Though Dropbox can be a great cloud storage service, it’s possible you’ll find one you like better for sharing files and doing regular backups of your Mac. If that’s the case, you’ll want to uninstall Dropbox from your Mac to prevent file backups from going to the wrong place and to free up some space on your computer.
Because Dropbox can access so much of your Mac though, it takes a few steps to fully remove it. Check out our guide below to learn how to completely uninstall the Dropbox application and disconnect your Dropbox account from your Mac.
How to Remove the Dropbox App From Your Mac
The first part of uninstalling Dropbox from your Mac is a two-step process. The first step is to unlink your Dropbox storage from the web and quit Dropbox functions on your Mac. Then, you can delete the app.
Step 1. Unlink Your Dropbox Storage From Your Mac
To unlink your Dropbox Storage, click theDropbox iconin the menu bar (indicated by an open box). Then, click theprofileicon and chooseQuit. Dropbox will stop syncing with the web, and you can now alter the app.
Step 2. Delete the Dropbox Mac App
To delete the actual Dropbox application, you’ll follow the steps used touninstall most apps on a Mac.
Go to yourApplicationsfolder and locateDropbox.Control-click (right-click) on it and chooseMove to Trash. Alternatively, you can click and drag the Dropbox Mac app to your Trash.
Next,Control-click on yourTrashfolder in the Dock and chooseEmpty Trash. The Dropbox app will now be removed from your Mac!
Remove Remaining Dropbox Files From Your Mac
The above steps removed the Dropbox app from your Mac, but it didn’t delete all of the files created on your Mac when you first set up and started using Dropbox.
So, like when youmanually uninstall Docker from your Mac, you’ll have to go into Finder and remove certain files on your own to complete the uninstallation process.
To remove the residual Dropbox files on your Mac, here’s what you need to do:
Uninstall the Dropbox Finder Extensions
If you followed the above steps, Dropbox should now be fully removed from your Mac. But if there are still some items left behind in your Quick Actions or Finder navigation bar (or if you only want to remove these parts while leaving Dropbox itself alone), you need to do a couple more things.
To remove Dropbox from your Mac’s Locations section, follow these steps:
To remove Dropbox as a Share option, here’s what you need to do:
That’s it! You’ve completely removed Dropbox and all its residual files and Finder extensions from your Mac.
Remove Dropbox From Your Mac Whenever You Want
Dropbox can be great for sharing files and providing cloud-based backups for important files on your Mac. But if you don’t want it on your computer anymore, it’s thankfully not hard to uninstall. You just need to remove the application—and know where to find some hidden files that might get initially left behind.
This process won’t damage or delete anything from your Dropbox account. This will just remove Dropbox from your Mac. Buf if you’re switching to a different cloud storage solution, remember to delete all your files and folders from Dropbox after moving them over.
