How to uninstall Beyond Compare on Mac
Quit Beyond Compare before removing it, and keep a copy of your license key if you plan to reinstall: the key is entered through Beyond Compare › Enter Key and registers only the current user account. Its settings folder is separate from the files and folders you were comparing. This guide covers the Mac app downloaded from scootersoftware.com and the Homebrew cask beyond-compare.
Quit Beyond Compare and remove the app
- Quit Beyond Compare from its application menu, then check Activity Monitor for a remaining Beyond Compare process.
- Find Beyond Compare in Finder's Applications folder and move it to the Trash.
Where Beyond Compare keeps its data
Press Shift + Command + G in Finder and open each location that exists. Scooter Software's Mac support page says Beyond Compare 5 keeps its settings in ~/Library/Application Support/Beyond Compare 5, and Beyond Compare 4 in ~/Library/Application Support/Beyond Compare.
| Location | What it holds | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| ~/Library/Application Support/Beyond Compare 5 | Beyond Compare 5's settings. | Review and back up first, then remove with the app. |
| ~/Library/Caches/com.ScooterSoftware.BeyondCompare | Regenerable cache. | Safe to remove. |
| ~/Library/Preferences/com.ScooterSoftware.BeyondCompare.plist | App preferences. | Remove for a clean start. |
| ~/Library/Saved Application State/com.ScooterSoftware.BeyondCompare.savedState | Saved window state. | Remove after quitting. |
| ~/Library/Containers/com.ScooterSoftware.BeyondCompare.BCFinder | The container of Beyond Compare's Finder extension. | Remove it with the app; if macOS refuses to move it, move it to the Trash in Finder. |
A license key saved as /etc/BC5Key.txt, which the same support page describes for registering every user account on the Mac, sits outside your home folder and outside what an app uninstall touches; remove that file yourself only if no other account still uses Beyond Compare.
If you installed it with Homebrew
Mole skips --zap when its list reaches unchecked or shared data, or cannot be fully checked, and still cleans the leftovers you selected.
The beyond-compare cask's zap list includes ~/Library/Application Support/Beyond Compare*, which covers the settings folder above and the Beyond Compare 4 folder too, plus the Finder extension container and the help-book caches macOS generated under ~/Library/Caches/com.apple.helpd/Generated. Mole lists the settings folder but does not select it, so unless you tick it Mole's Homebrew removal drops --zap and removes only the rows you left ticked. Running brew uninstall --cask --zap beyond-compare yourself moves all of it to the Trash regardless of what you ticked in Mole; to keep your settings, back them up first or remove only the app:
brew uninstall --cask beyond-compare
The cask also links a bcomp command to /opt/homebrew/bin/bcomp, which points inside the app bundle and is removed with it.
Check the result
pgrep -ilf "Beyond Compare.app"
command -v bcomp
ls -d ~/Library/Application\ Support/Beyond\ Compare\ 5
No output from pgrep means no Beyond Compare process is running. command -v bcomp returning a path means a command line link still exists on your PATH; if it points at the removed app, delete that broken link separately. ls -d prints the folder if your settings are still there and reports "No such file or directory" once removed.
What Mole lists
For a Beyond Compare app installed from scootersoftware.com's own download:
~/Library/Application Support/Beyond Compare 5is listed but not selected, so decide whether to keep your settings before ticking it.~/Library/Caches/com.ScooterSoftware.BeyondCompare,~/Library/Preferences/com.ScooterSoftware.BeyondCompare.plistand~/Library/Saved Application State/com.ScooterSoftware.BeyondCompare.savedStateare selected by default when they exist.~/Library/Containers/com.ScooterSoftware.BeyondCompare.BCFinderis selected by default when Mole finds the Finder extension it belongs to inside the app. macOS can still refuse to move a container to the Trash, in which case it stays until you remove it in Finder./etc/BC5Key.txtis not listed.
What this test covered
Beyond Compare 5.2.5 was copied into Applications from the scootersoftware.com download and uninstalled on September 20, 2026, with Mole 1.15 Preview (build 280); there was no Homebrew receipt. Every row in the review list was ticked. ~/Library/Application Support/Beyond Compare 5 (16 KB) was recognized as this app's folder despite the version number in its name and went to the Trash with the app. The Finder extension container (8 KB) was in the list, but macOS refused to move it to the Trash with a permission error, so it stayed. A registered license, /etc/BC5Key.txt and the Homebrew cask were not tested.