In this article, we will discuss how to force quit on Mac apps whenever the apps freeze. The Macintosh (or as popularly known as Mac since 1998) was introduced by Apple in 1984 and has faced an increasing demand and popularity ever since.

The Apple logo is a half-eaten apple. As smartphone users can be widely divided into two categories, those who use Android and those who iOS, personal computer or laptop users can be widely divided into two categories, the users who prefer Windows and the users who use Macs.

Although Macs are a tad bit more expensive than Windows, each of them comes with its own sets of advantages and disadvantages. The OS you want will depend on your use. Mac uses its own assembled parts whereas Windows uses hardware from different vendors like Dell, Lenovo, and HP. So, Apple has higher control in creating their Macs.

In terms of the Operating System, there is a huge difference between the two, especially an interface difference. Windows has a more choppy interface than Apple Macs.

One of the most significant differences is that as support, Windows has Cortana and Apple has Siri.

Also, in the case of Macbooks, the apple menu can be found in the dock at the bottom of the screen, whereas in Windows the Taskbar and the Menu button have the same utility. Although MacOS Finder works just fine when used to find a file or folder, Window’s File Explorer is more efficient and quick in accessing the required folders.

By saying users want how to force quit on Mac, we refer to the termination of applications that become unresponsive while using. It helps the user to quit the app that has stopped responding and showing some error, by using a combination of stroke keys.

It is the same thing as force-stopping an app on a smartphone.

What happens in the case of how to force quit on Mac is the application stops midway while running. Or, in case if the application is running in the background it stops whatever action was being performed by it.

Now, Mac’s operating system is great. However, there are times, when the application stops working midway, that is, freezes abruptly while working on it. The initial response to such a situation would be to try and normally quit them.

But more often than not it gets very difficult to normally quit the program. That is where force quit comes into being. Force quitting although sometimes believed to be harmful to the machine can help the application and in turn the machine from crashing. This ensures system stability and enhanced performance.

In the case of a Mac, the waiting cursor is a symbol of frozen apps. It may take hours to go back to its working state and hence quitting forcibly might seem like the only viable option. Although Mac is great, there are times, when the application stops working midway, that is, freezes abruptly while working on it.

The initial response to such a situation is to try and normally quit them. But more often than not it gets very difficult to normally quit the program. That is where force quit comes along.

Force quitting may help the application restart, and prevent the machine from crashing, while ensuring system stability and enhanced performance

In the case of Android, any application can be force-stopped by the application manager. For Windows, an application can be force quit by pressing CTRL + ALT + DELETE together and then selecting the appropriate option from the drop-down list in the Task Manager. But for Mac, there is more than one way that one can avail to force stop an application.

The Top Ways to Force Quit on Mac:

When an app freezes and normally quitting does not help, killing the app (or apps) by force quitting is the go-to option. If the app that was being worked on was saved at least once there is a chance the progress will not be lost. Although it may seem troublesome at first, quitting forcibly is necessary to save time and the processor of the device. So, here are some helpful methods on how to force quit on mac!

1. From the Activity Monitor:

Not many users are aware of this method using an activity monitor that can be used to force quit on a mac. The activity monitor is similar to the Task Bar in Windows This is very similar to the “Control Alt Delete” method used in Windows to stop the freeze of the application. When users want to force quit an app in Mac, the following steps can be followed,

· The first step in this process is to press the “Command + Space” buttons simultaneously from the keyboard. An alternative to this step is to click on the Spotlight option at the top-right corner of the screen.

· Next, the user has to search for the “Activity Monitor” option in the Spotlight Search menu.

· Finally, an application is chosen to force quit from the “Application Monitor list” and then click on the “Force a process to quit” option is selected to choose force quit. This is one of the best methods on how to force quit on Mac.

2. Using the Menu Bar:

Another popular method on how to force quit on Mac is by using the Menu Bar. The go-to method opted by most apple users to kill an application is by following the steps given below from the Mac menu bar. The steps to be followed to do the same are, as follows,

· Firstly, the user should click on the Apple icon present at the left-top corner of the screen.

· Then the “force quit” option is selected from the drop-down list.

· It will then redirect to the “Force quit application” window.

· The “Force quit” option has to be clicked after selecting the required application that needs to be quit.

3. Using the keyboard:

It is the perfect solution when the mouse is lagging or there is some issue with the cursor. To freeze the application, we follow the following steps,

· To begin with the process, the user has to press

Command + Option + Esc buttons simultaneously from the keyboard.

· This will be redirected to the “Force quit application” window.

· After being redirected, an application is selected from the list.

· Then the user clicks on the “force quit”

4. Using the dock:

Another great way to quit an application is by using the dock available at the bottom of the screen. The steps for doing the same are,

· Select the frozen application from the dock bar.

· The user should right-click or control options click on the frozen app’s icon.

· The “force quit” option should be selected to quit from the frozen app.

5. Using the Restart Finder:

Another method on how to force quit on Mac is by using Finder. The user can use the Restart finder when several apps get frozen. If none of the above-mentioned ways fails to work for the frozen applications, the user can search for finder and click on finder from the list of apps. The relaunch option is to be selected to restart the finder.

Option To Enable The System To Quit

If one of the mentioned ways does not work for how to force quit on Mac, the user should try another one. But when all the applications freeze simultaneously and none of the mentioned methods work, you must restart your Mac forcibly.

There are quite a few ways of doing that.

The user can shut down or reboot the device forcefully by pressing the power button or by holding the command + control + power buttons together.

Also, forcing the device to shut down might result in loss of progress or work made by the user on the device.

The Solution To Freezing That Leads To Force Quit

One of the common reasons for the occurrence of the freezing of the applications resulting in the need for the force quit option is generally due to the absence of space in the Mac. One practical way to increase storage is by increasing the RAM by upgrading the existing memory or by buying memory.

But currently, in the case of the latest models of Mac that is not possible for the inbuilt storage. So the only option left is to buy a new machine which can be extremely expensive. So instead of how to force quit on mac, the user can try to clear the storage space by freeing up disk space.

Undo A Force Quit In Mac

Unfortunately, force quit cannot be undone or reversed, and data is lost. A warning box pops up warning about the loss of the file. Although someone well versed with computers might be able to retrieve a little data from the RAM by performing some extensive digging. As for some apps are concerned, they might store the work in progress to be retrieved by the user post force quitting.

Downsides Of Force Quit

Along with the loss of files and data, forcibly quitting an app may mess up the drive of the device and have an impact on the longevity of the Mac. So, you can use the above-mentioned hacks for how to force quit on Mac.

Last Updated on August 21, 2021 by Icy Tech Team