Questions
How to use a Mac without a mouse
Short answer: turn on Mouse Keys and the keyboard moves the pointer and clicks. Press Option Command F5, or press Touch ID three times quickly, to open the Accessibility Shortcuts panel, or find it in System Settings, Accessibility, Pointer Control. That gets you through today. For longer than a day, a game controller makes a much better mouse than a keyboard does, and that is what I built InputConfig for. Both are below, with the keyboard shortcuts that make the pointer unnecessary most of the time.
Move, click, and drag with Mouse Keys
Turn it on in System Settings, Accessibility, Pointer Control, Mouse Keys. Then, from Apple's own table:
| To | Keyboard | Number pad |
|---|---|---|
| Move the pointer | 7, 8, 9, U, O, J, K, L | 7, 8, 9, 4, 6, 1, 2, 3 |
| Click | I | 5 |
| Press and hold (start a drag) | M | 0 |
| Release the hold | . (period) | . (period) |
Right click is Control-click on a Mac, so hold Control and press the click key. On a keyboard with no number pad, those letters move the pointer instead of typing while Mouse Keys is on, so switch it off before you type.
Scroll without a mouse
- Space scrolls down a page and Shift Space scrolls back up, in Safari, Chrome, and most documents.
- The arrow keys scroll a line at a time once the page has focus.
- On a MacBook keyboard, fn with Up Arrow and fn with Down Arrow are Page Up and Page Down; fn with Left Arrow and fn with Right Arrow jump to the top and the bottom.
Skip the pointer: shortcuts that replace most clicks
- Command Space opens Spotlight: type the first letters of an app, file, or setting and press Return.
- Command Tab switches apps; Command ` (the key above Tab) switches windows of the same app.
- Control F2 (Control fn F2 on most laptops) puts the focus in the menu bar; then use the arrow keys and Return.
- Full Keyboard Access (System Settings, Accessibility, Keyboard) lets Tab reach every button and checkbox, and Space presses it.
Between these and Mouse Keys, a Mac is usable with a keyboard alone for a day or two. It is slow for anything that needs a lot of pointing: photos, maps, web pages full of links.
A game controller as the mouse
If there is a PlayStation, Xbox, Switch Pro, or 8BitDo controller in the house, it can be the Mac's mouse. InputConfig is free on the Mac App Store, and its built-in Desktop Navigation preset sets it up in one click:
- Left stick moves the pointer: a small push is slow and precise, a full push crosses the screen.
- Right stick scrolls, up, down, left, and right.
- Right trigger is left click; left trigger is right click.
- D-pad is the arrow keys; the bumpers are Command Tab and Command Shift Tab.
For a pointer and nothing else, Mouse + Scroll keeps the sticks and the clicks, adds middle click, and puts slow pointer nudges on the D-pad. InputConfig needs the Accessibility permission once, which is one click in System Settings: with no mouse, make it with Mouse Keys or Full Keyboard Access. More detail for your controller: PS5, Xbox, or any controller.
InputConfig is free on the Mac App Store. macOS 14 or later, no account, no tracking, open source.
Which one to use
- The mouse died this afternoon: Mouse Keys and the shortcuts above.
- A week without one, or a mouse hurts your hand: a controller with Desktop Navigation.
- No mouse and no keyboard, for good: using a Mac without a mouse or keyboard builds the full setup, with dictation and saved phrases.
- No reliable hand movement: using a Mac hands-free.
Questions
How do I right click on a Mac without a mouse?
Hold Control and click. With Mouse Keys the click key is I, or 5 on a number pad. With a controller running InputConfig's Desktop Navigation preset, the left trigger is right click.
How do I double click without a mouse?
Press the Mouse Keys click key twice quickly. With a controller, press the click trigger twice, or give one button a double click in InputConfig so a single press sends both clicks.
How do I scroll on a MacBook without a trackpad?
Space and Shift Space page down and up, the arrow keys scroll by lines, and fn with the Up or Down Arrow is Page Up and Page Down. A controller's right stick scrolls in all four directions with InputConfig.
Can I use an iMac or Mac mini without a mouse?
Yes. Mouse Keys works with any keyboard, and a game controller with InputConfig is a full mouse once its permission is allowed. With no keyboard either, see the guide to using a Mac without a mouse or keyboard.
Is InputConfig free?
Yes. It is free on the Mac App Store and open source, with no account. An optional tip jar unlocks nothing. It needs macOS 14 or later.
Related
Free. macOS 14 or later. No account, nothing leaves your Mac. Open source on GitHub.