How to Deleted Apps on Mac That Won't Delete

App won't delete from Launchpad or Finder? Here, you can learn how to delete apps on Mac that won't delete in two available approaches. Besides, the basic ways to delete an application from Launchpad or Finder on Mac are introduced together, find what you want with details.

Q: App won't delete from Launchpad, how to fix?

"I have an app that I can't delete. It is a program purchased from the App Store. Even though I have deleted the software from my Applications file, the app won't delete from Launchpad. And dragging to the trash does not work either. Do you guys have this problem?"

Too many applications installed on your Mac can make it slowly to find out what you need, and most importantly, they can eat up limited storage space. When you want to remove futile programs on your Mac, you can delete them from Launchpad or Finder. However, some stubborn Mac software, like that comes with the operating system, can be tricky to remove. Here's how to uninstall Mac apps that will help to make space on Mac and improve its performance.

There are many other hot topics related to apps, one of which is 'The application is not open anymore'.

How to Delete Apps from Launchpad or Finder on Mac 

Uninstalling unused Mac applications is one of the ways that frequently used by users to deal with low disk space issues andspeed up Mac computer. And it can be done from the Finder or Launchpad.

To Uninstall Programs from the Finder:

Open Finder, go to the "Applications" folder, drag the selected program you want to uninstall to the "Trash" folder, finally open "Trash" folder and select "Empty" option.

To Uninstall Programs from Launchpad:

Open Launchpad, hold down an app's icon until they start to jiggle, click on the delete button x. Some apps don't show an X button using this way. If you need to remove this kind of software, skip to solution to app won't delete from Launchpad.

Mac Can't Delete App Because It's Open

When you delete an app in Finder, one possible scenario is that there is a message on the screen reading 'The item "app name" can't be moved to the trash because it's open.' This occurs because the app is still processing in the background, and you haven't closed it thoroughly. Follow the steps to shut it down properly and get it removed for good.

1. Open the Finder and select "Applications" from the Favorites list.

2. Click on "Utilities" > "Activity Monitor". 

3. Find the app you want to delete. You can type search the app in the search bar.

4. Select the app. Click on the X in the upper left corner of the window. Click "Quit" to end the process. After this, you can uninstall the app on your Mac in the Finder. 

How to Delete Apps on Mac That Won't Delete

If you need to uninstall software built-into the system, the above two ways won't be useful. When you are trying to delete Safari, Mail, Face Time, or other default apps with Finder, you'll get a message saying: "Safari.app can't be modified or deleted because it's required by Mac OS X." Then, can you force delete an app on Mac? How to delete an app on Mac that won't delete? Two practical methods are introduced below, the first is automatic and simple with a Mac maintenance utility, and the second is more complex. 

Uninstall App Won't Delete from Launchpad Easily  

If you are proficient in technology, using Terminal might help you to delete system-embedded applications. But for most ordinary users, we highly recommend you try a simpler way to delete default apps by using EaseUS Mac CleanGenius. This program enables you to remove any app with its corresponding files and preferences in one-click without destroying your system. It also provides ultimate Mac cleaning features, such as cleaning junk files, deleting duplicate files from the computer like music, documents, pictures, videos, etc.

Note: EaseUS Mac CleanGenius is compatible with Mac OS X 10.12, 10.11, 10.10, 10.9. If your computer is running macOS 10.13 and later, you can resort to the next manual way. 

Step 1. Launch EaseUS CleanGenius and click on Uninstall under Tool;

Step 2. Find and select applications or programs that you want to remove and click on Uninstall;
Selected application, software or program will be removed in seconds.

How to Force Delete an App on Mac Using Terminal

Warning: This will result in the permanent deletion of an app with no undo option. If you need the app again, you have to reinstall macOS. If not necessary, this is not recommended. If you must do, perform a backup in advance and proceed at your own risk.

1. Launch the Terminal, located in /Applications/Utilities/

2. Type the command: cd /Applications/. This will change to the Applications directory. Then, you can start deleting apps.

3. Type the following commands to delete different apps.

To delete Safari, type sudo rm -rf Safari.app/

To delete Mail, type sudo rm -rf Mail.app/

To delete FaceTime, type sudo rm -rf FaceTime.app/

To delete QuickTime Player, type sudo rm -rf QuickTime\ Player.app/

Similarly, you can enter different software names to delete the corresponding programs.