How to make Mac apps quit when you close the last window
Click the red button and the app keeps running in the Dock. Make closing the last window quit it, like on Windows.
Short answer
macOS keeps most apps running after their last window closes, and has no setting to change it. MacFixes quits the app when you close its last window.
What macOS gives you
By design, most Mac apps stay open with no windows — the dot under the Dock icon stays lit — until you press ⌘Q. A few apps quit on their own when their window closes (System Settings, for example), but there’s no system setting to make others behave that way.
How MacFixes fixes it
- 1Add the fixOpen MacFixes Settings → Windows and add “Quit when the last window closes”. Fixes are off until you add them.
- 2Allow AccessibilitymacOS asks for Accessibility permission so MacFixes can see when an app’s last window closes.
- 3Close windows as usualWhen an app’s last window closes, MacFixes quits it. Apps that should keep running — music players and chat apps — start as exceptions, and you can add your own.
This is one of 28 fixes in MacFixes.
Something else your Mac won’t do? Request it — we build it.
Questions
Will it quit Finder?
No. Finder is always left alone.
What about minimised windows or windows on another desktop?
Those still count as open, so the app isn’t quit.
Can I keep some apps running?
Yes. Music, Spotify, Mail, Slack and similar apps start on the exception list, and you can add or remove any app.