How to stop apps from opening on startup on Mac
To stop apps from opening on startup on your Mac, it helps to know they get there in several ways: the Login Items list, helpers that run in the background, an app’s own “open at login” setting, and macOS reopening what was open before a restart. Each has its own switch, and this guide covers all of them. Apps you turn off stay installed and work as before when you open them.
How to stop apps from opening on startup
- Choose Apple menu › System Settings, then click General in the sidebar.
- Click Login Items & Extensions (in macOS Sonoma, Login Items). You may need to scroll down.
- In the Open at Login list, select the app you don’t want to start on its own.
- Click the Remove button (–) below the list.
The app isn’t deleted: it just waits until you open it yourself.
Turn off apps that run in the background
Below Open at Login is a second list, Allow in the Background (in macOS 26 and later, App Background Activity). It shows apps that do work while they’re closed, such as checking for updates or syncing data. Turn off the switch next to an app to stop it.
Features that need this, like a cloud drive syncing or a menu bar helper, stop working while the switch is off. If something breaks, turn it back on.
Turn off the app’s own “open at login” setting
Many apps — messengers, cloud drives, music players, utilities — have their own setting to start with your Mac, usually in the app’s settings and named something like Open at login or Launch at startup. If an app comes back to the list after you removed it, turn this setting off.
For an app in the Dock, Control-click its icon and choose Options: if Open at Login has a checkmark, choose it to turn it off.
Stop windows from reopening after a restart
When you shut down, restart or log out, macOS asks to confirm. Deselect Reopen windows when logging in in that dialog, and the apps that were open won’t come back next time.
If one app keeps restoring its old windows, turn on Close windows when quitting an application in System Settings › Desktop & Dock.
Skip login items just once
Hold Shift while you click Log In, and release it when the Dock appears. If your Mac logs in without the login window, restart it, hold Shift when the progress bar appears and release it when you see the desktop.
Apps you no longer use are better removed than switched off: see how to uninstall apps on Mac completely.
Keep your Mac tidy
MacWashing doesn’t manage login items — use System Settings as shown above. Its System Junk clears the caches apps leave behind, and its Uninstaller removes apps you no longer need together with their background items, so they stop starting with your Mac.
Free trial · macOS 14 or later
Questions and answers
Is it safe to stop apps from opening on startup?
Yes. The apps stay installed and work as before when you open them. Only apps that must run all the time, like a cloud drive or a password manager, may need to stay on the list.
Why does an app keep opening at startup after I removed it?
Usually its own “open at login” setting adds it back, or macOS reopens it because it was open when you restarted. Turn off the app’s setting and deselect Reopen windows when logging in.
Will removing login items make my Mac faster?
It makes the time after login quicker and leaves more memory free for the apps you actually use. It won’t speed up a Mac that is slow for other reasons, such as a nearly full disk.