How to uninstall Microsoft Office from a Mac

Before uninstalling Office: protect local data

A document saved in Documents is different from an email kept only in Outlook’s local data store. Confirm where your information actually lives before removing either. Open important files from their saved location, check the web versions of your mailboxes and notebooks, and back up anything that is only on this Mac.

Pay particular attention to Outlook folders stored locally, unsent messages, imported archives and address books that are not on a server. A successful sign-in to webmail does not prove those items are backed up. Keep a complete Mac backup if you are uncertain.

Microsoft’s .olm export instructions apply to legacy Outlook and explicitly discuss that limitation. They describe Tools › Export, or the export command in the File menu where offered. Do not assume the same button exists in every current Outlook edition. If yours does not offer export, use Microsoft’s guidance for that edition before proceeding with data removal.

Remove the Office apps in Finder

1. Save documents and quit Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and OneNote. Quit other Microsoft apps using shared data while you work.
2. Open Finder and choose Go › Applications.
3. Select only the Microsoft apps you intend to remove, then use File › Move to Trash. Finder may ask for administrator authorization.
4. Remove stale Dock shortcuts if desired, then restart after completing the selected cleanup.

This follows Microsoft’s Mac removal procedure. Finder works on macOS 15 Sequoia, macOS 26 Tahoe and macOS 27; there is no Windows-style Office uninstaller to run on these Macs.

If you only want to remove one app, stop before deleting shared Office data. You can remove Outlook while keeping Word, for example, without treating every Microsoft-named folder as unwanted. For an app that refuses to move because a process is open, see the stuck-app removal guide.

Review Microsoft’s Library cleanup separately

Use Finder’s Go › Go to Folder and open ~/Library/Containers. Microsoft lists containers for Office apps and related services on its removal page; names can be displayed as app names rather than bundle identifiers. Use that current list to match the installed edition, and skip absent entries. Do not use a wildcard search to remove every Microsoft result.

The same article names these Group Containers in full:

• ~/Library/Group Containers/UBF8T346G9.ms
• ~/Library/Group Containers/UBF8T346G9.Office
• ~/Library/Group Containers/UBF8T346G9.OfficeOsfWebHost

These are deletion candidates only when you have chosen a complete Office cleanup and preserved needed Outlook data. Move reviewed items to the Trash in Finder, rather than issuing a permanent Terminal deletion. Do not remove the Containers or Group Containers parent folders.

If another Microsoft app still uses shared resources, leave those resources alone until you understand the dependency. “Leftover” means no longer needed, not merely something left after deleting a visible app. Restoring only part of a shared database from the Trash may not recreate a working setup, which is another reason to make a backup first.

Remove Teams as its own app

Teams is separate from the Office apps. Microsoft’s Teams removal instructions say to quit Teams, then move the Teams app from Applications to the Trash. Check for the installed edition rather than assuming a filename from an older release.

Do not run a “clear Teams cache” procedure as though it were an uninstall. Resetting a cache and removing the app have different purposes. This page does not provide speculative Teams support-file paths; use Microsoft’s current instructions for your version if a reinstall needs a reset.

If Teams is required by work, ask IT. Management can restore it and can control sign-in and background behavior. Switching off a login item does not cancel the organization’s policy.

Leave Microsoft AutoUpdate until last

Microsoft AutoUpdate can serve several Microsoft apps, not just Word. Removing it while supported Microsoft apps remain can remove their normal update route. Check the remaining applications before deciding whether the updater is unwanted.

To identify it through an installed Office app, use Help › Check for Updates. Microsoft also documents AutoUpdate under /Library/Application Support/Microsoft/MAU2.0/Microsoft AutoUpdate.app. That is a shared Library location; it is not one of the user-container folders above and should not be deleted by a broad cleanup command.

If you are removing the last Microsoft app and the updater remains, consult Microsoft’s current AutoUpdate support instructions. Keep its files intact if you are only repairing Office; an update or reinstall may be the appropriate fix. Updating apps on Mac covers the different update channels.

Licenses, subscriptions and OneDrive are separate

Uninstalling Office does not cancel Microsoft 365. Use the Services & subscriptions area of the Microsoft account that pays for the plan, or the store or reseller that bills you. Verify the cancellation and any remaining term there.

For activation troubleshooting or switching a license, Microsoft supplies a license removal tool. It is a separate operation, not a necessary step for every app uninstall. Read its sign-in requirements and know which license you intend to activate next before using it.

OneDrive is a sync client with its own account and file availability. Removing Office does not unlink it. Before removing a sync app, download and copy the files you need outside its synced location. The same distinction applies to any documents you opened from shared cloud storage.

How Tend helps

Tend’s Pro Uninstaller can move a chosen Office app and matched support files in your own Library to the macOS Trash. Review shared containers carefully, especially when keeping another Office app; a cleanup selection is not an Outlook export.

Startup Items is free for reviewing and switching off identified helpers, with administrator approval for system services. The Uninstaller does not remove shared system daemons or replace Microsoft’s license-removal and account-cancellation procedures.

Questions

Related guides

Sources

• Microsoft, Uninstall Office for Mac.
• Microsoft, Export an archive in legacy Outlook for Mac.
• Microsoft, Uninstall Microsoft Teams.
• Microsoft Learn, Microsoft AutoUpdate and msupdate.
• Microsoft, Remove Office license files.

Sources checked 23 October 2026. Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we'll fix it.