How does one uninstall an app on their Mac device? If you say by dragging an application to the Trash, you would be wrong. Dragging apps to the Trash simply removes the app from the system but not the leftover data and junk files. They continue to pollute your storage space and prevent you from downloading more applications. 

However, no need to worry because this guide will tell you how to properly uninstall applications on your Mac so that you don’t have to deal with leftover junk files. 

Using an App Cleaner (The Simplest Way)

There is a vast number of app cleaners at your disposal, such as CleanMyMac X, AppZapper, App Cleaner and Uninstaller Mac, Hazel, and so on. They automate the steps of removing apps, such as finding unnecessary apps and removing them to the Trash, locating caches and files that the apps may have left behind, and so on. 

Most of these app cleaners are user-friendly and competitively priced. So, if you don’t want to undertake the manual route, this is the most straightforward way of removing apps from your Mac device. 

• Using Trash 

Using Trash to remove applications from Mac is the default method. Once you have sent them to the Trash, you can empty the Trash to permanently remove the apps. 

This method is faulty, as mentioned before. Although the app is gone, it leaves behind residual files. To completely remove the app and its remnants, you have to search for the leftover files manually and remove them. Hence, the simple drag-and-drop won’t work in this case. 

You have to go through each of the folders thoroughly to remove the application completely. You will find the dock and binary icons in the Applications folder, and the supported caches will be found in /Library/Caches/ and ~/Library/Caches. You can locate the plugins in ~/Library/Internet Plug-Ins/, and the library will be found in ~/Library/. 

Head to ~/Library/Preferences/ to find app preferences, and the crashes will be found in ~/Library/Application Support/CrashReporter/. 

You must manually look for all the different files the app might have left behind and then delete them. Don’t forget to empty the Trash. 

• Using Terminal 

Terminal is the command-line tool of macOS. This means that you can type text commands to view information about your software and hardware, control different features on your Mac device, and so on. 

Terminal is used for various reasons, and one of them is to remove applications. You can use Terminal to uninstall applications by opening Terminal > go to Applications > click Utilities > click Terminal > type rm -r into the command line. Then, head to the Applications folder in Finder and drag the app icon into the Terminal window > press Enter to delete the application.

• Using Launchpad 

You can use Launchpad to find and organize the applications on your Mac system. You can also open applications via Launchpad. Besides these, you can use Launchpad to delete applications. However, this is only available for apps that you have downloaded from the App Store. 

You can uninstall applications with Launchpad by opening Launchpad through the Dock (or Mac search, pinching all the fingers together, or pressing the F4 key) > pressing the Option key. When the app icons start to move, you will see a small cross in the corner. Click this cross, and the app will be removed. 

Unable to Delete Apps? 

Have you tried all the above methods and are still unable to delete the apps on your system? Even though basic app removal is not rocket science, there might be some other issues interfering with the process. Some of these problematic situations are:

• The application might have created files and data and stored them in different parts of your Mac system. It might be difficult to find all the traces. Therefore, getting rid of the application becomes a chore. 
• The app might be locked. 
• Your system might be infected with malware, and that’s the reason why you cannot delete the application. You must scan your system and get rid of the infection. 
• If your system is infected with ransomware, it will make it challenging for you to delete apps. Typically, ransomware locks apps and files. 
• The apps that have come preinstalled with macOS cannot be removed normally. Although you can delete the default apps, it is best to do so with caution. 
• If you are not the system admin or owner of the Mac, you will not have the authority to delete applications. 

Summing Up 

Hopefully, you have learned how to delete applications and their residual files on the Mac device. If you continue to face issues and cannot complete this simple task, contact Apple Support. 

Do you find it helpful to delete apps? Which method do you use to remove apps from your Mac system? Leave a comment.