diff --git a/dvc/remote/local/__init__.py b/dvc/remote/local/__init__.py
index 311309261b..45b1e4bbe6 100644
--- a/dvc/remote/local/__init__.py
+++ b/dvc/remote/local/__init__.py
@@ -383,8 +383,12 @@ def status(
         return ret
 
     def _fill_statuses(self, checksum_info_dir, local_exists, remote_exists):
+        # Using sets because they are way faster for lookups
+        local = set(local_exists)
+        remote = set(remote_exists)
+
         for md5, info in checksum_info_dir.items():
-            status = STATUS_MAP[(md5 in local_exists, md5 in remote_exists)]
+            status = STATUS_MAP[(md5 in local, md5 in remote)]
             info["status"] = status
 
     def _get_chunks(self, download, remote, status_info, status, jobs):