How to permanently delete app on mac

Knowing how to uninstall apps on your MacBook is a helpful skill for any macOS user. Perhaps an application you installed long ago is taking up too much space on your desktop. Maybe you downloaded a game that you no longer play and wish to get rid of it. Whatever your reasoning may be, you need to delete a previously installed application from your MacBook, and this tutorial will show you how to do just that. 

Note, for this tutorial, I used a MacBook Air (early 2015) model, but this tutorial will work on any modern Apple laptop including the MacBook Air M1, 14-inch MacBook Pro, or MacBook Air M2. If you are in the market to upgrade, we are seeing the lowest prices of the year with MacBook Black Friday deals on virtually every model and configuration.

How to uninstall apps on a MacBook

First, navigate down to the Finder tab on your toolbar and click on the icon. 

Once in the Finder tool, navigate to the top of your screen and click on the Go menu. Once in the Go menu, scroll down to the Applications hyperlink and click on it. 

Once you have clicked on the Application hyperlink, scroll down to the application that you wish to uninstall. In this example, I will be deleting the gaming client Steam. Right-click on the icon and scroll down to the “Move to Trash” hyperlink. Click on it. 

Once the application is in the trash, move down to the trash bin in your toolbar. Right-click on the trash bin. 

Once you have right-clicked on the trash bin, you will be prompted with the “Empty Trash” hyperlink. Click on the hyperlink in order to remove your trash. 

A prompt asking, "Are you sure you want to permanently erase the items in the Trash?" will appear. Click “Empty Trash.”  

After you click on "Empty Trash," open your trash bin again to be sure that it was emptied. If your trash bin has been emptied, then the unwanted application was successfully uninstalled. 

If only uninstalling Mac apps was as easy as dragging their icons to the Trash! Alas, it’s not. If you uninstall apps on your Mac incorrectly, the installation files will remain on your hard disk, occupying valuable storage space.

Yes, apps with a convenient automatic uninstaller do exist, but this feature is not provided everywhere; in most cases, you need to take a few extra steps to remove an app from your Mac completely.
 

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It’s always a good idea to completely uninstall apps and remove all their files — otherwise, app leftovers and broken files will slow down your Mac over time.

MacKeeper includes an advanced Smart Uninstaller tool that helps you get rid of unused apps, widgets, plugins, browser extensions, and more.
 

To completely uninstall multiple app in one swoop:

1. Download and install MacKeeper
2. Go to the Smart Uninstaller tab
3. Click Start Scan
4. Go to Applications and select the ones you do not use
5. Click Remove Selected

Note: You can enjoy a one-time apps cleanup for free without activating the full version.

Correctly uninstalling a Mac app not only frees up space on your hard drive but it also improves your Mac’s performance and speed.

In this guide, we’ll show you how to manually uninstall your Mac apps:

• Remove apps using Launchpad
• Delete apps using Finder
• Delete apps via Terminal

Remove apps from a Mac using Launchpad

Launchpad allows you to find, organize, and open the apps on your Mac. You can access Launchpad through the Dock, through a Mac search, using the F4 key, or by pinching all your fingers together if you use a trackpad.

When you uninstall programs using Launchpad, it not only sends them to the Trash, but it also deletes all their additional files from your Mac.

How to uninstall an app from a Mac with Launchpad:

1. Open Launchpad and hold the Option key
2. When the icons begin to move, a small cross may appear in the corner of some apps. If the cross is there, click on it to delete that app
3. This is only available for applications that were downloaded from the App Store — that is, those which are officially recommended for installation on Mac devices
4. To confirm, click Delete

Delete apps on a Mac using Finder

Finder is a utility that displays folders, files, and apps on a Mac. This also includes the data stored on iCloud Drive and even on external devices.

Finder lets you organize the entire array of files on your computer, including cleaning data storage, and you can also use it to uninstall software on your Mac. Using advanced search, you can locate the program that you want to delete and the files associated with it.

How to use Finder to uninstall apps:

1. Locate the app in Finder

Go to Applications in Finder and Control-click an app you want to uninstall. 

2. Move to the Trash

Send the app you want to uninstall to the Trash, then open Bin and empty it.

3. Search for app leftovers

In Finder select Go > Go to Folder from the menu bar and type /Library/ and hit click Go. Search for any folders with the same name of the app you deleted. 

4. Remove app leftovers

To delete the folder with leftovers, control-click on its name and select Move to Trash from the drop-down menu, then open Bin and empty it.

Delete apps using Terminal

The Terminal app can also be used to delete app leftovers and fragments.

To open Terminal, go to Applications → Utilities → Terminal.

Type sudo uninstall file:// into the command line.

Then go to the Applications folder in Finder and drag the icon of the app that you wish to uninstall into the Terminal window — it will automatically paste itself.

Hit Enter and type in your user password to remove the app and its leftover files from your Mac.

Do you need a dedicated uninstaller?

If you work on your device, install a lot of applications, and visit numerous websites, using a Mac uninstaller app might be a good idea.

Allowing a program to scan all the system data on your Mac can endanger your personal information. To avoid this problem, install only well-known programs.

Their developers are interested in the safety of data. To protect your privacy is of utmost priority for the most advanced applications on the market, 

For instance, the latest version of MacKeeper is notarized by Apple, and it is completely reliable. It includes an advanced Smart Uninstaller tool that helps you get rid of unused apps, widgets, plugins, browser extensions, and more.

Additionally, MacKeeper lets you remove junk files and duplicates that take up your Mac’s storage. What’s more, MacKeeper optimizes the performance of your computer and protects your security and privacy.
 

If you're a visual learner — click and watch our YouTube tutorial!

FAQ

What apps should I delete?

This is determined by what software is installed on your Mac and what tasks you need to perform. We recommend deleting:

• Apps downloaded from untrustworthy websites
• Apps that take up too much RAM
• Apps you aren’t using
• Or apps that have the same functions as other installed apps

How do you force-delete on a Mac?

You can use Terminal to uninstall an app on Mac or delete files completely, including app leftovers. To do so, open Terminal in Applications and use the sudo uninstall file:// command.

What if I uninstalled an app accidentally?

In this case, it is possible to restore the deleted program from a Time Machine backup.

Apps and files downloaded from official Apple sources (i.e., the App Store, iTunes Store, and Apple Books) are usually available to download again. And if the removed app was part of macOS, then the problem can be solved by reinstalling the operating system.

Do I need uninstallers for specific apps if I have a special cleaning program installed?

Some apps offer special utilities you can use to completely uninstall them, performing system storage cleanup removing all the system files at the same time. You don’t normally need to use these unless the methods we described above fail to uninstall your app.

If this is the case, you need to download the utility from the developers’ website.

It’s probably best to do this right away — don’t keep the “undeletable” application, even if it seems for now that it doesn’t influence the operating of your Mac in any way. Otherwise, you may run into a sudden storage shortage later, and it’ll be harder to figure out what’s causing it.

Read more:

• How to Delete Anaconda from a Mac
• How to Uninstall Java on a Mac
• How To Factory Reset MacBook Pro, MacBook Air or iMac
• How to Update Operating System on Your Mac

Written By

Ruslana Lishchuk

With over 5 years of supporting Mac users, Ruslana lives and breathes everything Mac. Tech expert, Apple lover, and well, a cutie. Say hi on LinkedIn!

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