Photo & Design

Can I delete Affinity Designer from my Mac?

Yes, you can delete it

Affinity Designer 2 is no longer sold, having been replaced by a free unified app in 2025. You can remove the application file without losing your saved documents or account registrations. However, deleting the app alone leaves local data folders intact on your Mac.

Last updated: October 31, 20263 min read

See how much space Affinity Designer really takes before you decide

Affinity Designer data usually takes 500 MB – 10 GB on a Mac. The free scan shows the exact size on your Mac before you change anything.

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Application: Affinity Designer
Typical data size: 500 MB – 10 GB
Category: Photo & Design
File Location: ~/Library/Containers/com.seriflabs.affinitydesigner2

What you lose and what you keep if you delete Affinity Designer

Specific to Affinity Designer

Removing the application binary does not erase your work or account details. Your saved documents remain in their chosen locations, and your Apple or Affinity account registration stays active. However, local settings, custom resources, and autosaves persist in specific folders unless you remove them separately. The Mac App Store version keeps this data in one container, while the direct version uses an Application Support folder. If you later delete those folders, you lose access to unsaved autosaves and custom brushes that were not exported.

Where your Affinity Designer data lives

These folders hold your own Affinity Designer data. Deleting the app leaves them in place; removing them is what actually deletes it.

~/Library/Containers/com.seriflabs.affinitydesigner2 Sandbox container · sandboxed app data: settings, resources, cache and autosaves Back up first: your data~/Library/Application Support/Affinity Designer 2 App data · settings, resources and autosaves of the version bought directly from Affinity Back up first: your data

Current status: Affinity Designer 2 is no longer sold; in 2025 Canva replaced the separate Affinity apps with one free Affinity app that opens existing documents.
Account and sync: The Mac App Store version is tied to your Apple Account; the version bought directly is registered to an Affinity (Serif) account.
Your files: Documents are saved wherever you choose.

What to do before deleting Affinity Designer

Check for unsaved work in the autosave data before removing the application. Export any custom brushes, assets, or styles you created to ensure they are not lost if you clear the data folders. Save all open projects as .afdesign files to your preferred location. Quit the app completely before attempting to remove any associated data folders to prevent corruption.

Save open documents as .afdesign files.Export custom brushes, assets, and styles.Check autosave data for unsaved documents.Quit the app before removing data folders.

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How to delete Affinity Designer completely

Quit Affinity Designer, move it to the Trash, then remove what it left in ~/Library/Containers/com.seriflabs.affinitydesigner2. The full step-by-step guide:

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After the free trial, Pro costs $39.99 per year in your country's App Store; cancel any time.

Frequently asked questions

Will deleting Affinity Designer delete my files?

No. Removing the app doesn't touch documents you saved in other folders. Only the app and, if you remove them, its own support files are deleted.

Do I need to deactivate my license before deleting the app?

No, the Mac App Store version is tied to your Apple Account, and the direct version is registered to your Affinity account, so no manual deactivation is required.

Will I lose my custom brushes if I only delete the app?

No, they remain in the data folders, but you should export them if you plan to delete those folders later.