To force quit an app on a Mac when it is frozen, follow these steps:
- Press Option (Alt) + Command (⌘) + Escape (Esc) keys simultaneously. This opens the Force Quit Applications window
- In the Force Quit window, select the unresponsive app from the list and click Force Quit
- If the app is Finder and it is unresponsive, select Finder and click Relaunch to restart it
If the Force Quit window does not open or the app refuses to quit:
- Try force quitting the app by right-clicking (or Control-clicking) its icon in the Dock, then choose Force Quit from the menu
- Use Activity Monitor : Open Spotlight (Command + Space), type "Activity Monitor," open it, find the app in the list, select it, then click the X button and choose Force Quit
- Use the keyboard shortcut Command + Option + Shift + Escape held for about 3 seconds to force quit the frontmost app directly
If none of these methods work and your Mac is still frozen:
- Restart your Mac by clicking the Apple menu and selecting Restart
- If the Mac won’t restart normally, press and hold the power button for about 5-10 seconds until it shuts down, then press the power button again to turn it back on
These methods will help you regain control when an app or your Mac freezes. Note that force quitting an app will close it immediately without saving any unsaved work
