Ctrl-Alt-Delete on a Mac: how to force quit an app

On a Windows PC you press Ctrl-Alt-Delete when a program freezes. On a Mac that combination does nothing. The Mac version of Ctrl-Alt-Delete is Command + Option + Esc: it opens the window for force quitting an app. This article explains how that works, which other ways there are, and what to do when not one app but the whole Mac is stuck.

Blue Apple repairs MacBooks in Amsterdam. A Mac that keeps freezing can have a software problem, but also a hardware problem. Further down you read how to tell the difference.

The shortcut: Command + Option + Esc

1. Hold Command (⌘) and Option (⌥) and press Esc.
2. The Force Quit window appears with a list of open apps. An app that is not responding is marked "not responding".
3. Select the app and click Force Quit.

Note: anything you had not saved in that app is lost. Some apps, such as Pages and Word, save in the background and offer a recovered version the next time you open them.

Other ways to quit an app

• From the Apple menu. Click the Apple logo top left and choose Force Quit. You get the same window.
• From the Dock. Right-click (or Control-click) the app's icon. Hold Option; "Quit" changes into "Force Quit".
• From Activity Monitor. This is the Mac's task manager. Open it via Spotlight (Command + Space bar, type "activity"). You see which processes use a lot of processor or memory, and the button with the cross at the top stops a process.
• Just quit. If the app still responds, use Command + Q. That is cleaner than force quitting.

The whole Mac is frozen

If the pointer no longer responds and Command + Option + Esc does not work either, you can force the Mac off:

1. Hold the power button (on many MacBooks the Touch ID button top right) for about ten seconds until the screen goes black.
2. Wait a few seconds and turn the Mac on again.

Only do this when nothing else works: unsaved work is lost, and if the drive is writing at that moment a file can be damaged.

Other handy shortcuts that resemble Windows

• Lock the screen: Control + Command + Q (like Windows + L).
• Switch between apps: Command + Tab (like Alt + Tab).
• Open the task manager: Activity Monitor, via Spotlight (like Task Manager on Windows).
• Close a window: Command + W.

Does your Mac freeze often?

If it keeps happening with the same app, check for an update, or delete and reinstall the app. If the whole Mac freezes regularly, or restarts by itself with a message that there was a problem, there may be more going on: a nearly full drive, too little memory for what you do, overheating or a hardware fault. Also read MacBook runs hot or slow.

What we do at Blue Apple in Amsterdam

We test whether the problem is in the software or the hardware: we check the drive, the memory, the temperature and the battery. A Mac that freezes because of a bad drive or a logic board problem is not fixed by reinstalling. You first hear what is going on. More on our page about MacBook repair in Amsterdam.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a Mac key for Ctrl-Alt-Delete?

Not one key, but Command + Option + Esc does the same thing: it opens the window for force quitting apps.

What is the difference between quit and force quit?

When you quit, the app tidies up and asks whether you want to save. Force quit stops the app immediately.

The Finder is not responding. Can I quit that too?

Yes. In the Force Quit window the button for the Finder is called "Relaunch". The Finder then starts again straight away.