How to Right-Click on a MacBook (Trackpad, Mouse, Keys)

MacBook trackpads have no separate right button, which throws a lot of people the first time they need a shortcut menu. The right-click is still there; you just do it with two fingers, or with the Control key. Here's how to set it up the way you like it.

Three ways to right-click on a MacBook

Method	How	Needs setup?
Two-finger click	Press or tap the trackpad with two fingers together	On by default on most Macs
Control-click	Hold Control, then press the trackpad once	No
Trackpad corner	Click the bottom-right (or bottom-left) corner of the trackpad	Yes, choose it in Trackpad settings

Control-click works on every Mac, with any trackpad or mouse, and needs no setup. It's the method to remember when you're on someone else's computer and their settings are different from yours.

Turn on right-click for the trackpad

1. Open the Apple menu and choose System Settings.
2. Click Trackpad in the sidebar (you may need to scroll down).
3. Find Secondary click and open its pop-up menu.
4. Choose Click or Tap with Two Fingers, Click in Bottom Right Corner or Click in Bottom Left Corner.

If you've just switched from a Windows laptop, the bottom-right corner option feels the most familiar, because it's where the right button used to be. If you'd rather tap than press, turn on Tap to click in the same settings, and a light two-finger tap will open the menu.

Right-click with a mouse

A Magic Mouse is one smooth surface, so right-click has to be switched on. Go to System Settings, Mouse, and set Secondary click to click on the right side. Apple lets you pick the left side instead if that's more comfortable, which suits left-handed users. Most third-party mice with two buttons right-click straight away with no setup.

The keyboard key some Macs have

If you use the Magic Keyboard with Touch ID and Numeric Keyboard (USB-C), there's a Contextual Menu key just below the F13 key. Press it and a shortcut menu opens for whatever is selected, no mouse needed.

What right-click is useful for on a Mac

• Copy and paste: the shortcut menu includes Copy and Paste, handy when you can't remember the keys. My guide to office productivity hacks has more time-savers.
• Compress files: right-click a file in Finder and choose Compress to make a zip.
• Get Info: see a file's size, where it lives and which app opens it.
• Open With: open a file in a different app this one time.
• Quit an app from the Dock: right-click its icon and choose Quit.

Secondary click and Force Touch are different

Newer MacBook trackpads also respond to a firm press, called Force Click, which does things like look up a word or preview a link. People sometimes press hard expecting a right-click and get a dictionary pop-up instead. They're separate settings. Secondary click is the two-finger or corner click that opens the shortcut menu; Force Click is a deeper press with one finger. If the firm press keeps getting in your way, you can switch off Force Click and haptic feedback in the same Trackpad settings without touching right-click.

Right-clicking in apps and on the web

Right-click works the same inside apps as it does in Finder. In Safari or Chrome, a two-finger click on a link gives you Open Link in New Tab and Copy Link; on a picture, it offers Save Image or Copy Image. In Pages, Word and Google Docs, right-clicking a misspelt word shows spelling suggestions. In a spreadsheet, it's how you insert or delete rows. If a website doesn't respond to right-click, the site has probably blocked its own menu, and the Control-click route won't get around that either. In Finder, the right-click menu also has Quick Actions such as Rotate and Create PDF, which save opening an app at all.

When right-click stops working

Check the obvious first: in Trackpad settings, Secondary click may have been switched off or changed to a corner you're not using. If you've got a Bluetooth mouse, its battery may be low, so the Mac sees clicks but not the right-hand one. Restarting the Mac fixes the odd stuck trackpad. If two-finger clicks open the menu only some of the time, try placing both fingers a little further apart, near the middle of the pad, rather than at the bottom edge. And if a music app freezes while you're clicking around, my guide to Spotify not working on a Mac covers the restarts that usually fix it.

Right-click in Windows on a Mac

If you run Windows on an older Intel Mac, the same two-finger click works inside Windows once the Apple drivers are installed. Control-click doesn't do the job there, because Windows expects a real secondary click.

Accessibility settings can also change how clicks behave. If you or someone in the family uses Mouse Keys or other pointer options, check System Settings, Accessibility, Pointer Control before assuming the trackpad is faulty.

My verdict

Two fingers on the trackpad is the quickest right-click on a MacBook, and Control-click is the one that works everywhere. Spend thirty seconds in Trackpad settings choosing the style you like, and you'll stop missing the right button within a day.

Frequently asked questions

How do you right-click on a MacBook trackpad?

Click or tap with two fingers at once. You can also hold Control and click.

Why won't my MacBook right-click?

Secondary click may be off. Turn it on in System Settings, Trackpad.

What is a secondary click on a Mac?

It's Apple's name for a right-click. It opens the shortcut menu.

How do I right-click with a Magic Mouse?

Turn on Secondary click in System Settings, Mouse, then click the right side.

Can I right-click with the keyboard on a Mac?

Some Apple keyboards have a Contextual Menu key below F13 that opens the same menu.