In 2017, Adobe announced that it would stop the development and distribution of Flash Player by the end of 2020. The team would block Flash content from running on all supported platforms since January 12, 2021. So, Adobe Flash Player is basically dead now. While most of its services are removed automatically on all the platforms and browsers, there are some things you need to do to ensure your Mac is Flash-free. In this article, we will provide you a step-by-step guide on How to Completely Uninstall Adobe Flash Player From Mac.
Method 1: Use Adobe Flash Player Uninstaller
Adobe has provided the flash player uninstaller for macOS for a quick and easy process. Depending on your macOS version, you will have to download a different uninstaller:
- For Mac OS X, version 10.6 and later: uninstall_flash_player_osx.dmg
- Mac OS X, version 10.4 and 10.5: uninstall_flash_player_osx.dmg
- Mac OS X, version 10.3 and earlier: uninstall_flash_player_osx_10.2.dmg
After you’ve downloaded the appropriated uninstaller, here’s what you need to do:
For Mac OS X 10.4 or later
- Open the Uninstaller.
- Select Uninstall.
- Close all browsers if any are open (you can do this manually or by clicking each browser name in the uninstaller dialog box).
- Wait for the uninstallation process to complete.
- Click Done.
- Open Finder, then locate and delete the directory /Library/Preferences/Macromedia/Flash\Player.
- Locate and delete the directory /Library/Caches/Adobe/Flash\Player.
For Mac OS X 10.1 to 10.3
- Open the Uninstaller.
- You may need to enter your username and password.
- Click Continue.
- After the process is completed, click Done
Method 2. Use Adobe Flash Player Install Manager
- Open the Menu bar at the top of the screen.
- Select Go>Utilities from the drop-down menu.
- In the Utilities folder, find and open the Adobe Flash Player Install Manager application.
- Click on Uninstall
- If prompted, enter your Mac password to allow the uninstallation and click on Install Helper.
- You will be asked to close all the opening browsers. You can close them manually or click on them in the prompted window.
- After the process is complete, a window will popup to confirm that Adobe Flash Player has been removed from your computer.
Method 3: Use Third-party Applications
Alternatively, you can also use third-party applications such as App Cleaner and Uninstaller, CCleaner, or CleanMyMac X to uninstall Adobe Flash Player on your Mac. Most of these apps are quite straightforward to use. You just need to open them up, switch to uninstall mode, locate Adobe Flash Player and remove it from your Mac.
How To Confirm that Flash Player has been removed on your Mac
To confirm that it has been removed from your computer, head over to the Adobe Flash Player website at https://helpx.adobe.com/flash-player.html
- Under the first step, click on the button that says Check Now.
- If the uninstallation process was successful, you will see the a status demonstrating that that Flash Player is not installed on your computer.
And there you go, now you know how to completely remove Adobe Flash Player from your Mac. If you have any questions, please let us know in the comments!
