Are you unable to quit Safari while browsing on your Mac since the Safari Quit icon is Grayed out on Mac? Check how to fix this issue.

Leave your worries as you are not alone. This is a common glitch many Mac users reports, but there are some simple solutions to try straight away and fix the issue. In this article, I am discussing how to quit the Safari app when the Quit Safari option does not work.

Touted as the world’s fastest browser, Safari assures an exclusive experience while browsing on your Mac. Safari is powered by a lightning fast JavaScript engine for an enviable performance, but consumes significantly less battery power and helps get the best out of your battery life.

Unfortunately, no technology can be without troubles. Fortunately, there is tons of technical advice from several reliable sources to follow when you face such technical problems.

Many Mac users like you are bothered by this question: “Why is the Safari quit icon grayed out on Mac?” Users also complain that at times they are unable to force quit Safari.

This guide will help you fix the problem of ‘Quit Safari is grayed out on Mac and I am no longer able to quit the app in a regular way.’

Quit Safari on Terminal
Quit Safari using Activity Monitor
Quit Safari by Restarting your Mac
Quit Safari using the Dock
Use Shortcut Keys to Quit Safari
Use the Apple Menu to Quit Safari
Update your Mac
Restart your Mac in Safe Mode
Clear Cache, History, and Extensions
Run a Maintenance Procedure
Finally, Reset Safari

Safari Quit Icon Grayed Out on Mac, How to Fix

Table of Contents

How to Quit Safari on Your Mac?

Quitting Safari is very easy. While trying to close Safari, you just have to choose ‘Safari’ on the menu bar and click on ‘Quit Safari’.

If this option is grayed out or disabled, you will not be able to quit Safari in the normal way.

This can be quite frustrating, but it is first worth knowing why this can happen on your Mac.

Why Doesn’t Your Mac Allow You to Quit Safari?

The most common reason why you are not able to quit safari is that the quit button is grayed out or disabled.

One another factor that is causing the issue is that Mac’s RAM is highly occupied. Overload of the RAM is the most likely reason if your browser is slowed down or is frozen. This situation will also slow down your Mac.

The third reason that can lead to browser crashing is that Safari is not updated on your Mac for a while. The older versions cannot work with the latest website features and so there are chances for the browser to crash.

I do understand that such a situation can be annoying. There are many ways to go around this issue. Read on to know 6 different ways to quit Safari quickly when the quit button has become unresponsive.

11 Ways You Can Quit Safari if The Icon is Grayed Out

Quit Safari On Terminal

To some extent, the Terminal lets you access the Mac. You can also quit Safari through the Terminal. You can also perform many other tasks on this.

11 Ways You Can Quit Safari if The Icon is Grayed Out

Here are the simple steps to quit Safari on the Terminal.

Go to Utilities and open Terminal.
Type in the following text: Osascript -e ‘quit app “Safari”
Hit Enter.

Applications > Utilities > Osascript -e ‘quit app “Safari”

If this method does not work, you can also try force quitting Safari from the Terminal.

Click on Application.
Then click on Utilities and open Terminal.
- The other way to open the Terminal is to press down Control and Space together.
After the Terminal opens, type in killall safari and hit Enter.

Applications > Utilities > Terminal > killall Safari

Probably, this will take care of the issue you are facing. If not, try the following method.

Quit Safari using Activity Monitor

If you can’t quit safari on the Terminal, you can also try closing the browser on the Activity Monitor. Go to the Utility section and choose Activity Monitor.

You can also land here by going to Applications or pressing down Command and Space keys together.

Click on Utilities.
Find out the CPU tab and click on it to locate Safari.
Alternatively, you can also use the search box you will find on the top right to find Safari.
In the search box, type Safari.
On the Activity Monitor window, click on the ‘X’ sign you will find on the top left side.
Now select Force Quit.

Applications > Utilities > CPU > Safari > X > Force Quit

Quit Safari by restarting your Mac

When the browser app goes unresponsive, restarting your system can also help close it.

When the system stops, all the apps running on it including Safari automatically stop.

To try this method, press the power button long enough.
This will reboot your Mac, which would have closed down the Safari browser too.

Restarting your Mac in safe mode is another option. When your Safari has crashed and is found unresponsive, restart the Mac in safe mode. Once you are sure that Safari is working fine, you can always restart the system normally.

If you had to try this method, it is always good to check for Mac updates to ensure the issue does not repeat. Get the latest updates, download, and install them.

Clean the cache, remove all user data and disable all the extensions. Once your Mac is running on the latest version, Safari to works well.

Try this method only when you have tried quitting Safari on the Activity Monitor feature or the Terminal and they do not seem to work. Before restarting the system, do not forget to save all your important work.

