diff -u b/modules/field_ui/field_ui.admin.inc b/modules/field_ui/field_ui.admin.inc
--- b/modules/field_ui/field_ui.admin.inc
+++ b/modules/field_ui/field_ui.admin.inc
@@ -1723,6 +1723,14 @@
 
   $admin_path = _field_ui_bundle_admin_path($entity_type, $bundle);
   $form_state['redirect'] = field_ui_get_destinations(array($admin_path . '/fields'));
+
+  // Fields are purged on cron. However field module prevents disabling modules
+  // when field types they provided are used in a field until it is fully
+  // purged. In the case that a field has minimal or no content, a single call
+  // to field_purge_batch() will remove it from the system. Call this with a
+  // low batch limit to avoid administrators having to wait for cron runs when
+  // removing instances that meet this criteria.
+  field_purge_batch(10); 
 }
 
 /**