How to uninstall CPU-Z on Windows

CPU-Z keeps no personal data worth backing up: its only setting file sits next to the program, and any report or validation you saved went to a folder you picked. Save those reports elsewhere first if you want them. This guide covers CPU-Z installed machine-wide with the official x86 installer, the one the CPUID.CPU-Z winget package uses.

Quit CPU-Z first

Close the CPU-Z window. CPU-Z asks for administrator access every time it starts and adds no startup entry, tray icon or service. Check Task Manager (Ctrl+Shift+Esc) for any cpuz.exe still listed before you uninstall.

Remove the app with its own uninstaller

Go to Settings › Apps › Installed apps, find CPUID CPU-Z, and choose Uninstall, or run:

winget uninstall --id CPUID.CPU-Z

A machine-wide install asks for administrator access.

Where the data lives

Location	What it holds	What to do
`%ProgramFiles(x86)%\CPUID\CPU-Z`	The program and its configuration file	Removed by the uninstaller
Start Menu `CPUID\CPU-Z` folder (all users)	Shortcuts to CPU-Z, its configuration file and its uninstaller	Removed by the uninstaller
`CPUID CPU-Z` shortcut on the public Desktop	Shortcut	Removed by the uninstaller
`%ProgramData%\CPUID Software\cpu-z`	An empty folder CPU-Z creates the first time it runs	Empty; safe to remove, together with `CPUID Software` if nothing else from CPUID is installed

%ProgramData%\CPUID Software is named for the vendor rather than for CPU-Z, so leave it if you use another CPUID tool.

Check the result

Run these read-only commands after the uninstall finishes:

Get-Process cpuz -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
winget list --id CPUID.CPU-Z
Test-Path "${env:ProgramFiles(x86)}\CPUID\CPU-Z"
Test-Path "$env:ProgramData\CPUID Software\cpu-z"

No output from Get-Process only means this query observed no matching process; a suppressed error leaves the running state unknown.
A completed winget list query with no match means the package record is gone; a matching row means the uninstall did not finish.
The first Test-Path returning False means the program folder is gone; True means files remain there.
The second returning True means the empty folder from the first run is still there; it holds nothing.

If you installed it with winget

winget uninstall runs the same Inno Setup uninstaller Settings › Apps uses and removes the same files; it does not touch %ProgramData%\CPUID Software.

What Mole lists

For CPU-Z installed machine-wide:

The program folder goes with the app row. The three Start Menu shortcuts, the public Desktop shortcut and a row grouping Windows' own records of when you opened the program are selected by default.
The empty %ProgramData%\CPUID Software\cpu-z folder is not listed; check it and remove it yourself if you want to.

What this test covered

Tested on September 28, 2026 with CPU-Z 3.01, the x86 Inno Setup installer from the winget manifest, machine scope, run under emulation on an ARM64 PC. Its uninstaller ran silently and removed the program folder and every shortcut before Mole's own step ran. Every listed row was ticked and removed in this test. Not verified: saved reports and online validation.