What Allow in the Background means in macOS settings

27 October 2026 · 6 min read

“Allow in the Background” is a list of switches in System Settings that controls which apps and helpers may run on their own, without you opening them. Turn a switch on and that item can start at login and keep working in the background. Turn it off and macOS stops it from running. The app itself stays installed and still opens when you click it. What you lose is whatever the background part was doing.

You find the list in System Settings > General > Login Items & Extensions (Login Items on macOS 14). It is also the screen behind the notification macOS shows when an app adds something: “Background Items Added”.

What the screen contains

The Login Items & Extensions screen has a few parts, and it helps to know which is which.

Open at Login. Apps that open when you log in. You can add one with the plus button or remove one with the minus button, and these appear as normal apps with windows or menu bar icons.
Allow in the Background. Helpers, updaters, launch agents and daemons that apps have set up to run on their own. Each has a switch, and the name is often the developer’s, not the app’s. macOS’s own note under it says that apps add these “to perform tasks when the application isn’t open, such as checking for software updates or syncing data.”
Extensions. On macOS 15 and later, the same screen also lists the add-ons apps provide to other parts of macOS, such as sharing and file-provider extensions. On macOS 14 these live elsewhere in System Settings.

The Allow in the Background list is the one people ask about, because it is the least obvious. You never opened these items, so you may not know what they are, and the list grows without you doing anything.

Why apps add themselves to it

Apps do not add themselves out of malice. Most do it because part of the work has to happen when the app is closed.

Updaters. A background job checks for a new version of the app, so the app can tell you about it or install it.
Sync helpers. Cloud storage and notes apps keep files up to date while the app is shut.
Menu bar tools. Something that lives in the menu bar needs to be running to appear there.
Hardware helpers. A printer, a mouse, a camera or a drive may have a background program that talks to it.
Security and management software. Antivirus, VPN and company tools need to run all the time.

Since macOS 13 Ventura, macOS shows a notification when an app adds one of these. The notification only tells you: in most cases the item is already switched on when it appears. So the list is less a record of what you agreed to than a record of what your apps have set up.

What turning a switch off does

Turning one off tells macOS not to run that item. Nothing is deleted: the file stays where it is and the app stays installed. If you turn the switch back on, the item may run again. Turning on an item that runs for every account on the Mac asks for an administrator password.

The effects depend on what the item was for:

An updater stops checking, so you will not see update prompts until you open the app yourself. Many apps check again when you launch them.
A sync helper stops syncing while the app is closed. Files may be out of date until you open the app.
A menu bar tool will not appear in the menu bar until you open its app.
A driver or hardware helper may stop the device working in full, such as losing a custom button.
A security or VPN component can stop protecting you or disconnect you from a work network.

If an app needs its helper, it will either ask you to switch it back on or fail to do its background job. Nothing breaks permanently. Because the change is a single switch, trying it is cheap: turn it off, use the Mac for a day, and flip it back if something is missing.

Which ones to switch off

A short test works for most items. Ask two questions: do I know what app this belongs to, and do I miss the background part when it is gone?

Switch off items for apps you rarely open, and updaters for apps you update by hand.
Leave on items for sync, backup, VPN and security software you rely on.
Leave on anything that belongs to the maker of a printer, mouse, drive or other device you use, unless you know what it does.
If you do not recognise a name, search for it before deciding. A developer name usually points to a product you know. If it points to nothing, it may be left over from an app you deleted: see How to remove login items left behind by deleted apps.

For the wider picture of what starts when you log in, How to stop apps opening at login on a Mac goes through each way an app can start itself.

What sits behind a switch

Each switch stands for a launch agent or daemon, or a helper that an app registered through macOS’s own login items system. Launch agents and daemons on a Mac, explained in plain English explains the former. The switch in System Settings is the easy front door. It does not show you what the item does, how much it uses, or whether it is running right now. For that you have to look elsewhere.

That is where Foreman comes in. Its Startup Apps page lists everything that opens at login or runs in the background, grouped by the app it belongs to, with readable names and a status such as Enabled, Disabled, Program missing or Off in System Settings. “Impact now” shows whether each item is running and how much it uses. With Full Disk Access, Foreman can also read the Allow in the Background switches, so you see one list rather than hunting through Settings. Full Disk Access is optional: without it, Foreman shows a note that you can skip. Everything earlier in this post works with System Settings alone.

There is one limit worth knowing. Items an app registered through macOS’s own login items system can only be switched in System Settings. Foreman cannot flip those for you, so it opens System Settings at the right place. Other items you can Disable or Enable from Foreman, and system daemons ask for an administrator password. Foreman costs $12 once and is free for 24 hours.

Common questions

Is it safe to turn everything off? It will not damage macOS, since the switches are reversible, but you would lose helpers you want, including backup, sync and security ones. Items installed by an employer’s device management may be locked on. Go one at a time, and prefer items you can name.

Why did an item come back on? Some apps ask again when you open them, or re-add the item after an update. If it keeps happening, check the app’s own settings for an “open at login” or “run in the background” option and turn that off too.

Does turning one off free up memory? An item that is not running uses nothing. Whether you would notice is another matter: most of these items are quiet.

Is an item in the list a sign of a virus? Not in itself. Most are ordinary software you installed. If one has a name you cannot trace to any app, search for it, and remove the matching leftover if the app is gone.

The Allow in the Background list is a record of what your apps have set up to run by themselves. A few minutes spent reading it is worth it, and a switch is easy to put back. For the same list with what each item is doing right now, Foreman’s Startup Apps page adds “Impact now”.