An icon you don't recognise appears in the menu bar at startup

Why it happens

Many apps put a small icon in the menu bar and ask to open each time you log in. Some also install a helper that runs in the background without a window. After a while it's easy to forget which app the icon belongs to, especially if you installed it long ago.

How to fix it

1. Click the mystery icon first. Its menu often shows the app's name, an About item or a Quit option, which tells you what it is.

2. To see which app the icon belongs to, open Menu Bar settings and look under Allow in the Menu Bar. Every app that puts an icon in the menu bar is listed by name. Switch it off to hide the icon.

   Menu Bar›Allow in the Menu Bar

3. To stop the app opening at all, go to General, then Login Items & Extensions, and look through the Open at Login list.

   General›Login Items & Extensions›Open at Login

4. Select the app you don't want at login and click the minus button below the list. It won't open by itself next time.

5. Scroll down to App Background Activity (Background App Activity on macOS 27) and switch off anything you don't recognise or need.

   macOS 26 Tahoe General›Login Items & Extensions›App Background Activity

   macOS 27 Golden Gate General›Login Items & Extensions›Background App Activity

6. Restart your Mac and check the menu bar. The icon should be gone.

The background list is called App Background Activity on macOS 26 and Background App Activity on macOS 27. Open at Login is the same on both.

Still not fixed?

1. If it comes back, open the app itself and look in its settings for an option to open at login, and turn it off there.

2. Don't need the app at all? Quit it, then drag it from your Applications folder to the Trash. Its menu bar icon goes with it. Some apps come with their own uninstaller, which also removes their helpers.

3. If you can't tell which app it is, or something keeps appearing that you never installed, check General, then Device Management. A profile there means a school, company or someone else may be managing the Mac.

   General›Device Management

4. If an unknown item keeps returning after you've removed it and nobody manages your Mac, contact Apple Support. They can help you check what's running.