How to uninstall Tabby on Mac

Tabby (formerly Terminus) is a terminal, SSH and serial client. Its config folder at ~/Library/Application Support/tabby is what holds your setup, and Tabby's own docs say deleting it resets the app to its initial state, so copy that folder somewhere safe before you remove anything. These steps cover the official download from Tabby's GitHub releases and the Homebrew cask tabby.

Quit Tabby and remove the app

Quit Tabby from its app menu, check Activity Monitor for tabby, then move Tabby from Applications to the Trash.

Where Tabby keeps its data

After closing sessions, quitting and verifying the config backup, use Shift + Command + G in Finder to inspect each existing path. Move only the Tabby items you no longer need to the Trash. For a * pattern, open the parent folder and match filenames instead of pasting the pattern as a folder.

Location What it holds What to do
~/Library/Application Support/tabby Tabby's config folder (Tabby config file docs) Back it up first; review the selection because the data setting can preselect it
~/Library/Caches/org.tabby App cache Selected by default
~/Library/Caches/org.tabby.ShipIt Updater cache Selected by default
~/Library/HTTPStorages/org.tabby Embedded web storage Selected by default
~/Library/Preferences/org.tabby.plist App preferences Selected by default
~/Library/Preferences/org.tabby.helper.plist Helper preferences Selected by default
~/Library/Preferences/ByHost/org.tabby.ShipIt.*.plist Updater preferences Selected by default
~/Library/Saved Application State/org.tabby.savedState Saved window state Selected by default
~/Library/Services/Open Tabby here.workflow, ~/Library/Services/Paste path into Tabby.workflow Finder Quick Actions for Tabby, named in the Homebrew zap list Review before removal; the data setting can preselect eligible app-owned data

Check the result

pgrep -il tabby
ls -d ~/Library/Application\ Support/tabby
ls ~/Library/Services | grep -i tabby
  • No output from pgrep means Tabby has quit.
  • ls -d prints the config folder if you kept it; "No such file or directory" means it is gone.
  • The last line lists the Tabby Quick Actions that are still installed; no output means none are left.

If you installed it with Homebrew

Mole skips --zap when its list reaches unchecked or shared data, or cannot fully be checked, and still cleans the leftovers you selected.

The tabby cask's zap list covers every row in the table above, plus a recent-documents record under ~/Library/Application Support/com.apple.sharedfilelist, all inside your own ~/Library. Running brew uninstall --cask --zap tabby yourself moves all of them to the Trash whatever you ticked in Mole, including the config folder. With Remove data and settings with apps off, the config folder and Quick Actions start unchecked; turning it on can preselect eligible app-owned data. An unchecked row suppresses --zap. Selecting every matched row is still subject to Mole’s checks of the full cask list, ownership and protected locations.

brew uninstall --cask tabby

Keep your settings by leaving the config row unticked, or by copying ~/Library/Application Support/tabby elsewhere first.

What Mole lists

  • ~/Library/Application Support/tabby, the lowercase config folder, starts unchecked with Remove data and settings with apps off; turning it on can preselect eligible app-owned data, so verify the backup and review the row.
  • ~/Library/Caches/org.tabby, ~/Library/Caches/org.tabby.ShipIt, ~/Library/HTTPStorages/org.tabby, the org.tabby preference files and the saved window state are selected by default.
  • The two Tabby Quick Actions under ~/Library/Services start unchecked with the data setting off; turning it on can preselect eligible app-owned data, so check whether you still use them.

What this test covered

Tabby was installed from its official GitHub release download and uninstalled on September 19, 2026, with Mole Preview build 277. The lowercase Application Support/tabby folder was removed in the recorded run, and the app registered no login item. Signing in to a saved SSH host, the Quick Actions and the Homebrew cask were not part of this test.