How to uninstall Foxit PDF Editor on Mac
Save edited PDFs, custom settings and wanted add-ons before removing Foxit PDF Editor. For a transferable perpetual license, follow the Mac v14 manual's deactivation instructions before quitting. This guide covers the website Mac package and Homebrew cask foxit-pdf-editor, not Foxit Reader or the App Store edition's storage layout.
Handle the license, then quit
For the documented v14 edition, use Help › Deactivate if moving the license to another machine. License deactivation does not cancel a subscription. Save your PDFs, quit Foxit PDF Editor, then follow the manual's Finder method to move Foxit PDF Editor.app to Trash. Keep PDF documents and their backups outside app-data deletion.
Review Editor's exact leaves
| Location | Keep or remove |
|---|---|
| ~/Library/Application Support/Foxit Software/Continuous/Foxit PDF Editor | The tested Editor's local support data. Back up before resetting. |
| ~/Library/Application Support/Foxit Software/Continuous/Addon/Foxit PDF Editor | The tested Editor's add-on data. Keep wanted custom content. |
| ~/Library/Application Support/Foxit Software/Foxit PDF Editor | A separate support leaf named by the current cask. Inspect if present. |
| ~/Library/Caches/com.foxit-software.Foxit PDF Editor | The Editor cache named by the cask; remove after quitting. |
| ~/Library/Preferences/com.foxit-software.Foxit PDF Editor.plist | A preference spelling in the cask. It is not a reason to delete the entire Foxit preference family. |
After backing up settings and quitting Editor, open the exact existing leaves above with Shift + Command + G in Finder and move only unwanted Editor items to the Trash. For preferences, open ~/Library/Preferences and select only the named file. Keep the Foxit Software parent and Reader's separate directories. A full package can install a system update service; app removal alone is not evidence that service has gone. The current cask documents its ordinary package uninstall scope.
Check app and updater state
pgrep -il Foxit
ls -d "/Applications/Foxit PDF Editor.app" "$HOME/Library/Application Support/Foxit Software/Continuous/Foxit PDF Editor" "/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.foxit.PDFEditorUpdateService.plist"
pkgutil --pkgs | grep -F com.foxit.pkg.pdfeditor
No process output means no matching name is running; distinguish Reader from Editor in Activity Monitor. Printed paths remain, missing-path errors mean absence, and permission errors leave it unknown. A receipt is installation history, not proof a running updater remains. If the system updater survives a website-package uninstall, that part of the removal is still unverified here. Ask Foxit support for the cleanup method for that installed version before removing service files; the cask’s service removal is documented separately below.
If you installed it with Homebrew
brew uninstall --cask foxit-pdf-editor
Even without zap, the ordinary cask uninstall removes the package's Editor app and specified system update-service files, unloads its service and handles its receipt. Direct brew uninstall --cask --zap foxit-pdf-editor additionally removes the cask's user support leaf, cache and preference files, without consulting Mole's checkboxes. Its support leaf differs from the recorded Continuous directories.
Mole checks Homebrew's full removal list and skips --zap when it reaches unchecked data, shared files or anything it cannot verify. It still removes the leftovers you selected.
What Mole lists
The two exact Continuous Editor leaves are listed but not selected with Remove data and settings with apps off; enabling it can preselect eligible reviewed data. Bundle-identified preferences and ordinary caches are selected by default. The shared vendor parent and your PDF documents are not part of those selections.
What this test covered
On September 21, 2026, Foxit PDF Editor 14.0.7.69441 was extracted from the official package Payload without running postinstall or UpdateService. The 4.65 GB app, two preference files and temporary data went to Trash. The 1.8 MB Continuous support and 18.9 MB add-on leaves were not listed in that run and were added as review rows afterward. Their removal, a full package uninstall, license deactivation and the App Store edition were not verified.