How To Properly Unintall Apps On Mac
The process of uninstalling the apps on Mac is pretty different from that of Windows. Unlike Windows, there are several Mac software which do not get deleted easily. What happens in Windows system is that the installer wizards are used to install software and the same method is followed to uninstall the same. So, uninstalling software in Windows is taken care of by the automated programs which is not the case in Mac systems. Mac systems make use of the Unix way of separating the files on the system from the working space of users. By just dragging the files to the Trash folder, it should get deleted. However, there are certain software that cannot be deleted this way. Through this article, you will get to know how to uninstall apps on Mac completely and correctly.
There are a few free ways mentioned here which you can explore to carry out this process of deletion. Although these methods are free, there are certain drawbacks which come with this including the presence of leftover files, difficulty in removing certain apps etc. So, if you want to completely remove an app or a software in bulk, you must opt for Umate Mac Cleaner for better results.
How To Properly Uninstall Apps On Mac
Way 1: Delete Applications on Mac with App Uninstaller
If in case you have downloaded an app on your Mac system from the internet or from a disk, it can be removed easily by using the following method. Follow the steps below to uninstall apps on Mac using app uninstaller.
- Uninstalling an app on a Mac OS may seem elementary – move an app from the Applications folder to the Trash, clear the Trash, and then forget about it.But traces and remnants of the uninstalled app can still hang around out of sight, out of mind in several recesses of your Mac.
- This article was co-authored by Chiara Corsaro.Chiara Corsaro is the General Manager and Apple Certified Mac & iOS Technician for macVolks, Inc., an Apple Authorized Service Provider located in the San Francisco Bay Area. Was founded in 1990, is accredited by the Better Business Bureau (BBB) with an A+ rating, and is part of the Apple Consultants Network (ACN).
- It is generally believed that uninstalling software on Mac OS X is simple and straightforward - you can just remove apps from the Applications folder; or drag-n-drop a program to Trash; for the application downloaded from App Store, you can directly uninstall it from LaunchPad.
- Here are the quick methods and steps to remove, delete, or uninstall the unwanted installed applications or programs from a Mac computer fully. Check out below There are 3 ways to delete applications on Mac, 1 - using the apps icon, 2 - using the application uninstaller, and 3 – using drag and drop in trash.
Click on the 'Finder' icon on your Mac system and select 'Applications' from the Finder sidebar.
- If in case the app is a folder, open the folder and click on 'Uninstall [App name]' or '[App name] uninstaller' and then follow the instructions on-screen.
This is one of the ways which you can use to know how to delete applications on Mac, provided the app uninstaller is present.
Uninstall Apps Using the Trash Can. The easiest way to uninstall an app or program from your Mac is by using the trash can located on the Dock.Drag the application from wherever it is located on your Mac and drop it on the trash can.
Way 2: Uninstall Applications on Mac by Emptying Trash
If in case the app which you want to install does not have an app uninstaller, you can make use of this method to know how to uninstall applications on Mac.
- From the dock, launch 'Finder' and click on 'Applications'.
Once you find the application, remove application from Mac, either you can drag it to the 'Trash' folder or you can even select 'File' and click on the option 'Move to Trash'.
From the dock, click and hold the 'Trash' icon and select 'Empty Trash' from the popup menu.
Doing this will delete all the content in the trash folder including the app which you wanted to uninstall!
Way 3: Uninstall Purchased Apps using Launchpad
Launchpad is a centralized location on your Mac system where you can see or open any file installed on your system. You can use the following method to remove or uninstall any app from here.
- Launch Launchpad and browse through the contents to find the purchased app which you wish to uninstall.
- Click on this app and hold it for a while until you see it jiggling.
Once this happens, you can see an'x' option appear on top of every app, click on it to uninstall the app of your choice.
Install Umate Mac Cleaner on your system and launch it.
From the main interface, click on 'Manage Apps & Extensions' and then 'Uninstall Applications'.
This program will load all the apps on your Mac. Browse through the apps listed here and click on the 'Uninstall' button next to the app which you wish to delete.
- Press Command and spacebar to call up Spotlight.
- Type Acttivity Monitor and hit Reture to launcn it.
- Find the app progress you want to end. Click on it and then the X icon in the Activity Monitor toolbar. The process should quit now.
- Open 'Applications' from 'Finder'.
- Right-click on the app which you wish to uninstall and click on 'Get info'.
- Click on the lock icon at the bottom and enter your password when prompted.
Go to the 'Sharing and Permissions' section and select 'Everyone' for the option 'Read & Write'.
- You can then delete the app if you have admin rights.
If in case the app which you wish to delete does not have the 'x', you won't be able to delete it using this method.
Important: Be Aware of the Leftover Files and Bundling Programs After Uninstallation
While the above methods are free and are traditionally used by every Mac user, what the users need to be aware of is that deleting the apps this way can leave behind some leftover files which can slow down your Mac's performance. Whenever you use an uninstaller for the app or move it to Trash, there are certain files which are left behind. These files would have been used while the app was actually used but they do not get deleted when you delete or uninstall the app. These files are collectively known as leftover files of applications, and they will eat up space in your Mac system and these are what make the system slow and unresponsive at times.
Another problem associated with these methods is that there are bundling programs after the uninstallation process. These files cannot be deleted by these regular methods. Another thing to note is that, when you delete apps without any professional knowledge, you may land yourself in deep trouble.
If you are a novice user or an expert who does not want the above-listed problems while uninstalling any app or software on Mac, you can make use of the third-party apps like the one mentioned below for deleting or uninstalling the apps on your Mac. With the help of such an app, you can not only remove the specific app but it also removes the caches, files and preferences related to the particular app. So in the following part, we are going to show you another different solution. Using it you can completely remove the apps, as well as the aid programs and even deliberately hidden files.
