---
title: Uninstalling on Kubernetes
description: 'cert-manager installation: Uninstalling cert-manager from Kubernetes'
---

Below is the processes for uninstalling cert-manager on Kubernetes. There are
two processes to chose depending on which method you used to install
cert-manager - static manifests or `helm`.

> *Warning*: To uninstall cert-manager you should always use the same process for
> installing but in reverse. Deviating from the following process whether
> cert-manager has been installed from static manifests or helm can cause issues
> and potentially broken states. Please ensure you follow the below steps when
> uninstalling to prevent this happening.

Before continuing, ensure that all cert-manager resources that have been created
by users have been deleted. You can check for any existing resources with the
following command:

```bash
$ kubectl get Issuers,ClusterIssuers,Certificates,CertificateRequests,Orders,Challenges --all-namespaces
```

Once all these resources have been deleted you are ready to uninstall
cert-manager using the procedure determined by how you installed.

## Uninstalling with regular manifests

Uninstalling from an installation with regular manifests is a case of running
the installation process, *in reverse*, using the delete command of `kubectl`.

Delete the installation manifests using a link to your currently running version
`vX.Y.Z` like so:

```bash
$ kubectl delete -f https://github.com/cert-manager/cert-manager/releases/download/vX.Y.Z/cert-manager.yaml
```

## Uninstalling with Helm

Uninstalling cert-manager from a `helm` installation is a case of running the
installation process, *in reverse*, using the delete command on both `kubectl`
and `helm`.

Firstly, delete the cert-manager installation using `helm`. Ensure the
`--purge` flag is applied if you are using Helm 2.

```bash
# Helm 3
$ helm --namespace cert-manager delete cert-manager

# Helm 2.x
$ helm delete cert-manager --purge
```

Next, delete the cert-manager namespace:

```bash
$ kubectl delete namespace cert-manager
```

Finally, delete the cert-manager
[`CustomResourceDefinitions`](https://kubernetes.io/docs/concepts/extend-kubernetes/api-extension/custom-resources/)
using the link to the version `vX.Y.Z` you installed:

```bash
$ kubectl delete -f https://github.com/cert-manager/cert-manager/releases/download/vX.Y.Z/cert-manager.crds.yaml
```

## Namespace Stuck in Terminating State

If the namespace has been marked for deletion without deleting the cert-manager
installation first, the namespace may become stuck in a terminating state. This
is typically due to the fact that the [`APIService`](https://kubernetes.io/docs/tasks/access-kubernetes-api/setup-extension-api-server) resource still exists
however the webhook is no longer running so is no longer reachable. To resolve
this, ensure you have run the above commands correctly, and if you're still
experiencing issues then run:

```bash
$ kubectl delete apiservice v1beta1.webhook.cert-manager.io
```