ARCHIVED: In Mac OS X, how do I remove an application?

This content has been archived, and is no longer maintained by Indiana University. Information here may no longer be accurate, and links may no longer be available or reliable.

You can remove many applications from Mac OS X simply by throwing the application's icon in the Trash. However, sometimes you must do more than this to completely remove the application from your system. To completely remove an application, try the following:

Use the installer program

If the application you are trying to remove has an installer program, see if that installer also has an uninstall or remove function. In some cases, this option won't be immediately apparent, but many of the newer installers do have this capability.

Remove with Launchpad

If you are using Mac OS X 10.7 (Lion) and purchased the application you are trying to uninstall from the Mac App Store, you may be able to uninstall with Launchpad. Start Launchpad, which you will find either in your Dock or in the Applications folder, and locate the application you want to uninstall. Click and hold down your mouse or trackpad button over the application until its icon starts to wiggle. If the application can be uninstalled from Launchpad, a small X will appear in the upper left corner of its icon. Click the X and then click the Delete button to remove the application.

Remove the application manually

Frequently, applications native to Mac OS X are installed as self-contained packages. To throw them away, all you need to do is drag the application icon into the Trash. Consult the application's documentation to determine if additional steps are needed to completely remove it.