How to Customise Control Centre and Pin Controls to the Menu Bar in macOS

The Control Centre in macOS brings together essential system toggles—such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, AirDrop, Screen Mirroring, Sound, and Display brightness—into a unified pull-down panel accessible from the top-right corner of your screen. While the default layout offers quick access to common functions, you can tailor both Control Centre and your Mac menu bar to match your exact daily workflow. By adding lesser-known modules and pinning your most critical controls directly to the menu bar, you can adjust settings in a single click without opening System Settings.

Why Customise Your Mac Control Centre?

Personalising system controls streamlines everyday Mac navigation:

• Instant Access to Sound Outputs: Pin the Sound slider directly to your menu bar to switch between AirPods, external monitors, and studio speakers with one click.
• Declutter Your Menu Bar: Hide rarely used icons (like Bluetooth or Focus modes) inside the Control Centre panel to keep a minimalist menu bar.
• Add Useful Productivity Modules: Enable battery percentage indicators, Stage Manager controls, Fast User Switching, or Hearing accessibility toggles.

How to Pin Controls from Control Centre to the Menu Bar (Drag and Drop)

The fastest way to place any Control Centre module onto your menu bar is by dragging it directly:

1. Click on the Control Centre icon (the two horizontal toggle sliders) in the top-right menu bar.
2. Click and hold any module—such as Sound, Display, or AirDrop.
3. Drag the item out of the panel and onto your top menu bar.
4. Release your mouse button. The shortcut icon will remain pinned in that location for instant one-click adjustments.

How to Rearrange or Remove Pinned Menu Bar Icons

You can fine-tune the order of icons along your menu bar at any time:

• To rearrange: Hold down the Command (Cmd) key, click and hold any pinned icon, and slide it left or right to your preferred position.
• To remove: Hold down the Command (Cmd) key, click and drag the icon down away from the menu bar until an “X” badge appears, then release. The control will remain accessible inside Control Centre without taking up menu bar space.

How to Customise Modules in System Settings

To view all available system toggles and configure their display rules:

1. Click the Apple menu () in the top-left corner and select System Settings.
2. Scroll down the left sidebar and click on Control Centre.
3. Review the list of system modules under Control Centre Modules.
4. For each item (such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, AirDrop, or Focus), use the dropdown menu to choose between:
   • Show in Menu Bar: Keeps the icon visible on your top bar at all times.
   • Don’t Show in Menu Bar: Keeps the icon tucked away inside the Control Centre panel.
5. Scroll further down to Other Modules to enable additional tools such as Accessibility Shortcuts, Battery Percentage, or Hearing.

Tailoring these controls creates a streamlined desktop environment where your most-used audio, network, and display settings are always within arm’s reach.