# How to Open a Hidden App Without Unhiding It on Mac

Open a hidden app straight from its encrypted copy. It runs as normal, never comes back to Applications, and stays hidden when you quit.

Updated: 2026-10-22. Source: https://trycloak.app/blog/how-to-open-a-hidden-app-without-unhiding-it-mac/

A hidden app is gone from the Dock, Launchpad, Spotlight and the Applications folder. That is the point. But it used to mean unhiding the app every time you wanted to use it, then hiding it again after.

In Cloak 2.0 you can skip that. **Open Without Unhiding** starts the app straight from its hidden, encrypted copy. It works as normal, but it never comes back to Applications, and when you quit it, it is still hidden.

## How to do it

1. Open Cloak and go to Hidden apps.

2. Right-click the app.

3. Choose **Open Without Unhiding**.

The app opens. Use it, then quit it as normal. It stays hidden the whole time.

## Unhide or open without unhiding?

- **Open Without Unhiding** is for a quick use. Check a message, look something up, close it. Nothing shows in Applications at any point.

- **Unhide** brings the app back for good, in Launchpad, Spotlight and Applications, until you hide it again.

## Good to know

- While the app is open, it shows in the Dock like any running app. Once you quit, it is gone again.

- The app’s hidden copy is opened read-only, so it can’t move itself out of hiding.

- To unhide the app, quit it first. Cloak waits until it is closed.

## Related

- [How to hide apps on your Mac](https://trycloak.app/blog/how-to-hide-apps-on-mac/)

- [How to make an app fake a crash](https://trycloak.app/blog/how-to-fake-crash-an-app-on-mac/)

- [What’s new in Cloak 2.0](https://trycloak.app/blog/whats-new-in-cloak-2-0/)

[Get Cloak](https://trycloak.app): a one-time purchase, with a 14-day refund.

## Questions people ask

### Does the app show up in Applications while I use it?

No. It runs from inside its encrypted copy and never goes back to the Applications folder.

### Can I unhide the app while it is open this way?

Quit it first. Cloak waits for the app to close before it unhides it.

### Do the app's settings and data stay?

Yes. The app opens with the same settings and data it had before you hid it.

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Cloak locks, hides and encrypts apps, folders and files on your Mac. One-time purchase, no account. https://trycloak.app/