How to uninstall Expo Orbit on Mac

Keep your Expo projects, app builds and simulator data when removing Expo Orbit. The official README describes Orbit as a launcher for builds, simulators and devices; removing its Mac app is separate from uninstalling Xcode, Android tools or apps installed on those devices.

Stop launch-on-login and save state

Finish pending build installs. If enabled, open the Orbit menu-bar icon's Settings and clear Launch on Login, then quit Orbit. Copy wanted existing ~/Library/Application Support/dev.expo.orbit outside sync/removal roots before clearing that cask-listed app-state location. Keep source repositories and build artifacts in their actual separate locations.

After backup, follow Apple's Finder removal instructions and move Expo Orbit.app from Applications to the Trash. Do not delete a simulator or shared Sparkle downloader merely to remove this launcher.

If you installed it with Homebrew

The cask declares no separate uninstall step and removes its managed app without zap:

brew uninstall --cask expo-orbit

Zap additionally names ~/Library/Application Support/dev.expo.orbit, ~/Library/Caches/dev.expo.orbit, ~/Library/HTTPStorages/dev.expo.orbit, ~/Library/Preferences/dev.expo.orbit.plist and ~/Library/WebKit/dev.expo.orbit. Direct brew uninstall --cask --zap expo-orbit ignores Mole's checkboxes. Mole uses zap only when its whole scope passes selection, ownership and safety checks; selected remnants otherwise use its own Trash flow.

Check the result

pgrep -ifl 'Expo Orbit|dev.expo.orbit'
ls -ld "$HOME/Library/Application Support/dev.expo.orbit" "$HOME/Library/Caches/dev.expo.orbit"

No process match means no arguments matched this pattern. Printed folders remain, expected if deliberately kept. Missing-path errors concern only those folders, while other errors are inconclusive. These checks do not uninstall device apps or prove every simulator has stopped.

What Mole lists

Exact app-ID support, cache, network storage, preferences and WebKit rows follow their default selection rules and can be selected by default, so back up and uncheck wanted app state. Shared org.sparkle-project.* framework identities are not attributed to Orbit merely because they are bundled. The default-off Remove data and settings with apps option does not expand removal to your projects or simulators.

What this test covered

The official-download Expo Orbit 2.8.1 app-copy removal was recorded on September 23, 2026. That run also removed a shared Sparkle downloader container under an overly broad attribution, preserved here as a historical outcome. On September 26, a separate reinstall/removal check removed the selected Orbit app/data rows and found none of that reviewed list surviving. Build installation, simulator data restoration and Homebrew were not tested.