An unused account on your Mac leaves behind a login and files you no longer need. You can remove it through Users & Groups and choose exactly what happens to those files. These steps cover macOS Tahoe 26, with separate options for guest access, connected accounts, and a whole-Mac reset.
Delete a Mac user account
This removes the local login and its home folder, including the files inside it.
Save any files you need before deleting the home folder.
Log out of the account you want to delete.
Sign in using another administrator account.
Open System Settings from the Apple menu.
Select Users & Groups.
Click the Info button beside the user you want to remove.
Click Delete User to open the deletion options.
Select Delete the home folder. To preserve the files instead, use one of the options in the file-saving section below.
Click Delete User again to complete the removal.
Check what's blocking deletion
You cannot delete your own active login through these settings. The account you're removing must be logged out, and you must be signed in as another administrator.
Log out of the target account. From the other administrator account, retry through Apple menu > System Settings > Users & Groups > the user's Info button > Delete User. Apple's supported administration tools also prevent deletion of the last administrator or secure-token-enabled user.
If deletion still fails on a work or school Mac, ask your organization's administrator to remove the account. If your goal is to remove every account from your own Mac, use the whole-Mac erase option below.
Keep the files while removing the login
Log out of the account you want to remove.
Sign in using another administrator account.
Open Apple menu > System Settings > Users & Groups.
Click the user's Info button.
Choose Delete User.
For an archive, select Save the home folder in a disk image. The archive goes in /Users/Deleted Users/.
To leave the folder in place instead, select Don’t change the home folder. The files remain under /Users/.
Click Delete User to remove the login with your chosen file option.
Keep the archive or retained home folder until you're sure you no longer need its contents.
Turn off Guest User access
Guest access has its own switches: you disable it rather than delete an ordinary account.
- 1.Have the guest log out; guest-session files are automatically deleted at logout.
- 2.Sign in as an administrator.
- 3.Open Apple menu > System Settings > Users & Groups.
- 4.Click the Info button beside Guest User.
- 5.Turn off Allow guests to log in to this computer.
- 6.Turn off Allow guest users to connect to shared folders if you also want to stop network guest access.
Disconnect an email or Apple Account
Use these options when you want to remove a connected account while keeping your Mac login. Removing a Google, Exchange, or Yahoo connection leaves the provider's online account intact.
Open System Settings > Internet Accounts.
Select the account you want to disconnect.
Click Delete Account.
Click OK to confirm.
To stop just one service instead of removing the connection, turn off its switch, such as Mail, Calendar, or Notes.
For Apple Account sign-out, open Apple menu > System Settings > your name. Signing out disconnects Apple services on this Mac; your local login and Apple Account remain.
Click Sign Out.
Choose which iCloud data to retain on the Mac.
Click Keep a Copy where offered.
Confirm with Sign Out, or Sign Out and Remove Cards if you use Apple Pay.
Erase every account before handing over your Mac
On Apple silicon or T2-equipped Intel Macs running macOS Ventura 13 or later, this removes all users, apps, settings, and data while keeping the installed operating system.
- 1.Back up the data you want to keep.
- 2.Open Apple menu > System Settings > General > Transfer or Reset > Erase All Content and Settings.
- 3.Authenticate as an administrator and review the removal summary.
- 4.Click Continue and provide your Apple Account credentials if requested.
- 5.Confirm with Erase All Content & Settings.
- 6.Complete activation.
Handle accounts managed by work or school
On a managed Mac, your organization controls account removal. If you cannot remove a managed login yourself, ask its administrator to issue the Delete User command through device management. On a Mac, that command only works on a supervised, managed Mac and is sent over the device channel; on an unsupervised managed Mac it isn't available, so removal depends on how the Mac is enrolled and what your local account is allowed to do. The user must be logged out, and the command cannot delete the last administrator.
For an email or other account installed by a removable configuration profile, open Apple menu > System Settings > General > Device Management. Select the profile, then click the Remove button. Removing the profile also removes the account information it installed.
If profile removal is restricted, ask your organization's administrator to remove it through its device-management service.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I delete a sharing-only account without choosing what happens to its files?
Yes. Sharing-only accounts have no home folder and are removed immediately. As an administrator, open Apple menu > System Settings > Users & Groups, click the account's Info button, then click Delete User.
How do I permanently delete my Apple Account?
Back up needed cloud data and sign out of your devices first. Sign in at privacy.apple.com and select Request to delete your account. Complete the verification steps and retain the access code. This permanently deletes your online identity and the data associated with it across Apple services, apart from data Apple has to keep for legal, regulatory, or financial-reporting reasons.
Can I delete just one Mac login remotely through Find My?
No. Find My erases the whole device. The Mac must already have Find My configured. An offline erase request waits until the Mac reconnects, and Activation Lock remains enabled.
Do I need to download an app to delete a Mac account?
No. Selective account deletion is built into macOS through System Settings > Users & Groups.