Questions

How to use a Logitech controller on a Mac

Slide the small X/D switch to D and plug it in. In D mode the Mac reads a Logitech F310, F510 or F710 as a standard USB gamepad, with no driver, on Apple silicon and Intel alike. In X mode the Mac cannot read it at all, which is why most people think it is broken. It is not a game controller as far as macOS is concerned, so a native Mac game may not see it; Steam and emulators can, and for everything else InputConfig picks it up on its own and maps it to keys and the mouse. I make InputConfig, so weigh that.

Steps

1. Slide the X/D switch to D.
2. Plug in the pad, or the F710's USB receiver.
3. Check System Information, USB if nothing happens.
4. Map it in InputConfig with Scan.

The X/D switch is the whole answer

Logitech's F-series pads have two modes. X is XInput, the Xbox 360 protocol, which macOS has never supported. D is DirectInput, a plain USB HID gamepad that the Mac reads with nothing installed.

• F310, wired: the switch is on the back, next to the cable. Slide it to D, then plug in.
• F510, wired with rumble: the same switch and the same answer. Rumble is not driven on a Mac.
• F710, wireless: plug its small USB receiver into the Mac, slide the switch to D, and press a button to wake it. It uses its own receiver, not Bluetooth, so it never appears in Bluetooth settings.

If you move the switch while it is plugged in and nothing changes, unplug it and plug it back in. To check that the Mac sees it, open System Information and look under USB.

InputConfig is free on the Mac App Store. macOS 14 or later, no account, no tracking, open source.

What is different in D mode

• The triggers are buttons. In D mode LT and RT are on or off, not analog, so a racing game's throttle is all or nothing. Bind them as buttons.
• Mode swaps the left stick and the D-pad. If the stick moves in steps, or the D-pad moves like a stick, press Mode once; its light shows which way round it is.
• The buttons are numbered. In D mode the pad reports its buttons by number, not by name, so the label the editor shows may not match the button you press. Press Scan on a row and then the button you mean, rather than guessing.
• A stick can run backwards. If up moves down, tick Invert in that row's Options.

USB-C MacBooks

A MacBook Air or MacBook Pro needs a USB-A to USB-C adapter, or a hub with a USB-A port. If the pad still does not show up under USB in System Information, some owners report that holding the Logitech button while plugging it in, with the switch on D, gets an F310 recognised on a USB-C port, and that the same trick helps the F710's receiver. It is a fix other people report, not something InputConfig controls, but it costs nothing to try.

Do you need a driver?

No. D mode needs nothing installed. Be wary of sites offering an F310 Mac driver download. The only driver that ever made X mode work on a Mac was 360Controller, a kernel extension that is unmaintained and does not load on current macOS. See controller drivers on a Mac for the rest of the old hardware.

Games, Steam and emulators

Because macOS does not list the pad under Game Controllers in System Settings, a game that only uses Apple's controller support will not see it. Steam and many emulators read USB gamepads themselves, so try the game's own controller settings first. When a game ignores the pad, or has no controller support at all, InputConfig reads it directly: it appears in Settings, under Devices, marked as detected over raw HID, and every button, both sticks and the D-pad can send keys, clicks, mouse movement or scrolling.

1. Install InputConfig from the Mac App Store and allow Accessibility access.
2. Set the switch to D and plug the pad in.
3. Pick a preset, or search the Smart Preset Maker for the game or app.
4. In the editor, press Scan on any row and then the button you want there. On an empty device, Automatically insert available inputs adds a row for every control the pad has.
5. Activate. The menu bar icon and the emergency stop turn it off instantly.

The presets are laid out for PlayStation and Xbox button positions, and a pad in D mode numbers its buttons in its own order, so expect to Scan each row once.

Logitech flight sticks and wheels

The Extreme 3D Pro, the X52 and X56, and Logitech's wheels are HID devices too, and the Mac reads them with no driver. They are covered on the flight stick and HOTAS page and the joystick page.

Questions

Related

• Do you need a controller driver on a Mac?
• Other controllers
• How to connect a joystick to a Mac
• Controller connected but not detected
• Scan
• How to test a controller on a Mac

Free. macOS 14 or later. No account, nothing leaves your Mac. Open source on GitHub.