Wondering how to right-click on a Mac? You’ve come to the right place. If you’re quite handy at using the Windows OS, it is quite natural to miss the right-click feature on macOS if you have recently switched to a Mac device. The transition of shifting between Windows and macOS can be a little tricky.
Image source: MacPaw
But yes, if you’re missing the right-click feature on macOS, there are several ways that you can use to achieve this functionality on macOS. You can use a variety of devices to right-click on a Mac which include Magic Mouse, normal mouse (non-Apple), Mac Trackpad, Force Touch Keypad, and even using your Mac’s keyboard.
Let’s quickly learn how you can use right-click on Mac using the above-listed devices:
Also read: Keyboard Backlight Won’t Turn ON on Windows and Mac? Here’s the Fix!
5 Easy Ways to Right-Click on a Mac
1. Magic Mouse
Well, yes, one of the simplest ways to use the secondary menu/context menu or the right-click menu on Mac can be attained by a Magic Mouse. Apple’s Magic Mouse is a quite popular device, especially with the iMac setup. MacBook users usually prefer using their trackpads to get the job done.
So, if you want to right-click on a Mac, you can use the Apple Magic Mouse to use the secondary menu on macOS. If you see the design of the Magic Mouse, there’s not exactly a dedicated right-click button embedded on the surface. However, you can easily achieve the right-click functionality on an Apple Magic Mouse by making a few quick changes to your Mac’s default settings. Here’s what you need to do:
- Connect the Apple Magic Mouse to your Mac using Bluetooth.
- Tap the Apple icon placed on the Desktop, select “System Preferences”.
- Tap on “Mouse”.
- Switch to the “Point and Click” tab.
- Check on the “Secondary Click” option to enable it.
Now, you can assign on which side of the Magic Mouse, you want to assign right-click functionality. You can either choose the right side which is pretty default or pick the left side as well if you’re a left-handed person.
Also read: How to Open Winmail.dat Files on your Mac
2. Regular Mouse (Non-Apple Mouse)
You can even use any regular Bluetooth-enabled mouse to right-click on a Mac. Simply connect the mouse to your Mac device using Bluetooth and that’s it! All you have to do is, use the right-click button placed on your mouse to fire up the secondary or context menu on macOS.
However, if you’re encountering any issues in using the right-click button, you can try pressing the “Control” key on your Mac’s keypad while you right-click and see whether this trick works.
3. Mac’s Trackpad
Another handy option to right-click on a Mac is by using your Mac’s Trackpad. Mac’s Trackpad is known for its responsiveness and innovativeness. So, yes, you can even use the right-click functionality using your Mac’s Trackpad.
To enable right-click on Mac’s Trackpad, follow these quick steps:
- Tap the Apple icon placed on the top menu bar, select “System Preferences”.
- Select “Trackpad”.
- Switch to the “Point and Click” tab.
- Check on the “Secondary Click” option to enable right-click functionality on your Mac’s Trackpad.
Here comes the good part! You can choose between a variety of options to tap on the Trackpad for right-clicking:
- Click with two fingers.
- Click with the bottom right corner.
- Click in the bottom left corner.
Pick any of these multi-touch gestures to enable right-click functionality on your Mac’s Trackpad.
Also read: How To Select Multiple Files On Your Mac (2021)
4. Force Touch Trackpad
Image source: CNET
The latest MacBook devices (released in 2015 or later) come with a unique “Force Touch” functionality that allows you to choose between a wide array of options depending on how hard you press the trackpad.
To use the Force Touch Trackpad on Mac, follow these steps:
- Tap the Apple icon> System Preferences> Trackpad.
- Switch to the “Point and Click” tab.
- Drag the slider placed under “Click” and adjust the pressure force as per your preference: Light, Medium, or Firm.
- Check the “Force Click and Haptic Feedback” option.
5. Mac’s Keyboard
Not a huge fan of using a mouse? Don’t worry! You can even use your Mac’s keyboard to right-click on a Mac. You can enable this feature via “Accessibility Settings”.
- Press the Option + Command + F5 key to fire up the Accessibility Options window on Mac.
- Check on “Enable Mouse Keys”.
- Tap on “Done”.
- Now to right-click, press the Function + Control + I key combination to right-click in a selected area.
Conclusion
Here were a few unique ways to right-click on a Mac using various devices including Apple Magic Mouse, regular mouse, trackpad, force touch, and keypad. Enabling the right-click functionality opens a wide array of possibilities to boost your productivity while working on macOS.
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