Uninstall AppCleaner on Mac

If you use SmartDelete, note whether it is enabled and any exclusions you want to reproduce. AppCleaner does not own the apps it previously removed; do not delete other applications or their folders while removing this utility. This guide covers the Homebrew cask tested on September 17, 2026.

Quit and remove the app

Open AppCleaner preferences and turn off SmartDelete if it is enabled. Quit AppCleaner, then move AppCleaner.app from Applications to Trash. Review System Settings › General › Login Items & Extensions if its background item is still shown; a displayed entry alone does not prove a process is running. For background-item history, use System Settings rather than editing Apple databases. If the app was installed through Homebrew, its receipt can remain separate from Finder’s app icon until Homebrew removes the cask.

Review the app's own data

The cask names ~/Library/Preferences/net.freemacsoft.AppCleaner.plist and its -SmartDelete.plist sibling, plus matching cache, HTTP storage, and saved state. Those files hold AppCleaner settings or disposable state, not a license to remove similarly named files belonging to another app. The official product page describes the product; the Homebrew cask supplies the installation and zap paths. Keep anything you cannot identify until its owner is clear. For a comparison with other Mac uninstallers, read AppCleaner alternatives.

If you installed it with Homebrew

To remove the cask without applying its whole zap list, use:

brew uninstall --cask appcleaner

Homebrew's separate brew uninstall --cask --zap appcleaner also acts on every path in the cask's zap list. It does not consult Mole's selected files. Review the paths above before choosing that action. Mole checks the cask deletion list and suppresses zap when it reaches unchecked, shared, unknown or unsupported data; selected associated files still follow Mole's own deletion path.

Check the result

These Terminal commands only inspect the current state:

pgrep -il AppCleaner
find ~/Library/Preferences -maxdepth 1 -name "net.freemacsoft.AppCleaner*.plist" -print

No pgrep output means no matching process; a match calls for quitting the app or checking SmartDelete. find output identifies surviving preference files. No output means no matching file; an error needs separate investigation.

What Mole lists

Mole selects exact AppCleaner preferences, cache and HTTP storage by default. An Application Support folder matched only by AppCleaner’s display name is shown for review and starts unchecked. It does not take over SmartDelete or rewrite macOS background-item records.

What this test covered

On September 17, 2026, AppCleaner was installed through the Homebrew cask and removed as a comparison app. Its preference and HTTP-storage rows were covered. The record did not show a SmartDelete launch job, so it does not prove that an enabled SmartDelete installation was removed end to end.