Only detail is that I have Messenger in my Applications which is somehow associated with Facebook and I want to delete Messenger and if I have Facebook I want that gone also.
iMac 24″, macOS 15.5
Are you sure the name of the app is not "Messages"? That is an Apple app and cannot be removed, but you do not need to use it either. I only suggest that because Messenger would not be installed on a new Mac, only the Messages app would be there.
If it does say Messenger, you can drag it to the trash and then empty the trash to delete it. The Facebook app cannot be downloaded to the Mac, that is not likely to be there.
Are you sure the name of the app is not "Messages"? That is an Apple app and cannot be removed, but you do not need to use it either. I only suggest that because Messenger would not be installed on a new Mac, only the Messages app would be there.
If it does say Messenger, you can drag it to the trash and then empty the trash to delete it. The Facebook app cannot be downloaded to the Mac, that is not likely to be there.
Messenger and Facebook are both apps produced by Meta. They can use the same login credentials, but you do not need to use both apps or have both apps installed.
For the problem of Messenger not able to be deleted, the first thing I would try is to start up in Safe Mode, then attempt to delete the app:
> Shut Down.If that still does not work, I would recommend to post the free EtreCheck report using the Additional Text option when posting. I still recommend doing this if you are able to delete Messenger, because I am not sure about the source of the download and also from the prompts it required for installing the app. There may be additional files that were installed on your computer that are running on startup and EtreCheck will identify those processes. The report does not contain any personal information.
How to use the Add Text Feature When Post… - Apple Community
You can check to see if you've removed all of the supporting files by downloading and running the shareware app Find Any File to search for any files with the application's or the developer's name in the file name. For the Messenger software you'd do the following search(es):
1 - Name contains messenger
Any files that are found can be dragged from the search results window to the Desktop or Trash bin in the Dock for deletion.
FAF can search areas that Spotlight can't like invisible folders, system folders and packages.
If you get warnings that the file can't be deleted because it is in use or used by another app boot into Safe Mode according to How to use safe mode on your Mac and delete from there.
Note: if you have a wireless keyboard with rechargeable batteries connect it with its charging cable before booting into Safe Mode. This makes it act as a wired keyboard as will assure a successful boot into Safe Mode.
Thank you. Yes, name of app is "Messenger" not Messages. I do have Messages and it works ok. I do not have Facebook on my iMac and never did. The first thing I tried was to drag "Messenger" to the trash. I have done that a dozen or more times after the first try; and it will not move to trash. It continues to sit in my Applications file. I was not aware Messenger was associated with Facebook when I downloaded the Messenger app; if it warned of incompatibility with iMac I don't recall seeing it. I do remember that getting the Messenger app downloaded required a long and tedious series of response to various kinds of verifications before Messenger was downloaded. I was simply asked by some cousins of mine to join their Messenger account which was a forum for discussion of a particular common ancestor we all share.
How may I delete Facebook and Messenger from my new iMac M4?
