Mouse jiggler for 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.
A mouse jiggler moves the pointer a little every so often, so the Mac never sees you as idle and never sleeps or dims. On a Mac you often do not need one: the caffeinate command keeps it awake with no movement at all. When you do want the pointer to move, Jiggler is free, and Amphetamine, also free, can move the pointer as one of its options.
On this page: 7 sections
Steps
- Decide whether you need the Mac awake or the pointer moving.
- To keep it awake, type caffeinate -d in Terminal.
- To move the pointer, install Jiggler or Amphetamine.
- Allow the app in System Settings, Privacy & Security, Accessibility.
- Set how often it jiggles.
Decide what you need
Most people who search for a jiggler want one of two things, and they have different answers:
- The Mac must not sleep or dim. That needs no jiggling at all. How to keep a Mac awake covers caffeinate and the two settings in System Settings.
- Something must see the pointer move. That needs a jiggler, because only real pointer movement looks like a person at the desk.
If staying awake is the goal, caffeinate is free, built in, and does not move your pointer.
Pick a free jiggler
- Jiggler. Freeware from Stick Software that lives in the menu bar. It can wait until the Mac has been idle for a while before it moves the pointer, so it stays out of your way while you work.
- Amphetamine. A free keep-awake app on the Mac App Store with no in-app purchases. Its listing includes moving the pointer periodically as an option.
- Mouse Jiggler: Cursor Mover. On the Mac App Store, free with in-app purchases, with styles and schedules.
Every one of them needs Accessibility access to move the pointer, in System Settings, Privacy & Security, Accessibility. Give that access only to an app you got from the App Store or from its developer's own page.
Use InputConfig for a timed key or click
InputConfig is not a jiggler, but it repeats any output on a timer, which covers the jobs people sometimes use one for. A row set to Repeats until pressed again fires its output at the gap you choose, from 5 milliseconds up to a minute, until you press its control again.
- You: Make a row, choose Repeats until pressed again, set Every to the gap, and give it a key nothing uses, such as F15.
- InputConfig: Presses that key at that gap until you press the row's control again.
- Check: The emergency stop, Control Option Command period, ends it at once.
I have not tested this as a way to keep a Mac awake, so caffeinate is the one I would rely on for that. For clicks on a timer, the free auto clicker for Mac page has the full setup.
What a jiggler cannot do
- Keep a closed MacBook awake. A MacBook with the lid shut sleeps unless it is on power with a display and a keyboard and mouse connected.
- Work without permission. macOS blocks pointer movement from any app that has not been allowed in Accessibility.
- Fool every app. Some apps measure activity their own way, and I have not tested any jiggler against them.
The short version
- Stay awake. caffeinate -d in Terminal, no app needed.
- Move the pointer. Jiggler or Amphetamine, both free.
- A key or click on a timer. InputConfig, also free.
Start with caffeinate, and add a jiggler only if something must see the pointer move.
Questions
Is there a free mouse jiggler for Mac?
Yes. Jiggler from Stick Software is freeware, and Amphetamine on the Mac App Store is free and can move the pointer as one of its options.
Do I need a mouse jiggler to keep my Mac awake?
No. The caffeinate command in Terminal keeps a Mac awake without moving the pointer. Type caffeinate -d and leave the window open.
Is a mouse jiggler safe on a Mac?
The app needs Accessibility access to move the pointer, so install one from the Mac App Store or its developer's own page, and remove the access in System Settings when you stop using it.
Related
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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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