Quitter

Quick summary

Quitter is a free macOS utility that automatically closes applications after they sit idle for a time you specify. It helps free up system resources and reduces on-screen distractions by dealing with inactive programs for you.

Why use it

Lower CPU and memory use by removing apps you aren’t actively using
Fewer interruptions and a cleaner desktop so you can stay focused

How it works

Set a timeout for each application and, when that interval passes with no activity, Quitter will take the chosen action for you. You type in the number of minutes or hours to wait, and the app enforces the timeout automatically.

Options you can choose

Hide an application instead of terminating it if you plan to return to it
Define a quit rule for every app and customize the idle interval to match your workflow

Examples of apps you can manage

Your web browser
The Mail app on macOS
Twitter (or other social apps)

Who benefits most

Quitter is ideal for people who want to concentrate without constant notifications, and for anyone who prefers to conserve battery and CPU by keeping only essential apps active.

Technical

Title

Quitter for Mac

Requirements

Language

No language has been specified.

Available languages

License

Free

Latest update

2022-07-15

Author

Marco Arment

Other Useful Business Software

Auth0 B2B Essentials: SSO, MFA, and RBAC Built In

Unlimited organizations, 3 enterprise SSO connections, role-based access control, and pro MFA included. Dev and prod tenants out of the box.

Auth0's B2B Essentials plan gives you everything you need to ship secure multi-tenant apps. Unlimited orgs, enterprise SSO, RBAC, audit log streaming, and higher auth and API limits included. Add on M2M tokens, enterprise MFA, or additional SSO connections as you scale.

Rate This App

User Reviews

Be the first to post a review of Quitter for Mac!

Related Software

MagicQuit

MagicQuit is a free utility that keeps your workspace tidy by automatically closing unused applications to conserve system resources and reduce distractions. It provides simple controls to select which apps to monitor, lets you define idle-time rules, and automatically detects idle applications so you don’t have to watch them manually. By stopping unnecessary background processes, MagicQuit can lower memory and CPU usage and improve responsiveness and battery life, while avoiding interference with programs you’re actively using. As an alternative, CheatSheet is a lightweight, free option that offers different but complementary productivity features.

Baseline

Baseline is a trial-only utility suite of productivity and system-management tools that helps users monitor and manage resources from a simple, user-friendly interface. It offers task and process controls to pause, reprioritize, or quit apps, live readouts for CPU, memory, disk, and network activity, and utilities to optimize performance and reclaim idle capacity. You can evaluate the feature set during a trial period and unlock the full version with a single purchase. Alternatives to consider include iStat Menus (detailed system-monitoring widgets), App Tamer (app CPU-management), and CheatSheet (keyboard-shortcut discovery).

Swift Quit

Swift Quit is a lightweight, free utility that automatically quits an application when its last window is closed. It presents a minimal, unobtrusive interface and reduces background processes by exiting apps that no longer have open windows. By removing the need to manually quit programs, it cuts visual clutter and helps you focus on current tasks while minimizing accidental resource use from forgotten apps. It’s aimed at users who want a simple, automatic enhancement to window and application lifecycle management without complex configuration.

RedQuits

RedQuits is a lightweight utility that automatically quits applications when their last window is closed. It monitors each app’s open windows and triggers a quit once the window count reaches zero, running unobtrusively with minimal overhead and requiring no ongoing configuration. The tool helps keep your workspace tidy by preventing orphaned apps from remaining active, frees memory and CPU by closing unused programs, and provides simple automatic app management without manual quitting. It is offered at no cost.

