Project Zomboid on a Mac with a controller
The Project Zomboid 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: Native on macOS through Steam, with gamepad support the game itself calls partial. This layout is the keyboard game from a pad, which covers menus and the inventory the gamepad mode struggles with.
Yes, Project Zomboid runs natively on the Mac, but its own controller support is partial by its own description: fine for walking and hitting, awkward the moment you open the inventory, which in Zomboid is every ninety seconds. This layout plays the whole game from a pad as keyboard and mouse, and because the inventory is mouse-driven, the right stick as a cursor is what makes it playable.
On this page: 8 sections
The layout, control by control
How the layout thinks
- Walk and aim. The left stick walks. The right stick is the mouse, which aims and is the inventory cursor.
- Fight. The right trigger attacks and the left trigger raises the weapon, so a swing is pull left, pull right. Attack with no weapon raised is the shove.
- Inventory clicks. Attack is a left click and aim is a right click, so in the inventory the right trigger clicks and drags and the left trigger opens the context menu.
- Face buttons. E to interact on the bottom, sneak (C) on the right, reload on the left, inventory (I) on the top.
- Run and hotbar. Run on the left stick click, hotbar 1 to 3 on the D-pad, Escape on Options.
The right stick doubles as the inventory cursor, which is the part the game's own pad mode struggles with.
Tune it to how you survive
- Game speed. The speeds are F2 to F5. Put them on a D-pad chord.
- Sprint. Shift runs and Alt sprints. Put Alt on the right stick click.
- Vehicles. V for the vehicle menu, W and S to drive, on the same stick.
Speed controls on a chord keep the long nights short.
If Zomboid ignores your controller
Climb this ladder, smallest step first:
- Check the Mac. The pad should show under Game Controllers in the System Settings sidebar.
- Change Steam Input. Try it on and off in the game's Steam properties.
- Send keys. Activate this layout. The game always reads its keyboard and mouse, and the layout sends them.
Controller connected but not working goes through the checks in more detail. Use the game's pad mode or this layout, not both, so a press does one thing.
Project Zomboid controller support: controller or keyboard
Steam's store page lists partial controller support for Project Zomboid: it plays on a controller, but some parts, such as a launcher, text entry or a menu, still expect a keyboard or a mouse. This layout sends keys and mouse movement from the pad, which can cover the parts the game's own support leaves out. With partial support, a layout fills the gaps the game leaves.
From Steam's listing, checked in October 2026. Every game's listing is in Mac games with controller support.
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 Project Zomboid 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.
Project Zomboid controls: every button and the key it sends
The Sends column is Project Zomboid'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 left | A | Move left (A) |
| Left stick right | D | Move right (D) |
| Left stick up | W | Move up (W) |
| Left stick down | S | Move down (S) |
| Right stick right | Mouse motion right (speed 16) | Aim right |
| Right stick left | Mouse motion left (speed 16) | Aim left |
| Right stick down | Mouse motion down (speed 16) | Aim down |
| Right stick up | Mouse motion up (speed 16) | Aim up |
| Right trigger | Left click | Attack |
| Left trigger | Right click | Aim weapon |
| A / Cross | E | Interact (E) |
| B / Circle | C | Sneak (C) |
| X / Square | R | Reload |
| Y / Triangle | I | Open inventory (I) |
| L3 (left stick click) | Shift (Left) | Run (Shift) |
| D-pad up | 1 | Hotbar 1 |
| D-pad left | 2 | Hotbar 2 |
| D-pad right | 3 | Hotbar 3 |
| Start / Options | Escape | Menu (Esc) |
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
Can you play Project Zomboid with a PS5 or Xbox controller on a Mac?
Yes. The Mac version has its own gamepad mode, which Steam lists as partial support: fine for walking and fighting, awkward in the inventory. This layout plays the keyboard and mouse game from a PS5, Xbox or other pad, with the right stick as the mouse cursor for the inventory.
Why is my controller not working in Project Zomboid on a Mac?
Check that the pad shows under Game Controllers in the System Settings sidebar, then try Steam Input on and off in the game's Steam properties. If Zomboid still ignores it, activate this layout: the game always reads its keyboard and mouse, and the layout sends them. Controller connected but not working goes through the checks in order.
Does Project Zomboid have controller support?
Partly. Steam lists partial controller support for Project Zomboid: it plays on a controller, but some screens still expect a keyboard or mouse.
Is Project Zomboid better with a controller or a keyboard?
A controller works for most of it. Steam lists partial controller support for Project Zomboid, so some screens still expect a keyboard or a mouse, and a layout like this one can put those on the pad.
Can I play Project Zomboid on an M1 Mac or a MacBook Air?
Project Zomboid has a native Mac version, and its minimum requirements are listed on its Steam store page, so check your Mac against that list. I have not tested it on each Mac. The controller layout itself works the same on any Mac that runs InputConfig.
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.
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