How to Uninstall Origin

Although its introduction to the PC gaming space was somewhat controversial, by now, EA's Origin platform has achieved widespread acceptance for digital distribution. Since that's not the same as universal, some users still prefer other ways of buying EA games or total abstinence. Uninstalling Origin isn't the same as deleting your account or library, and users can always remove Origin software without concern for the long-term ownership of their games.

There are several ways of removing Origin from Windows systems efficiently. Experts recommend all of these steps before using manual techniques that involve editing the Registry. The simplest way is clicking Start, navigating to the Origin shortcut, right-clicking it and choosing Uninstall. Users of older versions of Windows may need to use the Control Panel. Open it by typing its name in the search bar, then go to Programs, and then 'Uninstall a program.' Scroll through the list, or use the search if necessary and right-click Origin's entry. Select Uninstall. Lastly, users can go through Windows Settings. The fastest way to get there is by typing 'Add or remove a program' in the search and clicking the result. Left-click the Origin entry and Uninstall it.

Windows users experiencing issues with the above can delete the primary files manually, Registry entries and cache data. Experts recommend backing up the Registry (via the Export feature or other methods) first since incorrect changes can harm Windows and other programs.

Get rid of Origin's primary files by going to the Program Files directory or Program Files (x86) for 32-bit or 64-bit users and deleting the Origin folder there. Then, go to the ProgramData folder (Windows may flag it as Hidden, although users can make hidden objects visible with the appropriate setting). Once again, find the Origin folder here and delete it.

Finally, open the Registry Editor.

32-bit Windows users should go to:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/SOFTWARE/

64-bit Windows users should go to:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/SOFTWARE/Wow6432node

In either case, right-click and delete the Origin folder. Then, go to Microsoft/Windows/CurrentVersion/Uninstall and delete the second Origin folder there.

In a macOS environment, users have even more straightforward ways of deleting unwanted software. Open Finder and go to Applications. In Applications, find Origin's icon, click it, and drag it to the Trash (or right-click and choose the Trash option). Emptying the Trash afterward will confirm the deletion of Origin, making it permanent.

Deleting Origin components by hand is possible here equally. Go to the Library folder by pressing the keyboard combination of Command+Shift+G in Finder and inputting '~/Library/' into the field. From Application Support, delete 'Origin.' From Preferences, delete 'com.ea.Origin.plist.' From LaunchAgents, delete 'com.ea.origin.WebHelper.plist.' Then, navigate back to the base folder for the hard drive (such as 'Macintosh HD'), go to the Library folder there and then to LaunchDaemons. Delete 'com.ea.origin.ESHelper.plist.' Removing these files should erase all Origin components from the macOS device.