Tuck

Tuck is a lightweight utility that helps keep your workspace uncluttered by stashing away inactive windows and restoring them on demand. It uses a simple hotkey to hide and reveal idle application windows, offers basic options to choose which windows are affected and to customize the shortcut, and is designed to run quietly with minimal resource use. If you need more advanced layouts, consider alternatives that provide tiling, snapping, or richer window-arrangement features. tuck. is a cashback app that automatically rewards online and in-person purchases without requiring receipt uploads, promo codes, or loyalty stamps, and lets you direct support to nearby merchants. It provides a searchable, location-aware directory to discover businesses, supports linking bank accounts for automatic reward tracking and fast withdrawals to a debit account, and sends notifications when cashback posts. For other options, consider general payment or rewards services that offer merchant deals and peer payments.

Last Window Quits

Last Window Quits is a small utility that automatically quits applications when their last visible window is closed, helping reduce CPU/memory use, visual clutter, and distractions. It’s lightweight, unobtrusive, and simple to configure so you can focus on active tasks without lingering, unused apps running. The tool monitors application windows and only triggers when an app’s final window is closed, running in the background with minimal impact. It’s useful for people who frequently open and close multiple apps; a free option mentioned in the original material appears unrelated, so look for general app-management or automation utilities if you want alternatives.

Finicky

Finicky is a free utility that lets you control which browser opens each link by defining rules that map URLs or domains to specific browsers, so links clicked in apps open automatically in the browser you prefer. It runs in the background and applies those rules without manual copying or switching. This approach improves efficiency, keeps work and personal browsing separate, and supports flexible, predictable browser behavior for people who switch browsers depending on the task. Alternatives and companion tools exist if you want syncing or other complementary features.

What's Keeping Me?

What's Keeping Me? is a small utility that helps eject disks and remove items by scanning running applications and background processes to find things preventing those actions. When it identifies a culprit it offers options to request the app to quit (gentler, allows cleanup) or to force-terminate the process immediately. The app relies on a search field where you must enter the process name rather than highlighting offending processes automatically, which makes diagnosis difficult if you don’t already know the culprit; the lookup can be sluggish and sometimes fails to surface obvious blockers. Overall it’s useful for resolving cases where a specific process is preventing an action and the dual quit/force options are handy, but the requirement to supply names and inconsistent search responsiveness reduce its effectiveness for users who need quick, automatic identification.

quitDock

QuitDock is a lightweight utility for keeping the desktop tidy by providing quick controls to quit or hide running programs. It uses a minimal interface with one-click actions to close or conceal apps, reducing visual clutter and interruptions. By surfacing common actions and prioritizing speed and clarity, it helps maintain an uncluttered workspace and smoother multitasking, making it especially useful for people who regularly switch among many programs and prefer distraction-free workflows.

IntelliDock

IntelliDock is a small utility that automatically hides the system dock or app‑launcher area whenever a window overlaps it, restoring visibility when you need it. It preserves quick access to your apps and files while reducing visual clutter so you can focus on the active window, offering a native-feeling, unobtrusive way to keep your desktop tidy. The tool is lightweight, easy to set up, and runs in the background with minimal resource use so it won’t disrupt other tasks. If you want to try a different option, Retroactive is a free alternative to consider.

Startup Folder

Startup Folder is a lightweight utility for controlling which applications launch when the computer starts, offering a simple, minimal interface for organizing startup items without complicated configuration. It makes it easy to select which programs run automatically so users don’t have to repeatedly launch them each session. The app helps manage startup behavior to improve boot performance and conserve system resources by limiting automatic launches to essential apps, and it prioritizes a straightforward, approachable workflow. It’s distributed under a free license, and a comparable alternative to consider is LogTen Pilot Log.

QuitAll

QuitAll is a lightweight, free utility that makes it easy to quit one, several, or all running applications through a minimal, easy-to-use interface. It streamlines the task of closing programs by letting you manage apps quickly without digging through menus, offering individual, multi-select, and all-at-once quit actions. Using QuitAll speeds workflow transitions, helps reclaim memory, and reduces time spent on routine housekeeping, making it useful when you need to tidy a crowded workspace or switch contexts rapidly. For users seeking more customization, developer-oriented frameworks and tools exist as alternative approaches.

Report inappropriate content