What works with a PS5 DualSense on a Mac
InputConfig is completely 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.
Everything that makes a DualSense a controller works on a Mac: the sticks, buttons, triggers, D-pad and rumble, over Bluetooth or USB-C, with no driver, on macOS 11.3 or later. macOS also lets apps use the touchpad, the gyroscope and the light bar, and set the adaptive triggers. What you actually get depends on the game, because most Mac games only ask for the basics, and a free app covers the rest.
On this page
Check each feature
| Feature | On a Mac | With InputConfig |
|---|---|---|
| Sticks, buttons, triggers, D-pad | Work in every Mac game with controller support | Also work as keys, mouse, scroll, macros or MIDI in any app |
| Rumble | Works in games that use it | Vibration on any binding, with an intensity slider |
| Sony's finer haptic effects | Listed by Sony as unavailable on a Mac | Not available. InputConfig uses rumble |
| Touchpad | Apps can read it, and few games do | A trackpad for the pointer, or tap regions that each run a binding |
| Gyroscope | Apps can read it, but it is rare in Mac games | Gyro aim, or tilt to move the pointer |
| Light bar | Apps can set its color | A color per preset, a full RGB picker, brightness |
| Adaptive triggers | Games can set the resistance, and few Mac games do | Light, Medium or Firm resistance per trigger and per preset, over USB or Bluetooth |
| Mute button | Ignored by most apps | A button you can bind |
| Battery | Varies by app | Shown for the connected controller at the top of the sidebar |
| Edge back paddles and FN buttons | Ignored by most games | Bindable like any button, over Bluetooth or USB. The four stored profiles are listed over USB-C |
Pairing is covered on how to connect a PS5 controller to a Mac. The basics work everywhere, and the extras work wherever an app asks for them.
Skip the driver, add an app only for the extras
It needs no driver. macOS has supported the DualSense since Big Sur 11.3, and the DualSense Edge since Ventura 13.3 according to Sony. Games with controller support see it the moment it is paired.
An app is only needed for what macOS does not do on its own:
- Games and apps with no controller support. The pad sends their keys and clicks.
- The pointer. The DualSense as a mouse.
- The extra inputs. The touchpad, gyroscope, Mute button and Edge paddles that most games ignore.
There is no DS4Windows for Mac and no Sony controller app for the Mac. InputConfig is the free one I built for this: open source, no account, and nothing locked behind the tip jar.
Use the touchpad, gyroscope and light bar
These three are where the DualSense is better on a Mac than it looks.
- The touchpad. It works as a trackpad, one finger for the pointer and two to scroll, or it can be split into regions that each fire a shortcut.
- The gyroscope. The gyroscope aims in games that only take a mouse.
- The light bar. The light bar can change color with each preset, so you can tell at a glance which layout is running.
Know what rumble and the triggers can do
- Rumble works. Games that use it shake the controller, and InputConfig can vibrate on any binding so you feel a press land without looking.
- Sony's finer haptics do not. Sony lists them as unavailable on a Mac, so expect plain vibration rather than the textured effects of PS5 games.
- The adaptive triggers can be set from the Mac. macOS lets a game set their resistance, and few Mac games do. Since 1.8, InputConfig gives each trigger a steady Light, Medium or Firm resistance while a preset runs. It does not play a PS5 game's own trigger effects. See adaptive triggers on a Mac.
Map the DualSense Edge's extra buttons
The Edge pairs the same way and games see it as a DualSense. Its two back paddles and two FN buttons are ignored by most Mac games. InputConfig reads them over Bluetooth and USB and binds them like any other button, and over USB-C it lists the four profiles stored on the pad with what each one remaps. The DualSense Edge page has the button numbers and the fix when they go quiet.
Play through PS Remote Play
Sony's PS Remote Play app for Mac streams a PS5 to the Mac and takes the DualSense directly. Pair the controller with the Mac first, then start Remote Play. You do not need InputConfig for Remote Play. If you use it for other things, deactivate the running preset while you play so the controller is not also sending keys to the Mac.
If something is wrong
- It will not pair. See PS5 controller will not connect to a Mac.
- It pairs, then drops. See keeps disconnecting.
- It is connected, but a game ignores it. See not working on a Mac.
- It feels slow. See input lag on a Mac.
- It needs a firmware update. That takes a PS5 or a Windows PC. There is no Mac updater.
The short version
- No driver. Pair it over Bluetooth or USB-C on macOS 11.3 or later.
- Games use the basics. Those are the sticks, buttons, triggers and rumble.
- A mapper uses the rest. That means the touchpad as a trackpad, the gyroscope for aim, the light bar per preset, a trigger feel per preset, and the Edge's paddles.
A DualSense gives a Mac more than most games ask of it.
Questions
Does the PS5 DualSense work on a Mac?
Yes, on macOS 11.3 or later, over Bluetooth or USB-C, with no driver. Every Mac game with controller support can use it, and a mapper covers the games that do not.
Do DualSense haptics work on a Mac?
Rumble works, in games that use it and in InputConfig's per-binding vibration. Sony lists the finer haptic feedback as unavailable on a Mac.
Do the adaptive triggers work on a Mac?
macOS lets a game set them, and has since Big Sur 11.3, but few Mac games do. InputConfig gives each trigger a steady Light, Medium or Firm resistance while a preset runs, over USB or Bluetooth. Scripted effects such as bow tension come only from games.
Is there a DualSense app for Mac?
Sony does not make a controller app for the Mac. InputConfig is a free, open-source Mac app that maps the DualSense to keys, mouse, macros and MIDI, and uses its touchpad, gyroscope, light bar and rumble.
Can I see the DualSense battery level on a Mac?
InputConfig shows the connected controller's battery level at the top of its sidebar.
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