Quit Safari using the Dock

How to fix Safari Quit Icon Grayed Out on Mac

Yet another quick way to close the browser app is to quit Safari on Dock.

Go to the Dock.
Look for the Safari app icon.
Right-click on the icon.
A pop-up menu will open up.
Select ‘Quit’ and click on it.
This is one of the effective methods to close Safari.

Dock > right-click Safari > Quit

Use Shortcut Keys to Quit Safari

If you are not sure about how to type in the commands that you do not understand correctly, you can get the job done by using the following keyboard shortcuts.

In fact, you can also carry out this action when you are still browsing on the Safari app.

Simultaneously press down the keys, “Command”, “Option” and “Escape”.
You will see the Force Quit app window open.
On this window, choose Safari and then click on Force Quit.

Command + Options + Escape > Force Quit Application > Safari > Force Quit

Use the Apple menu to quit Safari

One other good place to try closing the browser app is the Apple Menu. You will find this method very easy to close the Safari app that is frozen.

Click on the Apple icon you will find on the home screen’s top left corner. Select ‘Force Quit Safari’.
This will open a new window known as the Force Quit application.
Select Safari and then click on ‘Force Quit. It is highly possible that this can solve the issue you are facing.

Apple > Force Quit Safari > Force Quit Applications > Safari > Force Quit

Now check if Safari works fine

After you have successfully quit or force-quit Safari, do not forget to check if the problem is solved.

If the safari browser crashes again or you can’t close it normally, follow these tips in the same order I have given them.

Also, after you have tried each of these steps, try opening and closing Safari to check if the issue is fixed.

Update your Mac

Safari is powered by macOS software. By updating your Mac, you can also update Safari automatically. Do this with the simple steps given below.

For macOS Mojave or later: Open the Apple menu and navigate to ‘System Preferences. Look for Software Update. If you find any updates, go with the instructions on the screen to update your Mac.
For macOS High Sierra or earlier: Open the App Store app on your Mac. Click on the Updates tab. Follow the onscreen instructions.

Restart your Mac in Safe Mode

Opening Mac in safe mode will help clear the caches and will repair the disks. This will help fix the problem.

First, turn off your Mac and then turn it on once again. Immediately, press, hold and release the Shift key. Once you see the login window, release the Shift key.
Log in to your Mac and then check to see if the Safari quit option works normally.
Restart your Mac in normal mode. To exit safe mode, turn off your Mac and turn it on once again without pressing the Shift key.

Clear Cache, History, and Extensions

If safari does not normally quit still, an older cache might be causing the trouble and hence it is time to clear Safari Cache. Open Safari and while doing so, press and hold down the Shift key.

Follow these steps to clear Cache.

Go to Safari.
Open Preferences and then click on Advanced.
- Here you can empty the cache.
Now try quitting safari and re-launching it.
Go to History and then click on Show History.
Remove all the items you will find on ‘History’.
You can also try the ‘Clear History’ option alternatively.

One downside to using this method is that it deletes all the stored cookies. Once you do this, some sites might not recognize your system and might not show up as a site you have already visited.

Go to Finder.
Choose your folder.
Using this Finder window as the windshield, select the display options for presenting or ordering.
On the display options, check ‘show the library folder’.
- This will make the library folder visible in your user folder.
Select Library and go to Cache.
Select All and move to trash.

There is one more step to go with. Go to Safari Preferences and navigate to Extensions.

Disable all the extensions listed. Now you can test one by one to find out which extension is causing the trouble. Remove the problematic extension and enable all the other extensions one by one.

Run a maintenance procedure

If installing updates does not solve the issue that the quit Safari option does not work normally still, it is time to fix the unresponsive browser app by running some basic maintenance on your Mac.

There are some free-to-download apps that you can use for this purpose. Using any one of these troubleshooting apps, try to free up your Mac RAM.

Hopefully, this can help fix the issue of unresponsive Safari browsers.

Finally, Reset Safari

If none of the methods discussed above worked to fix the issue, it is time to attempt a reset. Resetting Safari is a simple process during which you also need to safely remove the associated files. There are some free-to-download apps you can use for this purpose.

Most probably, this step can solve the ‘unable to quit Safari’ problem. Now it is all done and you can enjoy a great browsing experience on your Mac.

Safari Quit Icon Grayed Out on Mac – Take Away

Mac computers are always great products to depend on for work, study, and entertainment. As a web browser, Safari has a long list of advantages for users. Safari Quit Icon Grayed Out on Mac is a common glitch quite many users report.

I am sure you would have found my tips helpful in solving the issue and making your browsing experience on Safari smooth and enjoyable once again.

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Damien

Should I, Do I, How to – these are some of the topics I would love to cover to share what I know about All apple products.