email domains: Personalize your iCloud Mail address with a custom domain name. You can invite your family members to use the same domain with their iCloud Mail accounts.
Family Sharing: All iCloud plans can be shared with up to five family members, so everyone can enjoy all these features and included storage with a single subscription.
Learn more. See the iCloud User Guide and What is iCloud? in the macOS User Guide.