System & FinderStartup Items
Mac startup manager for login items and background helpers
The built-in Mac startup manager is System Settings › General › Login Items & Extensions. Select an app under Open at Login and click the − button to remove it, and switch off helpers under App Background Activity. Startup Items in MrFixable lists both on one page, with the app each hidden helper belongs to.
Try free for 14 daysBuy for $19.99 Lifetime license
One of 68 fixes in MrFixable. Lifetime license, no subscription. Updated October 22, 2026. Works on macOS 14.2 Sonoma and later. Checked on macOS 26 Tahoe.
What Startup Items does
The problem
Apps add themselves to your login, and many also install background helpers, such as updaters and sync agents, that run without a window. System Settings often lists those helpers under the developer's name, like “Google LLC”, so it's hard to tell what you're turning off.
With Startup Items
One page lists the apps that open at login, the background helpers and the system services, each with the name and icon of the app it belongs to. Turn off what you don't need, and turn it back on any time.
- Real namesEach background helper shows the app it belongs to, who signed it, and whether it's running now. Right-click one and choose Show in Finder to see its file.
- Off now and at every loginTurning a helper off stops it right away and keeps it from starting again. The app itself still works, though it may stop updating itself or syncing in the background.
- Nothing is lostAn app you remove from login stays on the list, marked Removed from login, so you can add it back with one click.
Good to know
macOS asks once whether MrFixable may control System Events, which is how it reads and changes the apps that open at login.
System services run for every user, often for VPNs, security software and device drivers. They're shown so you know what's there, but changing them needs an administrator, so turn them off in System Settings or remove their app.
On macOS Sequoia the background list in System Settings is called Allow in the Background, and on Sonoma the page is called Login Items.
Your changes are macOS settings, so they stay when you switch this fix off.
Questions
How do I change Mac startup programs?
Open the Login Items settings. 1. Choose Apple menu › System Settings. 2. Click General, then Login Items & Extensions. 3. Under Open at Login, select an app and click − to remove it, or click + to add one. The change takes effect the next time you log in.How do I check Mac startup programs?
Look in two places in System Settings › General › Login Items & Extensions. 1. Open at Login lists apps that open when you log in. 2. App Background Activity lists helpers that run without a window. Startup Items shows both on one page, with the app each helper belongs to.How do I delete login items and extensions on a Mac?
Remove login items with the − button, and switch extensions off. 1. Open System Settings › General › Login Items & Extensions. 2. Select an app under Open at Login and click −. 3. Under Extensions, click the Info button next to a type, turn items off and click Done. Deleting the app removes its extensions.How do I remove apps from login items on a Mac?
Select the app and click −. 1. Open System Settings › General › Login Items & Extensions. 2. Click the app under Open at Login. 3. Click the − button below the list. Some apps add themselves back when they open, so also turn off the app's own Open at Login setting.How do I remove login items under Allow in the Background on a Mac?
Switch them off rather than remove them. 1. Open System Settings › General › Login Items & Extensions. 2. Find the list called App Background Activity on Tahoe, or Allow in the Background on Sequoia. 3. Turn off the switch next to the item. To remove it for good, uninstall the app it belongs to.How do I manage startup items on a Mac?
Use one page for all of them with Startup Items. 1. Open MrFixable and click Startup Items. 2. Allow MrFixable to control System Events when macOS asks. 3. Remove apps under Open at login. 4. Turn off helpers under Run in the background. Turn anything back on with the same switch.How do I remove Mac startup items?
Turn them off rather than delete their files. Background helpers live as small files in ~/Library/LaunchAgents, /Library/LaunchAgents and /Library/LaunchDaemons, and apps often put deleted ones back. Turning a helper off in System Settings or in Startup Items stops it and keeps it from starting again.
Sources
Guides
- How to stop apps opening at startup on a MacRemove startup apps on a Mac in System Settings › General › Login Items & Extensions, and find out what the background items listed by developer really are.
- How to delete apps on a Mac that won't deleteHow to delete apps on a Mac that won't delete: why Finder says an app is open or required by macOS, how to quit hidden helpers, and when to use Safe Mode.