- Try a normal quit first
- Force quit with the keyboard
- Force quit from the Apple menu or the Dock
- When the Finder is the problem
- Force quit with Activity Monitor
- What force quit does to your work
- Using a Windows keyboard on your Mac
- If nothing will quit
- When the same app keeps freezing
- My verdict
- Frequently asked questions
To force quit on a Mac, press Option, Command and Esc together, select the frozen app in the Force Quit window and click Force Quit. You can also choose Force Quit from the Apple menu. Any unsaved work in that app will be lost.
A spinning beach ball that won't go away, a window that ignores every click: that's when you need force quit. It's the Mac's answer to Control-Alt-Delete on Windows, and it's quicker once you know the keys. Here's the order to try things in, so you lose as little work as possible.
Try a normal quit first
Apple's advice is to quit the usual way before you force anything, because an app that quits normally gets the chance to save your changes. Press Command-Q, or choose Quit from the app's own menu next to the Apple logo. Give it a few seconds. If the app is busy rather than frozen, it may still close cleanly.
One thing people often miss: clicking the red close button in the corner shuts the window, not the app. The app keeps running, and you'll see a small dot under its icon in the Dock. So if an app seems to have closed but is still slowing things down, it probably never quit.
Force quit with the keyboard
- Press Option-Command-Esc (the Option key may say Alt). On a Mac with a Touch Bar, Esc is on the left of the Touch Bar.
- The Force Quit window opens with a list of open apps. A frozen one is often marked as not responding.
- Click the app, then click Force Quit.
- Confirm if you're asked. The app closes straight away.
Force quit from the Apple menu or the Dock
If the keyboard isn't responding either, click the Apple menu at the top left and choose Force Quit; the same window appears. There's also a Dock route: hold the Option key, right-click (or Control-click) the app's icon in the Dock, and the Quit option changes to Force Quit.
When the Finder is the problem
The Finder is always running, so you can't quit it like other apps. If your desktop or folders stop responding, open the Force Quit window, select Finder and click Relaunch. That restarts the Finder without touching your other apps.
Force quit with Activity Monitor
Activity Monitor is the Mac's version of the Windows Task Manager and it gives you more detail. Open it from Applications, Utilities, or search for it with Spotlight. A process that's stuck shows in red with Not Responding beside it. Select it, click the stop button at the top left and choose Force Quit. Apple warns that if the process has files open, you may lose data, and if other apps rely on it they could misbehave, so stick to the app you know is frozen.
| Method | Best when |
|---|---|
| Command-Q | The app is slow but still responds |
| Option-Command-Esc | One app is frozen and the keyboard works |
| Apple menu, Force Quit | The keyboard shortcut does nothing |
| Activity Monitor | You need to find what's hogging the Mac |
| Hold the power button | Nothing on screen responds at all |
What force quit does to your work
Force quit is blunt. The app doesn't get a chance to tidy up, so whatever you typed since your last save is gone. Some apps help: Pages, Keynote and many writing apps save as you go, and Microsoft Office often offers recovered files when you open it again. Browsers usually offer to reopen the tabs you had. But don't count on it. If an app has frozen while you're in the middle of something important, give it a minute or two before you force quit, because a busy app sometimes comes back on its own and saves you retyping.
Using a Windows keyboard on your Mac
On a PC keyboard plugged into a Mac, the Alt key does the Option key's job and the Windows logo key usually stands in for Command. So the force quit shortcut becomes Alt, Windows key and Esc. If that does nothing, use the Apple menu route instead, which works whatever keyboard you have.
If nothing will quit
If force quit doesn't work, restart the Mac from the Apple menu. If the Mac won't restart, Apple says to press and hold the power button for up to 10 seconds until the Mac turns off, then press it again to turn it back on. On laptops with Touch ID, the Touch ID button is the power button. Treat this as the last resort, because anything unsaved in every app is gone. When the Mac starts again, macOS may offer to reopen the windows you had open, which is useful if you were working across several apps.
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When the same app keeps freezing
- Update the app and macOS; freezes are often fixed in updates.
- Check whether a browser extension or plug-in is involved if it's Safari or Chrome.
- Look in Activity Monitor for apps using lots of memory in the background.
- If it's a music or streaming app, my fix for Spotify not working on a Mac walks through the usual causes.
Be wary of cleaner apps promising to stop freezes for good. Before installing one, read my look at whether MacKeeper is safe.
My verdict
Remember Option-Command-Esc and you'll rarely need more. Try Command-Q first to save your work, use Activity Monitor when you need to see what's going on, and keep the power button for the day nothing else responds.
Frequently asked questions
What is Control-Alt-Delete on a Mac?
Option-Command-Esc. It opens the Force Quit window, which does the same job.
Will force quitting lose my work?
It can. Anything unsaved in that app is lost, so try Command-Q first.
How do I force quit when the keyboard doesn't work?
Choose Force Quit from the Apple menu, or Option-click the app's Dock icon.
What do I do if the Finder freezes?
Open Force Quit, select Finder and click Relaunch.
How do I force my Mac to turn off?
Hold the power button for up to 10 seconds until it switches off.
