How to uninstall Freelens on Mac
Keep wanted Freelens settings, extensions and cluster connection files before uninstalling. The official project is a Kubernetes client with extensions. This page covers the app copied from the official Mac disk image, not the separate PKG installer or deletion of a Kubernetes cluster.
Quit and remove the app
Stop client terminals or port-forward sessions you no longer need, save your work, then quit Freelens with Cmd + Q. Move Freelens.app to the Trash. Do not delete cluster resources merely to remove the local client.
Review client data
After stopping client terminals/port forwards and quitting, open ~/.freelens, ~/Library/Application Support/Freelens, ~/Library/Logs/Freelens and ~/Library/Preferences/app.freelens.Freelens.plist with Finder Shift + Command + G. Copy wanted settings/extensions outside the chosen folder, then move only the leaves you no longer need to the Trash. Skip missing paths and leave shared kubeconfig, independent tools and cluster resources alone.
~/.freelens/extensionswas created empty on first launch in the test. Review the whole~/.freelensdirectory only after saving any extensions you later installed.~/Library/Application Support/Freelensheld desktop data; copy wanted settings before removing the parent. Its Electron cache children are separate.~/Library/Logs/Freelensand~/Library/Preferences/app.freelens.Freelens.plistwere observed.- Keep shared kubeconfig files and independently installed Kubernetes tools; they are not owned by this app simply because it uses them.
Check the result
pgrep -ifl Freelens
ls -ld /Applications/Freelens.app "$HOME/.freelens" "$HOME/Library/Application Support/Freelens"
No process output means this name was not found, not that every helper has gone. Check any match against the app’s actual executable path. A missing-path error from ls means only that location is absent; permission errors leave its state unknown. A surviving folder can be intentional data to keep.
If you installed it with Homebrew
The Mac cask has no separate uninstall helper. Zap covers the Freelens support parent and logs, not ~/.freelens, shared kubeconfig files or cluster resources.
To uninstall without zap, use:
brew uninstall --cask freelens
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. A direct brew uninstall --cask --zap freelens runs Homebrew’s full zap list without consulting Mole’s checkboxes.
What Mole lists
Mole selects the app, exact preferences and attributable Electron caches by default. ~/Library/Application Support/Freelens and ~/.freelens are listed for review: with Default remove app data off they start unchecked; with it on, eligible own data can start checked. Inspect and uncheck them to retain settings or extensions. Shared connection configuration and remote cluster resources are not blanket removal targets.
What this test covered
On September 25, 2026, Freelens 1.10.3 was copied from the official disk image and uninstalled with a development build of Mole. The initially missed hidden extension directory was added as reviewed data and removed on retest. Populated extensions, authenticated clusters and the PKG installation path were not verified.