MAC
How to stop apps from opening at login on a Mac
Real screenshot · MacBook Neo, macOS 27.0.1In short
Open System Settings, click General, then Login Items & Extensions. Select an app under Open at Login and click the minus button, then switch off apps you do not need under Background App Activity.
You log in to check one email, and half the Dock wakes up with you. Apps that open by themselves when you log in make the Mac slower to start and keep running in the background. You can remove them from the list without uninstalling them.
4 of 4 steps show a real screenshot from our MacBook Neo.
Steps
- 1
Open System Settings
Click the Apple menu in the top left corner and choose System Settings….
- 2
Click General, then Login Items & Extensions
Click General in the sidebar, then click Login Items & Extensions on the right.
On our MacBook Neo with macOS 27.2 the row is still called Login Items & Extensions, but the page it opens is headed just Login Items.
- 3
Remove an app from Open at Login
The Open at Login list shows apps that open when you log in. Click an app to select it, then click the minus button below the list.
On our MacBook Neo with macOS 27.2 there was one item, with Application in the Kind column. Until you select it, the minus button stays grey.
- 4
Switch off background items
Under Background App Activity, switch off the apps you rarely use.
On our MacBook Neo with macOS 27.2 the list held more apps than fit on the screen, among them Adobe Creative Cloud, Cinema 4D, GoogleUpdater, Icon Composer, LibreOffice, Podcasts and Xcode, each with its own switch, all switched on. Under each name it says whether the app is running: Adobe Creative Cloud read Running in background, Podcasts Last ran in background 1 week ago, the rest Not running in background.
If you do not see this option
- There is no Login Items & Extensions under General. Apple says that on macOS Ventura it is called Login Items, and the second list is called Allow in the Background. Sources: Change Login Items & Extensions settings on Mac, Change Login Items settings on Mac, Open items automatically when you log in on Mac
- The page is headed Login Items, not Login Items & Extensions. That is normal. On our MacBook Neo with macOS 27 the General row says Login Items & Extensions, but the page title reads Login Items.
- You cannot change the list. Apple says these settings are for an administrator of the Mac. Log in with an administrator account, or ask the person who manages the Mac. Sources: Change Login Items & Extensions settings on Mac, Change Login Items settings on Mac, Open items automatically when you log in on Mac
If this does not work
- The minus button does nothing. Select an app in the Open at Login list first. On our MacBook Neo the selected row is highlighted before you click the minus button.
- An item in the list has a warning symbol. Apple says that item won't open automatically because it was moved or deleted. It is only a leftover now. Select it and click the minus button to tidy the list.
- You want to skip the login items just once. Say you need the Mac fast for one meeting. Apple says you can hold Shift while you click Log In and release it when the Dock appears. If you do not see the login window, restart and hold Shift from the progress bar until the desktop appears.
Good to know
A quick alternative for an app in the Dock: right-click its icon, choose Options and untick Open at Login.
If windows from your last session keep coming back like guests who will not take the hint, untick "Reopen windows when logging back in" in the dialog that appears when you restart or shut down.
Mac still slow after login? Mac running slow? 8 fixes to try.
See what is using the processor right now: How to use Activity Monitor on a Mac.
macOS 27 compared with macOS 26: We rewrote steps 1, 2, 3 and 4 to match the macOS 27 screens. The macOS 26 page keeps the steps and screenshots as they were.
Version history: the macOS 26 version of this guide, with its own screenshots.
About this guide
- Device
- Mac
- Shown on
- macOS 27.0.1 (MacBook Neo), macOS 27.2 (MacBook Neo)
- App
- System Settings
- Real screenshots
- 4 of 4 steps
- Checked
- November 2026
- Sources
- 3 official, linked below
Sources
Links checked November 2026. Menus and features can change with updates.Did this guide work for you?
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