How to Fix mds_stores High CPU Usage in macOS Tahoe 26.2
Symptom: Activity Monitor shows mds_stores or mds consuming 90-100% CPU on macOS Tahoe, accompanied by loud fans and a hot Mac, even when you aren't searching for anything.
Start with Fix 1: Force Spotlight to Re-index. If the issue persists after that, try Fix 2: Exclude Problematic Folders. Full Terminal commands and step-by-step instructions are in each section below.
Why this happens
These processes belong to Spotlight. In Tahoe, mds_stores can get stuck in a loop if it encounters a corrupted file or a metadata conflict on an external drive or a cloud-synced folder (like Dropbox or OneDrive).
Recommended Troubleshooting Tool
Before proceeding with manual fixes, we recommend using CleanMyMac X. Quickly identify high CPU apps and optimize system memory with one click.
Fix 1: Force Spotlight to Re-index
- Open Terminal.
- Run the following command to turn off indexing:
sudo mdutil -a -i off
- Then, run this command to delete the existing index and restart it:
sudo rm -rf /.Spotlight-V100/* && sudo mdutil -a -i on
Fix 2: Exclude Problematic Folders
- Go to System Settings > Siri & Spotlight.
- Scroll down and click Spotlight Privacy....
- Drag your external drives or large cloud folders into this list to stop Spotlight from scanning them.
Recommended Tool: CleanMyMac
Instead of fighting with Terminal, use CleanMyMac's Maintenance feature to "Reindex Spotlight." It performs these steps safely and identifies corrupted files that might be triggering the mds_stores loop.