How To Force Quit On Mac - Parallels

Few things are as frustrating as the spinning beach ball of death.

You’re busy working, studying, or maybe just browsing your favorite websites, and then — the dreaded spinning pinwheel cursor pops up on your screen, and your clicks do nothing. Nada.

While unresponsive apps can be frustrating, the Mac “force quit” feature resolves that issue.

Like using Ctrl>Alt>Delete to access the task manager on Windows devices, force quit allows Mac users to force an unresponsive app to close so they can get back to work quickly.

In this post, I’ll explore several different ways to use force quit to close unresponsive apps, explain why this happens, and provide tips on how to prevent it.

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How to force quit on a Mac using the Apple menu

One way to force quit unresponsive apps is by using the Apple menu. While this isn’t the simplest method, it is straightforward.

1. Click the Apple logo in the upper-left corner of your Mac screen

2. Click “Force Quit Finder” from the drop-down menu

3. A window will pop up displaying currently open apps. Select the app you want to force quit.

4. Click the “Force Quit” button at the bottom of the window.

The unresponsive app will be forced to close. If you still need to use it, you can reopen the app, which will likely solve any issues.

If this doesn’t work for some reason (or if your entire screen is frozen), you can use a few other tricks to force quit.

How to force quit on a Mac using keyboard shortcuts

If you were a Windows user in another life, this is like the Ctrl>Alt>Delete shortcut.

The force quit shortcut is especially useful if several apps are not responding or if you’re not sure which app is causing the issue.

1. Press the Option + Command + Escape buttons at the same time

2. Choose the unresponsive app

3. Tap the “Force Quit” button

That’s it! This shortcut is quick and satisfying (especially when you’re frustrated by apps not responding!), but if Apple has you covered if need another option.

How to force quit on a Mac using the Activity Monitor

The Activity Monitor on your Mac provides detailed info about your computer’s hardware and software.

It’s very similar to the Task Manager on a Windows device — and it’s another way you can access force quit. Here’s how:

1. Open Finder (generally located on your toolbar.)

2. Look for the Activity Monitor app icon or use the search function. Click to open.