Application Uninstaller

The Application Uninstaller removes applications along with their related files: caches, preferences, application support data, logs, and saved states.

How It Works

The uninstaller matches an app against the built-in app catalog (2,343 cataloged remnant paths) and scans the filesystem for residual files using 30 evidence types, including Bundle ID, Team ID, Spotlight metadata, and Launch Services records. Candidate matching uses word-boundary rules to prevent false positives.

Uninstallation Pipeline

Removal runs in three stages:

1. Soft quit — running instances are asked to quit gracefully (3-second deadline), then force-terminated if still running
2. launchd bootout — bundled helper services are unloaded from launchd
3. File trashing — app bundle and related files are moved to Trash; administrator password is requested if elevated paths are involved

Apps that contain only Intel binaries are marked with an Intel-only badge.

Tabs

Applications

The main tab lists installed apps. Select one or drag an .app bundle onto the drop zone to analyze.

Leftovers

A dedicated tab for orphaned residuals — remnants left behind by apps that were already deleted. Scan, filter by confidence tier, and clean.

Orphan Detection

The orphan scanner finds remnants of apps that are no longer installed. Each orphan is scored using evidence-based analysis (bundle ID, plist presence, container paths, file patterns) and assigned a confidence tier:

Tier	Meaning
Guaranteed	Direct evidence; safe to remove
Very Likely	Strong evidence; included in results (minimum threshold)
Possible	Weak evidence; not included in standalone results
Ignore	Not a candidate

Only items scoring Very Likely or above are included in the scan results. Cleanup falls back to privilege escalation when system-owned leftovers require it.

Post-Uninstall Leftovers

After an app is uninstalled, if leftover files remain, a sheet appears listing them with per-item evidence and confidence. You can clean them immediately or dismiss for later.

App Assistant

Some apps bundle helper tools (e.g., macOS_Assistant, macOSHelper). When detected, the uninstaller asks whether the helper should be removed together with the app and collapses the choice into a single dialog.

Difficulty Rating

Each uninstall is rated by how thoroughly the app can be removed:

Level	Meaning
Critical	App has known difficult-to-remove components; manual review recommended
High	Significant residual risk
Medium	Standard removal
Low	Clean removal expected

The rating is stored in the app metadata and is shown alongside the uninstall button.

Confidence Tiers

Related files are grouped into four tiers:

• Guaranteed — direct matches from the catalog (Bundle ID, receipts)
• Very Likely — strong filename or metadata matches
• Possible — location-based matches (user confirms)
• Ignore — excluded from selection

Scan Modes

Mode	Behavior
Safe	High-confidence matches only (Bundle ID, app name, package receipts); no Spotlight. Minimal risk of removing shared files
Balanced (default)	Full scan including Spotlight (mdfind), extended paths, and all possible matches. Finds residuals in non-standard locations

Drag & Drop

Drag an .app bundle (even one not in the catalog) onto the drop zone. The uninstaller analyzes it and resolves all related paths.

Uninstall Steps

1. Confirmation dialog shows what will be removed
2. The three-stage pipeline runs (soft quit → launchd bootout → trashing)
3. Files are removed by category, with per-file error reporting
4. If leftovers remain after uninstall, the post-uninstall leftovers sheet appears
5. Remaining items are reported in the summary if any were skipped