Mac app keeps crashing or freezing? 5 fixes to try

howtosimply.com/guides/mac-app-keeps-crashing-or-freezing-8-fixes-to-try/ · Checked October 2026 · MacBook Neo · macOS 27.0.1

5 of 5 steps with real screenshots · 3 official sources below

Device

Mac

Shown on

macOS 27.0.1 (MacBook Neo)

App

System Settings

Real screenshots

5 of 5 steps

Checked

October 2026

Sources

3 official, linked below

Step by step

1. 

   Force the app to quit

   Choose Apple menu, Force Quit… or press Option-Command-Esc. Select the app and click Force Quit, then open it again from the Dock or the Applications folder. Changes you had not saved may be lost. On our MacBook Neo, with Calculator selected in the list of open apps, the button read Force Quit. We did not click it.

   Done

2. 

   Restart the Mac

   Choose Apple menu, Restart…. On our MacBook Neo, Restart… sits between Sleep and Shut Down….

   Done

3. 

   Update the app and macOS

   Install updates for the app from the App Store or from its maker, and for macOS under System Settings, General, Software Update. Apple's macOS 27 guide says the Apple menu shows the number of App Store updates next to App Store. Our MacBook Neo shows Your Mac is up to date (macOS 27 Golden Gate 27.0.1).

   Done

4. 

   Check for Intel-based apps

   Open System Settings, General, About. Our MacBook Neo lists Intel-based Apps with the note Support ending for Intel-based apps in macOS 28, and a Details… button. Ask the maker of such an app for an Apple silicon version.

   Done

5. 

   See if any app is Intel-based

   Open System Information in Applications, Utilities. Under Software, click Applications and sort by the Kind column. Rosetta Software is further down. On our MacBook Neo no app was of the kind Intel: 304 Apple Silicon, 14 Universal, 8 iOS and 5 Other. Rosetta Software read No information found.

   Done

If you do not see this option

• No Force Quit button With Finder selected, our MacBook Neo's window shows Relaunch instead of Force Quit. Select the frozen app in the list instead.
• App not in the Force Quit list The list shows open apps only. On our MacBook Neo it listed App Store, Calculator, Google Chrome, Photos, Preview and Terminal among others (step 1). If the app has already closed, open it again.

If this does not work

• It crashes with one file only Open another document in the app. If only one file fails, that file is damaged. If every file fails, reinstall the app: Apple's uninstall article says an uninstaller is the best way; without one, drag the app to the Trash. Source: Uninstall apps on your Mac
• It crashes after an update Apple's Mac guide says to uninstall app plug-ins or enhancements from other manufacturers: one you installed may no longer be compatible after an update to the app or macOS. Source: If an app freezes or quits unexpectedly on Mac
• It still crashes Unplug devices you connected recently, then start in safe mode to see whether software that loads at startup is involved. On a Mac with Apple silicon, Apple's safe mode page says: shut down, hold the power button until Loading startup options appears, select a volume, then hold Shift and click Continue in Safe Mode. Source: Start up your Mac in safe mode

About this guide

An app that shows the spinning wheel for minutes, or closes without warning, can be brought back with a few steps. If only one app is affected, look at that app and its files first.

Screenshots: MacBook Neo, macOS 27.0.1, dark mode.

Good to know

If several apps crash, test the hardware, including the memory: how to run Apple Diagnostics on a Mac.

Safe mode shows whether software that starts with the Mac is causing the crashes: how to start a Mac in safe mode.

More detail on the first step: how to force quit a frozen app on a Mac. If the whole Mac hangs: Mac keeps freezing or showing the spinning wheel.

In short: Force Quit, reopen, restart, update, other file, unplug devices, remove plug-ins, reinstall.