{"id":86567,"date":"2023-08-29T17:23:23","date_gmt":"2023-08-29T22:23:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eshop.macsales.com\/blog\/?p=86567"},"modified":"2023-08-29T17:25:27","modified_gmt":"2023-08-29T22:25:27","slug":"how-to-quit-all-apps-at-the-same-time-on-a-mac","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eshop.macsales.com\/blog\/86567-how-to-quit-all-apps-at-the-same-time-on-a-mac\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Quit All Apps At the Same Time on a Mac"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It\u2019s easy to quit an app in macOS. And if you need to quit all apps simultaneously that\u2019s also a breeze. Let\u2019s look at how to do this in macOS Ventura.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Closing one app at a time vs. closing a window on macOS<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If there\u2019s an app that you only use occasionally, it\u2019s best to quit it when you\u2019re not using it. As Apple notes, apps use significant energy, so there\u2019s no need to spend that energy unnecessarily. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To quit an app, choose App Name<\/em> > Quit App<\/em> in the menu bar<\/a>. For example, choose Preview > Quit Preview (or press the keyboard shortcut Command-Q).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However<\/strong>, note this unique feature of macOS: if you click the red Close button in the top-left corner of an app\u2019s window, the window closes, but the app remains open<\/em>. In other words, you haven\u2019t truly quit the app.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Quit
Quit app in menu bar<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

If an app has windows open when you quit it, the windows conveniently pop up the next time you open the app. To have app windows close and not be shown the next time you open apps, choose Apple menu \uf8ff > System Settings, click Desktop & Dock in the sidebar, go to Windows & Apps on the right, then turn on \u201cClose windows when quitting an application.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Close
Close windows when quitting an app<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

How to quit all apps simultaneously in macOS<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The easiest way to quit all running apps at once is by using the Automator app to create an automation. Automator is found in the Applications folder. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00b0 Launch Automator and select New Document<\/strong> (or press Command + N).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Automator
Automator > New Document<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u00b0 Select Application <\/strong>and click Choose<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00b0 In the top-left corner, ensure that the Actions<\/strong> option is selected. You will see that a lot of actions are included in the Library. Scroll down the list of actions until you find Quit All Applications<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"
Actions > Quit All Applications<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u00b0 Drag the \u201cQuit All Applications\u201d into the gray area on the right. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00b0 Click File > Save<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00b0 Name your application in the Save As box and click Save. (We called ours Kill Switch.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now in your Applications folder you have an app that when opened, will quit all other apps. Double-click on its icon to run the automation. You can even drag the app into your dock for easy access.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Tip<\/strong>: By default, macOS uses the Automator robot icon as the icon for any apps you create from scripts. If you want to change the icon, find the app you created in Finder, right click it and then click Get Info. Copy the image or icon you want to use, and then click the small icon preview in the top-left corner of the Get Info window. Then press Command+V. Voila. Icon changed. If you like the icon we used here, you can download it by clicking here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sometimes, you just need to shut it all down. Here’s a handy shortcut for quitting all running apps at the same time in macOS.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":108,"featured_media":86599,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"spay_email":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"class_list":["post-86567","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tech-tips"],"yoast_head":"\nHow to Quit All Apps At the Same Time on a Mac<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Sometimes, you just need to shut it all down. 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