How to Disable the macOS ‘Hot Corners’ (Active Screen Corners)

The Accidental Activations

macOS includes a productivity feature known as “Hot Corners.” This allows you to assign specific actions—such as starting the screen saver, putting the display to sleep, or opening Mission Control—to the four physical corners of your screen. When you throw your mouse cursor rapidly into one of those corners, the assigned action immediately triggers.

While this sounds convenient, it is notoriously prone to accidental activation. If you quickly move your mouse to click the Apple logo, close a window, or access a menu bar item, you might slightly overshoot and hit a corner instead. Suddenly, your screen goes black, or all your windows fly out of the way. If you find yourself constantly triggering these actions by mistake, the best solution is to turn them off completely.

How to Turn Off Hot Corners

You can manage and disable these active corners in the Desktop & Dock settings.

1. Click the Apple Logo in the top-left corner of your screen and select System Settings… (or System Preferences).
2. In the left-hand sidebar, click on Desktop & Dock.
3. Scroll all the way down to the very bottom of this panel.
4. Click on the Hot Corners… button in the bottom right corner.
5. A dialog box will appear showing a representation of your screen with four dropdown menus (one for each corner).
6. Click on each dropdown menu that currently has an action assigned to it (e.g., “Start Screen Saver”).
7. Change the selection to the dash symbol (-), which means “No Action.”
8. Ensure all four corners are set to the dash symbol.
9. Click Done.

Your screen corners are now completely inactive. You can move your mouse freely around the absolute edges of your display without fear of accidentally triggering Mission Control or locking your Mac.