Uninstall Claude on Mac without removing Claude Code

Removing Claude Desktop, canceling a paid plan, and uninstalling Claude Code are three separate jobs. Do the one you mean to do.

Remove the desktop app

Claude Desktop installs into /Applications. Quit Claude. If macOS says it is still in use, check Activity Monitor for Claude and quit that process, then move Claude from Applications to the Trash.

The install location is documented in Deploy Claude Desktop for macOS.

Cancel the plan separately

Moving the app to the Trash does not cancel Pro or Max. While you can still open Claude, use Settings, then Billing, on the web or in the app.

Cancel your Pro or Max subscription

Keep Claude Code unless you are removing that too

Claude Code is a command-line tool with its own installer. Anthropic says the desktop app, the VS Code extension, and the JetBrains plugin also write to ~/.claude/. Deleting that directory removes settings, allowed tools, MCP server configuration, and session history. If one of those apps is still installed, the directory comes back the next time it runs.

See whether this shell can still find the command:

command -v claude

No output means this shell’s PATH cannot find claude. It does not mean every Claude file is gone. If the command is still there and you want the desktop app removed while keeping Claude Code, leave ~/.claude and ~/.claude.json in place.

To remove Claude Code, follow the method you used to install it, on Claude Code’s setup page under Uninstall Claude Code. Copy anything in ~/.claude you still need before you remove that configuration. A .claude directory inside a project belongs to the project. Removing the desktop app does not require deleting it.

What this test covered

This was an inspection while Claude Desktop stayed installed, not a completed uninstall. Mole does not list ~/.claude in the desktop app’s removal plan. That directory stays with Claude Code. The page does not list every cache the desktop app might create.