How to Zoom Out on Mac using Several Methods

Zooming in and out on a Mac is pretty easy. Several shortcuts and many adjustments can be made depending on how you want to zoom in and out of the screen. There are a lot of ways that many are not aware of to help you zoom out.

You can Zoom out on Mac with the help of a mouse and the keyboard as well. Simply hold the control key and use the mouse wheel to zoom in or out on the screen. Similarly, using the Mouse Trackpad on your Mac, you can do the same. Hold the Control key and scroll using your two fingers on the trackpad.

This article details how you can zoom in and out on your Mac.

How to Zoom Out on Mac?

Here are all the methods you can try to zoom out on Mac. You can use your mouse, Trackpad, keyboard shortcuts, and a lot more. Let us look at all of them below.

1. With Mouse 

Suppose you have a Mac Pro or iMac with an external keyboard and mouse. Then you can zoom into the screen by holding down the Control key and using the mouse wheel to zoom into and out of the screen.

Mac will zoom the entire screen to where the cursor is located. You need to scroll up while holding down the Control key to zoom in and then scroll down to zoom out. 

2. With the MacBook Trackpad

This process is similar to the previous one.

  • Simply drag the cursor to the screen area to which you want to zoom in.
  • Hold down the Control key and scroll up using two fingers on the trackpad to zoom in.
  • To zoom out, use two fingers to scroll down on the trackpad while holding down the Control key. 

3. Using Keyboard Shortcuts

There is another way to zoom into the screen on Mac, and it is using keyboard shortcuts. All you need to do is hold down the Command key and press the “+” button or the “-” button to zoom out. You also have the option to zoom in and out of the entire screen on your Mac.

Refer to the instructions provided below to see how it is done.

  • Head over to the System Preferences from the Menu bar or use the shortcut present on the dock. 
  • Click on the Accessibility tab and select the Zoom option from the menu on the left-hand side. It should be under the Vision subsection. 
  • Here, ensure that the checkbox next to the Use keyboard shortcuts to zoom is turned on. 
How To Zoom Out on Mac
zoom out on mac mouse
  • Now, to zoom in, you need to use the Option-Command and “+” shortcut, and to zoom out, you need to use the Option-Command and “-” symbols. 
  • You can also disable the zoom using the Option-Command-8 shortcut. 

4. Using Enable Modifier Keys

You can choose different modifier keys to toggle the zoom function. Refer to the following instructions to see how to enable it.

  • Power on and log in to your Mac. 
  • Head over to the System Preferences from the Menu bar or the dock. 
  • Head over to the Accessibility tab and click on Zoom from the menu on the left-hand side. 
  • Ensure the check box next to the Use scroll gesture with modifier keys to zoom is checked. 
Zoom Out on Mac
zoom out on macbook
  • Select your preferred modifier key from the Control, Option, or Command keys. 
  • Now you can zoom in and out using the modifier key and scroll up or down on the trackpad. 

5. Using Apple’s Magic Mouse

You can also use Apple’s Magic Mouse to zoom in and out on the Mac. Here is what you can follow and perform the action smoothly.

Suppose you are simply looking to Zoom in on a particular portion of the screen. Simply take the pointer in place and simply make a double tap with one finger on the Magic Mouse. It will Zoom in on that portion of the screen. You can do it again to Zoom Out.

zoom out on magic mouse
zoom out on magic mouse

The same can be done using Modifier keys as we did with the Trackpad. After enabling the function, hold down the Control key on the keyboard and Scroll up with one finger on the Magic Mouse to Zoom in and vice versa to Zoom Out.

Read Stop Discord From Launching on Startup Mac

Frequently Asked Questions

1. How to enable hover text on Mac?

The Hover Text is an accessibility feature that magnifies text relative to wherever your cursor is pointed on the screen. To enable this feature, you need to first sign in to your Mac and head over to System Preferences using the Menu bar or the dock. Click on the Accessibility tab inside the System Preferences window. 
From the menu on the left-hand side, select Zoom; it should be under the Vision subsection. Next, check the box next to the Enable hover text option. Now, all you have to do is hold down the Command key and move the cursor to the text you want to magnify on the screen.

2. Can I zoom in on the touch bar on my Macbook?

If you have a Macbook with a touch bar, you have an additional zoom option to zoom into the touch bar itself. First, sign in to your Mac and head to System Preferences. Click on the Accessibility tab inside the System Preferences window. Head over to the Zoom option from the menu on the left-hand side. Now, check the box next to the Enable touch bar zoom option. 
Once that is done, press and hold your finger anywhere on the touch bar, and a magnified version will be displayed at the bottom of the screen. Scroll your finger on the touch bar to move between different items. If you want to choose and select a particular option, move your finger over it and wait till the circle turns completely white. Then you can adjust or use that option.

3. Can I change the zoom style on Mac?

Yes, Apple offers several different zoom options to choose from. Head over to the System Preferences from the Menu bar.  Click on the Accessibility tab inside the System Preferences window; select Zoom from the list on the left-hand side. Click on the drop-down menu next to the Zoom style option and select between full-screen, split-screen, and picture-in-picture options. 

Conclusion

Apple offers lots of customizations and options to zoom in and out of your screen. Needless to say, the accessibility features provided by Apple are top-notch.

We recommend using the command key and the trackpad or mouse to zoom in and out of the screen, as it is the easiest and most accessible way to zoom into the screen. 

You may like the following mac tutorials: