Phasmophobia on a Mac with a controller
The Phasmophobia layout is built into InputConfig, free on the Mac App Store. You don't have to make an account, there are no subscriptions, and nothing is locked. Optimized for Apple silicon.
On a Mac: No Mac version. It runs on a Mac through CrossOver or the Game Porting Toolkit, and the wrapper often does not pass the controller to the game's own support.
Yes, Phasmophobia can be played with a controller on a Mac. The game has real controller support since the console version, so the only reason for this page is the wrapper, which often does not let the pad through. This is the keyboard Phasmophobia from a controller, with the flashlight on the D-pad, because that is the button you press when something moves.
On this page: 9 sections
The layout, control by control
How the layout thinks
- Move and look. The left stick walks, the right stick looks, and the left stick click is sprint.
- Use equipment. The right trigger and the right bumper are the item's primary use, the left trigger places it, and the left bumper is its secondary use (F).
- Hands. Crouch (C) is the right face button, pick up (E) the left, and drop (G) the top.
- Light and gear. D-pad up toggles the flashlight (T), down switches the held item (Q), and left and right scroll through items.
- Talk. Hold the bottom face button for local voice (V) and Options for the radio (B). The journal (J) is on Create.
The flashlight is D-pad up, so you can find it in the dark without looking.
Tune it
- The journal. Create opens it, and it is pointer work. The right stick is already the mouse, so you can tick evidence with it.
- Voice. The game listens for phrases. Hold the bottom face button and ask the ghost its name.
- Look. Lower and calmer suits a ghost hunt: drop the look rows' Speed to about 14 and 10.
Push-to-talk on the bottom face button is the row that makes the ghost answer.
If the wrapper passes your controller
If the game reacts to the pad on its own, play on its controller scheme and leave this preset off, because both at once makes every press land twice. Using a controller with CrossOver games covers the wrapper side. Activate the layout only when the game cannot see the pad.
Phasmophobia controller support: controller or keyboard
Steam's store page lists full controller support for Phasmophobia, so the game was made to be played on a controller, menus included. A keyboard and mouse work as well, and the choice is yours. On a Mac, use the game's own controller support first when it sees your pad; this layout is for a pad it does not see, or for buttons it will not let you move. Full support listed means the controller is a first-class way to play Phasmophobia.
From Steam's listing, checked in October 2026. Every game's listing is in Mac games with controller support.
If your controller is not working in Phasmophobia
When Phasmophobia does not react to your controller on a Mac, climb this ladder, smallest step first:
- Check that the Mac sees the controller. Open the gamepad tester and press a button. If nothing lights up there, the problem is the connection, and a controller that is connected but not working covers that first.
- Expect less inside a wrapper. In CrossOver or the Game Porting Toolkit, Wine passes a controller to Phasmophobia only some of the time, and the keyboard and mouse get through every time. Using a controller with CrossOver games has the checks.
- Play it from keys. If Phasmophobia still ignores the pad, activate this layout. It sends the keyboard and mouse controls Phasmophobia already reads. Turn the game's own controller option off while it runs, or a press can arrive twice. The layout works whether or not Phasmophobia ever sees the controller.
Get it in two clicks
- Get InputConfig free on the Mac App Store, open it, and click Smart Preset Maker on the welcome screen.
- Search for Phasmophobia and pick it. The layout is created as a preset in your sidebar, named and ready.
- Press Activate. Every row can be changed afterwards: the editor's Scan button rebinds any control the moment you touch it.
To check the controller itself first, the gamepad tester shows every button and stick live in your browser.
Phasmophobia controls: every button and the key it sends
The Sends column is Phasmophobia's default keyboard and mouse controls, as this layout expects them. If you changed a key in the game's settings, change the same row in InputConfig.
| Controller | Sends | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Left stick up | W | Move forward (W) |
| Left stick down | S | Move backward (S) |
| Left stick left | A | Move left (A) |
| Left stick right | D | Move right (D) |
| Right stick right | Mouse motion right (speed 20) | Look right |
| Right stick left | Mouse motion left (speed 20) | Look left |
| Right stick down | Mouse motion down (speed 14) | Look down |
| Right stick up | Mouse motion up (speed 14) | Look up |
| L3 (left stick click) | Shift (Left) | Sprint (hold Left Shift, also left-stick click) |
| B / Circle | C | Crouch (C) |
| X / Square | E | Pick up / interact (E) |
| Y / Triangle | G | Drop held item (G) |
| Right trigger | Right click | Primary use of equipped item (right click) |
| Left trigger | Left click | Place item / interact (left click) |
| RB / R1 | Right click | Primary use of equipped item (right click) |
| LB / L1 | F | Secondary use of equipped item (F) |
| D-pad up | T | Toggle handheld flashlight / torch (T) |
| D-pad down | Q | Switch / cycle held item (Q) |
| D-pad right | Scroll down | Next held item (scroll) |
| D-pad left | Scroll up | Previous held item (scroll) |
| A / Cross | V | Local push to talk (hold V) |
| Start / Options | B | Global / radio push to talk (hold B) |
| Back / Share / Select | J | Open journal (J) |
Button names follow the Xbox / PlayStation pair shown in the editor, so A / Cross is the bottom face button on either pad. On a Switch Pro Controller the bottom button is labeled B; the mapping still fires on position.
Questions
Does Phasmophobia run on a Mac?
Phasmophobia does not run natively on a Mac. CrossOver and the Game Porting Toolkit run it. This layout is for wrappers that do not pass the controller.
Does Phasmophobia have controller support?
Yes. Steam lists full controller support for Phasmophobia, so every part of the game can be played on a controller.
Is Phasmophobia better with a controller or a keyboard?
Both work. Steam lists full controller support for Phasmophobia, so it was made to be played on a controller, and a keyboard and mouse work as well.
Why is my controller not working in Phasmophobia on a Mac?
First check the Mac itself sees the controller, with the gamepad tester. If it does and Phasmophobia still ignores it, activate the Phasmophobia layout in InputConfig, which sends the game's keyboard and mouse controls from the controller.
Can I play Phasmophobia on an M1 Mac or a MacBook Air?
Phasmophobia has no Mac version, so it runs through a wrapper such as CrossOver or the Game Porting Toolkit, and how well depends on the Mac's chip and memory. I have not tested it on each Mac.
Related
Completely free. You don't have to make an account, there are no subscriptions, and nothing is locked. Optimized for Apple silicon. Open source on GitHub.
Updated