Finding Your Perfect Tracking Speed
The trackpad built into Apple’s MacBooks (and the standalone Magic Trackpad for desktop Macs) is widely considered the best pointing device in the technology industry. It is large, made of smooth glass, and supports a massive array of multi-touch gestures.
However, the default speed at which the cursor moves across the screen when you slide your finger might not be perfect for you. If the tracking speed is set too slow, you will find yourself constantly lifting and swiping your finger multiple times just to drag a window across the screen, which can lead to wrist fatigue. If it is set too fast, the cursor will fly uncontrollably past the tiny buttons you are trying to click.
Fortunately, macOS makes it incredibly simple to fine-tune the tracking speed until it feels like a natural extension of your hand.
How to Adjust the Trackpad Speed in macOS Settings
The controls for your trackpad are located within the main System Settings application.
- Click the Apple Logo in the very top left corner of your Mac’s screen.
- Select System Settings from the dropdown menu. (If you are running an older version of macOS like Monterey or Big Sur, this will be called System Preferences).
- In the left-hand sidebar menu, scroll down towards the bottom and click on Trackpad.
- Ensure you are looking at the Point & Click tab at the top of this window.
- Look for the slider bar labelled Tracking speed.
This slider is the master control for your cursor’s velocity. There are no numbers, just a scale ranging from “Slow” on the left to “Fast” on the right.
How to Test the Speed Correctly
Do not simply drag the slider all the way to the right and close the window. The best way to find your perfect speed is to test it iteratively.
Move the slider one notch to the right, and then try moving your cursor from the extreme top left corner of your screen down to the extreme bottom right corner. Ideally, you should be able to cover that entire diagonal distance in one single swipe, without having to lift your finger off the glass.
If you have to lift your finger, increase the speed by one more notch. If the cursor flies wildly past the corner and you lose track of it, decrease the speed.
What is Scrolling Speed? (And Why It Is Different)
It is important to understand that the “Tracking speed” slider only controls how fast the cursor moves when you are using one finger to point.
It does not control how fast web pages and documents move up and down when you use two fingers to scroll. If you find that reading long articles is difficult because the page flies past too quickly, you need to adjust a completely different setting hidden deep within the Accessibility menu.
- Go to System Settings > Accessibility.
- Click on Pointer Control.
- Click the Trackpad Options… button.
- Here, you will find a separate slider for Scrolling speed. Adjust this to make your two-finger scrolling feel more comfortable.
The “Tap to Click” Productivity Secret
While you are in the main Trackpad settings menu adjusting your speed, you should highly consider turning on the feature called Tap to click.
By default, Apple requires you to physically press down on the trackpad until it physically clicks to register a selection. Turning on “Tap to click” allows you to simply tap the glass lightly with zero force. Once you get used to this setting, it drastically reduces the physical effort required to use your Mac and makes navigating the operating system feel significantly faster and smoother.
