Questions

Can you update PS5 controller firmware on a Mac?

No. Sony updates the DualSense and the DualSense Edge on a PS5 console, or on a Windows 10 or 11 PC through its PlayStation Accessories app, and it offers no Mac version of that app. The good news: a Mac rarely needs the update, it takes a few minutes on a borrowed console or PC, and it stays in the controller, so the Mac benefits from then on.

On this page: 9 sections
  1. Check whether you need an update
  2. Update it on a PS5
  3. Update it on a Windows PC
  4. Update it on an Intel Mac with Boot Camp
  5. Pair it back to the Mac afterward
  6. Edit DualSense Edge profiles in the same app
  7. What no update changes on a Mac
  8. The short version
  9. Questions

Check whether you need an update

Sony recommends installing each update when it comes out. For use on a Mac, I would update in these cases:

  • It misbehaves after you have ruled out pairing. The controller drops or acts oddly, and removing it and pairing it again did not help. Start with PS5 controller not working on a Mac, because pairing is the usual cause.
  • It has not seen a console or a PC in a long time. A controller bought years ago and used only on a Mac still has the firmware it shipped with.
  • You use it on a PS5 as well. The console keeps it current anyway.

Sony's own page lists macOS 11.3 or later for the DualSense and names no firmware version a Mac needs. If the controller pairs and every button lights in System Settings, Game Controllers, the firmware is not your problem.

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

Update it on a PS5

  • You: Connect the controller to the PS5 with its USB cable and press the PS button. If the console does not offer an update by itself, look in Settings, Accessories, for DualSense Wireless Controller Device Software.
  • PS5: Installs the update in a few minutes.
  • Check: The update finishes with the cable still connected.

A friend's PS5 is enough: the update belongs to the controller, not to the console.

Update it on a Windows PC

Sony's app for this is called PlayStation Accessories, and Sony offers it as a Windows download only.

  • What it needs. Windows 10 (64 bit) or Windows 11, and a USB cable or Bluetooth.
  • What it does. It shows the controller's current firmware version and an Update button when a newer one is waiting.
  • What to avoid. Sony says not to turn off the PC or disconnect the controller during the update, and to update one controller at a time.

A family PC or a friend's laptop for ten minutes does the job, and the controller keeps the update when it comes back to the Mac.

Update it on an Intel Mac with Boot Camp

An Intel Mac that already has Windows installed through Boot Camp can start up in Windows and run PlayStation Accessories there, exactly as on a PC. Apple silicon Macs have no Boot Camp. I have not tested a Windows virtual machine for this, so I will not promise that route works.

Pair it back to the Mac afterward

After an update on a console, the controller is paired with that PS5. Sony's page says the controller has to be paired again each time it changes devices.

  • You: Unplug the cable. Hold the Create button and the PS button until the light bar blinks, then click Connect beside the controller in System Settings, Bluetooth.
  • macOS: Connects it and lists it under System Settings, Game Controllers.
  • Check: Press a button there and watch it light.

The full steps are on connecting a PS5 controller to a Mac. If it keeps going back to the PS5, turn the console fully off before you pair.

Edit DualSense Edge profiles in the same app

PlayStation Accessories is also where a DualSense Edge is customized on a PC, and Sony says the profiles are stored on the controller. A profile made on a PS5 or a PC therefore comes along to the Mac.

On the Mac itself, remapping happens in the game, in Steam, or system-wide with a mapper such as InputConfig, free on the Mac App Store, which reads the Edge's back paddles and FN buttons and never touches the controller's firmware. See the DualSense Edge in InputConfig. Profiles live in the controller; mappings made in InputConfig live on the Mac.

What no update changes on a Mac

Sony lists what a DualSense does on each kind of device, and firmware does not move these lines:

  • Haptic feedback. Sony says it is not compatible with Mac computers.
  • The built-in microphone and speaker. Not compatible with Mac, by the same page.
  • The headset jack. Needs a wired connection.
  • Adaptive triggers. Available when the game supports them.

An update keeps the controller healthy; it does not add features macOS leaves out.

The short version

  • Not on a Mac. Updates need a PS5 or a Windows 10 or 11 PC with PlayStation Accessories.
  • Rarely needed. Rule out pairing first.
  • Pair again afterward. Create and PS until the light bar blinks, then Connect.

Borrow a console or a PC for a few minutes, and the update stays in the controller for good.

Questions

Is there a PlayStation Accessories app for Mac?

No. Sony offers PlayStation Accessories as a Windows download, for Windows 10 (64 bit) and Windows 11. On a Mac the controller works without it.

Can I update a DualSense without a PS5 or a PC?

No. Sony's updates install from a PS5 console or from the PlayStation Accessories app on Windows. A friend's console or PC for a few minutes is enough, because the update stays in the controller.

Does a DualSense need current firmware to work on a Mac?

Sony lists macOS 11.3 or later as supported and names no firmware version a Mac needs. If the controller pairs and its buttons light in System Settings, Game Controllers, it works.

Does InputConfig update controller firmware?

No. InputConfig reads the controller and sends keys and mouse movement. It never writes to the controller's firmware.

Download InputConfig on the Mac App StoreFree. macOS 14 or later. No account, nothing leaves your Mac. Open source on GitHub.