Written by
Connie Yang
How to Recover Deleted Apps on Mac With Simple & Quick Ways
Summary: This post offers validated and free methods to recover deleted apps on Mac. While the easiest and quickest way to restore deleted apps and their related files is to use iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac.
Applications on Mac are easy to be removed. If you find your apps disappeared from your MacBook due to one of the following cases, how can you recover the deleted apps on MacBook fast?
- Mistaken deletion from Launchpad or Finder.
- After a macOS update or reinstallation.
- Software conflicts with other programs.
- Clean installation of macOS.
- Mac storage cleaning.
Thankfully, this post is a full guide that offers almost all possible ways to find and recover deleted apps on Mac. Then, you can reinstall and use these apps normally.
How to recover deleted files on Mac?
This guide tells how to recover deleted or lost files, including photos, documents, apps, etc. on Mac before or after Trash Bin has been emptied. Read more >>
Can you bring back deleted apps?
Of course. Whether you download an application from the App Store, a website, or some other source, there's always a path to follow. So, when you mistakenly or even permanently removed the app from your Mac, you can get it back.
Recover deleted apps from Trash
If you just delete an app by clicking the icon in the Launchpad or move it to Trash in Finder, you can restore the deleted app easily as it just stays in your Mac Trash.
You can open Trash and find the deleted app. Then, right-click it and select Put Back. After that, you can find the app is restored to its original location.
Recover deleted apps from App Store
Unfortunately, if you can't find the deleted app from the Trash, you probably have emptied your Trash. In that case, you can consider reinstalling the permanently deleted app from the App Store only if it is downloaded or purchased from there.
Here's how to reinstall the permanently deleted app from the App Store:
- Open App Store from the Mac Dock.
- Click your user name from the lower-left corner of the App Store window. Then, you'll see all apps installed from App Store, including the deleted ones.
- Click on the blue icon under your deleted app to download it.
- Follow the app's installation guide to reinstall it on your Mac.
Recover deleted apps from iTunes (Music)
iTunes (or Music in macOS Monterey) is not only an app for playing and managing music files. It also can be used to manage and store your downloaded apps.
If you want to retrieve a deleted app that has ever been purchased and downloaded from the iTunes store, follow the steps below:
- Launch iTunes or Music from the Dock.
- Select iTunes Store from the left sidebar.
- Click the Purchased option on the right side of the iTunes Store section.
- Click the Apps option at the upper right corner of the window.
- Search for the deleted app and click the cloud icon on the app to reinstall it.
Recover deleted apps from iCloud
If you've synchronized your Mac to iCloud, you can try to restore your recently deleted app from icloud.com, even if the deleted app is shared by your friend over the air like AirDrop or other media.
- Search for icloud.com from Safari or another browser and log into your account.
- Click Account Settings under your user name.
- Click the Restore File option at the bottom.
- Select your deleted app if it is listed in the Restore Files filed and click Restore.
If your removed application is not listed in the Restore Files box, back to the home page of icloud.com. Then, select iCloud Drive and open the folders in iCloud Drive to search for the installer of your deleted app.
Recover deleted apps from the browser history
If the deleted application is downloaded from the internet, you can follow the browser history to reinstall it to your Mac.
Reinstall the deleted app from Safari:
- Open Safari and click the History option at the top Safari menu bar > Show All History.
- Find the website which you've downloaded the deleted app from.
- Open the website and download and reinstall the deleted app on your Mac.
Reinstall the removed app from Chrome:
- Open Chrome and click History at the top Chrome menu bar. Then, select Show Full History from the History dropdown menu.
- Browse the sites and find the one where you've downloaded the deleted program.
- Visit the site and download the deleted app again.
Recover deleted apps from Time Machine backup
If the above ways don't work for your specific situation, you can use Time Machine backup to find and retrieve your deleted app on MacBook. But if you haven't backed up your Mac recently, try the next solution.
How to restore the deleted app from Time Machine backup:
- Connect your Time Machine backup drive to your Mac.
- Open Time Machine from System Preferences.
- Scroll over the Up and Down arrows to find the deleted apps from the Application folder.
- Select the app and click Restore.
Now, you can find the deleted app is back to its original location.
Recover deleted apps using data recovery software
Since whether the above ways are useful or not depends on your situation, if they make no sense for you, you can use data recovery software to help you recover the deleted app on Mac.
A professional data recovery software supports almost all cases of deleted app recovery. It can't not only help you restore the installer of the deleted apps but also recover the apps' related files.
iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac is such a data recovery tool. You can free download it and follow the steps below to get your deleted app back on your Mac quickly.
- Download, install and open iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac on your Mac machine.
- Select your startup partition (macOS - Data or Macintosh HD - Data volume) and click scan.
- Preview the scanned results.
- Select your deleted app and its related data and click Recover to save it to a different location.
Verdict
Finding and recovering deleted apps on Mac is not intricate. This article offers almost all possible methods to meet your scenarios and is dedicated to helping you retrieve the deleted apps. You can choose the solution that is suitable for your case from this post.
FAQ about recovering deleted apps
A
There are many ways, you can put the deleted app back from Trash. Or, you can reinstall the deleted app from the App Store, iCloud, Time Machine backup, or from the same website.
A
Usually, the deleted apps are moved to the Trash on Mac. So, you can find it in the Trash. If you've permanently deleted them from the Trash, you have to reinstall them from the source where they are downloaded or find them from your Time Machine backup if had.
A
If you want to install the apps that your old Mac has to your new Mac, you can log into icloud.com on your new Mac and install the apps. Or, you can use Time Machine to back up the apps on your old Mac to a external hard drive, then connect the drive to your new Mac and restore these apps.
Amanda Wong
Vain Rowe
Anna Yuan
Sherry Song