Uninstall BetterDisplay on Mac
Back up your display setup before removing BetterDisplay: virtual screens, HiDPI overrides, and your Pro license activation state all live in one folder that Mole lists but does not select automatically. These steps cover the official download from betterdisplay.pro (also on GitHub) and the Homebrew cask betterdisplay, which install the same app.
Quit BetterDisplay and remove the app
Quit BetterDisplay from its menu bar icon, then move BetterDisplay from Applications to the Trash. Any virtual screens it created disappear as soon as it quits; reconnect real displays and confirm your layout before removing anything else. If you turned on "Launch at login," check System Settings › General › Login Items & Extensions afterward. In testing, Mole could not toggle this entry directly and routed it to System Settings instead, so confirm it there rather than assuming Mole cleared it.
Where BetterDisplay keeps its data
| Location | What it holds | What to do |
|---|---|---|
~/Library/Application Support/BetterDisplay |
Virtual-screen definitions, custom resolutions, display arrangements, and your Pro license activation | Back this up first; it is listed for review in Mole, not selected automatically, because it holds real configuration and license state |
~/Library/Caches/pro.betterdisplay.BetterDisplay |
Regenerable cache | Safe to remove |
~/Library/Caches/SentryCrash/BetterDisplay |
Crash reporter cache | Safe to remove |
~/Library/Preferences/pro.betterdisplay.BetterDisplay.plist |
App preferences | Safe to remove |
~/Library/HTTPStorages/pro.betterdisplay.BetterDisplay |
Local web-storage state | Safe to remove |
If a much older ~/Library/Application Support/BetterDummy folder exists on your Mac, it is data from BetterDisplay's discontinued predecessor app of the same name; Mole does not recognize it as belonging to BetterDisplay, since it uses a different display name, so it is not offered for review or removal through the app's own uninstall flow.
Optional permissions
BetterDisplay does not require Accessibility or Screen Recording to run; it asks for them only when you use specific features. BetterDisplay's own discussion of what each permission unlocks explains that Accessibility enables keyboard media-key control for brightness and volume, and Screen Recording is needed for virtual-display mirroring, Picture-in-Picture, and local streaming. If you granted either, remove them under System Settings › Privacy & Security › Accessibility and › Screen Recording with the − button after you delete the app.
Check the result
Run these read-only commands in Terminal:
pgrep -il betterdisplay
ls -d ~/Library/Application\ Support/BetterDisplay
No output from pgrep means BetterDisplay has quit. The ls command reports whether your virtual-screen and license data is still on this Mac; a printed path means it is still there, which is expected if you chose to keep it; "No such file or directory" means it is gone, along with your license activation state.
If you installed it with Homebrew
The next Mole update will skip --zap when its list reaches unchecked or shared data, or cannot be fully checked. Mole will still clean the leftovers you selected. Preview 290 does not include this protection.
The betterdisplay cask's zap list includes ~/Library/Application Support/BetterDisplay (your virtual screens, display arrangements, and Pro license state), plus the older ~/Library/Application Support/BetterDummy folder if it exists, both caches, HTTPStorages, and the preferences file. brew uninstall --cask --zap betterdisplay moves all of that to the Trash whatever you have selected in Mole, unlike a direct removal where Mole leaves the Application Support folder for you to review. Back up your license and display configuration first, or skip zap:
brew uninstall --cask betterdisplay
Account and subscription
BetterDisplay Pro is a one-time purchase through Paddle, not a subscription; a license key activates it under the app's Settings › Pro. Uninstalling does not deactivate or refund your license. Save your license key somewhere outside ~/Library/Application Support/BetterDisplay before removing that folder, since it is the only place the app stores your activation locally.
What Mole lists
This describes Mole 1.15 (currently in Preview):
~/Library/Application Support/BetterDisplayis listed but not selected. Mole treats a folder named after the app's display name, rather than its bundle identifier, as user data for review.~/Library/Caches/pro.betterdisplay.BetterDisplay,~/Library/Caches/SentryCrash/BetterDisplay, and~/Library/Preferences/pro.betterdisplay.BetterDisplay.plistare selected by default.- For a Homebrew install, Mole Preview 290 runs
brew uninstall --cask --zap betterdisplay, and the zap step removes the same rows plus HTTPStorages and the legacy BetterDummy folder, regardless of what you selected. - Mole does not manage the Accessibility or Screen Recording permission entries.
What this test covered
BetterDisplay was installed through the Homebrew cask and uninstalled on September 17, 2026, with a development build of Mole. That test was the second time Mole's leftover scan had seen this exact Sentry crash-reporter cache shape (a product-named folder under a shared vendor cache parent), and the rule that lists the exact folder without touching the shared parent was generalized from it. BetterDisplay had registered a login item; Mole could not toggle it directly in that test and routed the row to System Settings, and it no longer appeared there after the uninstall. The official direct download, virtual-screen configuration, a Pro license activation, and the legacy BetterDummy folder were not part of this test.