Uninstalling Ollama via Settings does not delete your downloaded models. Models are stored separately and must be deleted manually to free disk space.
Step 1
Quit and uninstall the app
- 1
Quit from system tray
Right-click the Ollama icon in the system tray → Quit Ollama.
- 2
Uninstall via Settings
Settings → Apps → Installed apps → Ollama → Uninstall. Or:
C:\> winget uninstall Ollama.OllamaSuccessfully uninstalled Ollama - 3
Verify removed
C:\> ollama --version'ollama' is not recognizedC:\> netstat -ano | findstr 11434# should return nothing
Step 2
Delete models and free disk space
Models live in C:\Users\YourName\.ollama\models and are not removed by the uninstaller. Each model is 2–70 GB.
Remove specific models
C:\> ollama list
llama3:latest 4.7 GB
mistral:latest 4.1 GB
C:\> ollama rm llama3
deleted 'llama3'
Delete everything at once (PowerShell)
PS> Remove-Item -Recurse -Force "$env:USERPROFILE\.ollama"
This permanently deletes all downloaded models.
Optional cleanup
Remove remaining files
| Location | Contents | Safe to delete? |
|---|---|---|
%USERPROFILE%\.ollama | Models, config | Yes |
%APPDATA%\Ollama | App data, logs | Yes |
%LOCALAPPDATA%\Ollama | Cache | Yes |
FAQ
Uninstall questions
Does uninstalling Ollama delete my models?
No. The uninstaller removes the app binary but leaves all downloaded models intact. Delete
C:\Users\YourName\.ollama\models manually to reclaim disk space.How to check how much space models are using?
Run
ollama list to see each model size. For total folder size in PowerShell: (Get-ChildItem $env:USERPROFILE\.ollama\models -Recurse | Measure-Object -Property Length -Sum).Sum / 1GBOllama not in the installed apps list
It may have been installed per-user. Look in
%LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\Ollama and delete manually, then remove the .ollama folder.Port 11434 still in use after uninstalling
Open Task Manager and end any remaining
ollama.exe processes. Verify with netstat -ano | findstr 11434.How to remove just one model without removing Ollama?
Use
ollama rm modelname, e.g. ollama rm llama3. Ollama and your other models are untouched.