How to uninstall Vortex on Windows

Before you remove Vortex, purge or deploy your mods the way you want them to end up in each game, since Vortex manages them through links and its own staging folders. Its data folder holds your settings, mod lists and, by default, the staging folders with the mods you downloaded, so back it up if you might reinstall. This guide covers Vortex installed machine-wide from the NexusMods.Vortex winget package.

Quit Vortex first

Close Vortex and any game it launched. Vortex runs as several processes; check Task Manager (Ctrl+Shift+Esc) for any Vortex still listed. It added no startup entry in this test.

Remove the app with its own uninstaller

Go to Settings › Apps › Installed apps, find Vortex, and choose Uninstall, or run:

winget uninstall --id NexusMods.Vortex

This is a machine-wide install, so Windows asks for administrator access. At the end the uninstaller asks whether you want to give feedback; answering either way lets it finish.

Where the data lives

Location	What it holds	What to do
`%ProgramFiles%\Vortex`	Program files	Removed by the uninstaller
`%APPDATA%\Vortex`	Settings, mod lists, profiles and by default the mod staging folders, plus caches	Back it up if you will reinstall; remove it for a clean start
`%LOCALAPPDATA%\Vortex-updater`	Downloaded update installers	Safe to remove
`HKCU\Software\Classes\nxm`	The `nxm://` link that opens Nexus Mods downloads in Vortex	Remove once the app is gone
Start Menu and public desktop shortcuts	Shortcuts	Removed by the uninstaller
`%ProgramData%\Package Cache\{...}` entries	Runtimes the installer added, each registered as its own installed app	Not Vortex's own files; leave them

Check the result

Get-Process Vortex -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
winget list --id NexusMods.Vortex
Test-Path "$env:ProgramFiles\Vortex"
Test-Path "$env:APPDATA\Vortex"
Test-Path "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Vortex-updater"
Test-Path "HKCU:\Software\Classes\nxm"

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.
Test-Path "$env:ProgramFiles\Vortex" returning False means the program folder is gone.
Test-Path "$env:APPDATA\Vortex" returning True means your settings and staged mods are still there, which is expected unless you removed them yourself.
True for the updater folder or the nxm key means those are still there; neither is needed once Vortex is gone.

If you installed it with winget

winget uninstall runs the same uninstaller Settings › Apps uses; it does not touch %APPDATA%\Vortex or the updater folder.

Account

Uninstalling does not sign you out of Nexus Mods or cancel a Nexus Mods membership. Manage those on the Nexus Mods website.

What Mole lists

For Vortex installed machine-wide from winget:

The program folder, the Start Menu and public desktop shortcuts, and a row grouping Windows' own records of when you opened the program are selected by default.
%APPDATA%\Vortex is listed but not selected, since it holds your settings and staged mods; the caches inside it (Cache, Code Cache, GPUCache and two Dawn caches) are listed on their own and selected by default.
%LOCALAPPDATA%\Vortex-updater, which holds only downloaded update installers, is selected by default.
The nxm:// link registration, still pointing at the removed program, is selected by default and backed up to a .reg file before removal.
The runtimes in %ProgramData%\Package Cache are not listed.

What this test covered

Tested on September 28, 2026 with Vortex 2.6.3 installed through winget, machine scope, removed with its NSIS uninstaller. Every listed row was ticked and removed in this test. Not verified: a signed-in Nexus Mods account, managed games, or deployed mods.