Way 4: Completely Uninstall Application on Mac and Leftover Files
The best third party app for uninstalling an application on Mac along with all the files related to it is Umate Mac Cleaner. This is the best alternative for the regular methods. Reasons why we recommend it are showed below:
| Umate Mac Cleaner | Manual Deletion | |
|---|---|---|
| Time needed | 1 min | 3-5 mins |
| Bulk removal of apps | ||
| Clean up leftover files | ||
| Whether need professional knowledge | Sometimes need | |
| Efficiency | High | Medium |
Now let's have a closer look at how to uninstall programs on Mac using Umate Mac Cleaner.
This way you can use Umate Mac Cleaner to completely uninstall application Mac. Many satisfied users and famious websites also vouch for the performance of Umate Mac Cleaner. By using this program, you can quickly remove any unwanted apps and relase up to 40% free space on the Mac.
Cannot Delete Some Apps on Mac? What to Do
There are some apps on Mac which cannot be deleted easily. Here are the main reasons and corrospoding solutions.
1. App is running in the background
It may be possible that the app which you are trying to delete may be running in the background. In order to delete such an app, kill the background process of the app and then try deleting in either of the ways mentioned above. Here is what you need to do:
2. It's bloatware
Another reason why an app may not be getting uninstalled after several attempts is due to bloatware. Speaking of bloatware, it's usually pre-installed and you don't need it. It weights a lot and will hog a lot of disk space. Some common bloatware includes language packages, browser extensions, etc. You can delete such preinstalled apps and browser extensions in the following way.
Note
However, if you want to systematically delete the browser extensions, or get rid of bloatware in one click, the best way would be to use Umate Mac Cleaner, and the steps for which are given above.
Conclusion
The regular methods described above to know how to delete programs on Mac are pretty effective. The only problem with such a method is that it does not delete all the files related to the particular app which can create performance issues on your Mac. To avoid this scenario and make the entire process of uninstalling apps easier, it is highly recommended that you download Umate Mac Cleaner and use it for this purpose.
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How to uninstall programs on Mac computers? If you are familiar with the “Uninstall a program” interface in Windows operating system (OS), then I would tell you it doesn’t exist on Mac OS X. To uninstall a program on Mac OS X, just drag the program icon and drop to the Trash, then right-click and clear it.
But do you know how to uninstall applications on your Mac computer, which don’t have shortcuts/icons (which you can drag and drop to the Trash) or uninstall other built-in system applications?
Uninstalling Mac apps is a simple process and don’t take more than five seconds. However, some apps require you to use Terminal or third party applications to uninstall them.
How To Uninstall Programs On Mac With Classic Way
Uninstalling programs from your Mac computer are probably easier than removing applications from other operating systems, such as Windows or Linux OS.
In Windows OS, you need access to Control Panel > Programs and Features > Pick the application you want to remove > Confirm again > Wait for the process to complete.
See Also: How To Force Quit Mac Apps In Mac OS X?
But in the Mac OS X computer, the uninstall process is simpler. You just need to select the Application that you want to remove (from the Desktop or Finder > Applications).
Next, right-click on the application icon > Move to Trash. Or you can also delete it by dragging the program icon and drop it to the Trash.
After the application has been moved to the Trash, right-click on the Trash and choose “Empty Trash”. The application will be uninstalled.
How To Uninstall Programs On Mac That Don’t Appear In Finder > Applications
With above steps, you have known it’s very easy to remove apps from a Mac computer if they appear in the Application folder or somewhere else which you can “move to the Trash“. But how about applications that aren’t there, such as Java runtime, Flash plugin or browser plugins?
There is no general method to uninstall these apps & built-in features. Instead, you can find appropriate ways to uninstall these programs from Google Search. You can use the search terms: “uninstall [application name] on Mac” with “application name” is the name of the app you want to remove/uninstall.
For example, Adobe has released a solution to help you removing Flash on your Mac computer, find out here.
How To Completely Uninstall Programs On Mac Computer
You can easily uninstall any unwanted apps on your Mac. However, some of them can leave a few preference files, caches or logs in your hard drive.
If you want to remove a Mac app altogether, try a free program called AppCleaner. This will allow you to uninstall unwanted programs on your Mac computer with its data and related files.
From the “Application” tab of the AppCleaner, you can select a program or widget to remove/uninstall. Check it out!
How To Massive Delete Apps From Mac OS X
Another useful feature of the AppCleaner is allowing you to massive delete apps. To doing so, just select all apps that you want to remove, and then click on the “Delete” button. Don’t need to remove all of them one by one, right?
How To Uninstall Apps On Mac OS X Using The Command Line
Most of users don’t like to use commands in Terminal to do anything because those commands are not easy to remember. They feel not comfortable and will look for solutions which easier to do, such as an app with a friendly and simple user interface. However, using Terminal to removing Mac apps is easier than you think.
Firstly, open Finder, click on the Applications > Utilities, find Terminal application and then launch it.
Next, type:
sudo uninstall file://
Next, drag the program icon from Applications into Terminal window and drop it there. And then press Enter. The application will be uninstalled automatically.
How Do You Uninstall Apps On Macbook
In this case, I use Google Chrome an object to show you how to uninstall programs on Mac with Terminal.
How To Uninstall Programs On Mac That Are Installed Through AppStore
If you have installed any applications from the Apple AppStore, just click on Launchpad, press Option key on your keyboard.
Next, click on the (x) sign and press Delete to remove the app. It will be removed.
In this method, you don’t need to empty the Trash as it will delete the program directly, not moving to the Trash. Download stan app mac.
If you know any other solutions to simplify the uninstall process? Let me know!
Have any questions about how to uninstall programs on Mac OS X computers? Feel free to ask by leaving your comment below.