Connect one or more external displays with your Mac – Mowery & Schoenfeld

You can connect your Mac to one or more external displays. You may want to do this to make it easier to work in multiple apps, switch between the things you’re working on, or just have more screen space.

Before you begin

Before you can connect your Mac to a display, you need to determine a few things:

What kind of video ports your Mac has.
How many displays your Mac can support.
Whether or not you have the right cables.

With this information, you can connect your displays to your Mac.

Step 1: Identify the video ports on your Mac

Before you can connect displays, you need to know what type of video ports your Mac has. The ports you have determine what kind and how many external displays you can connect, and how you connect them.

Use the table below to determine what video ports your Mac has.

Note: There may be an identifying icon near each video port, depending on your Mac. If there isn’t an icon, you can still find out which ports you have. See the Apple Support article Identify the ports on your Mac.

What it looks like	Icon	Type of port
	No icon	USB-C
		Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C), Thunderbolt / USB 4, Thunderbolt 4 (USB-C) and Thunderbolt 5 (USB-C)
		Thunderbolt and Thunderbolt 2
		Mini DisplayPort
		HDMI

For more information, see Use the ports on your Mac.

Step 2: See how many displays your Mac supports

Next, you need to determine whether your Mac supports the number of displays you want to connect. To do so, check the tech specs for your Mac: Choose Apple menu > System Settings, click Help in the menu bar and choose [your Mac’s name] Specifications, then scroll down to Display Support or Video Support (depending on your Mac).

Step 3: Make sure you have the right cables and adapters

If your displays come with cables that match the ports you want to use on your Mac, you can use those cables to connect the display to your Mac.
If your displays don’t have cables, obtain cables that fit the available ports on your Mac and displays.
If you have display cables, but their connectors don’t match the ports you want to use on your Mac, you may be able to use an adapter.

See the Apple Support article Adapters for the Thunderbolt or USB-C port on your Mac to identify what type of adapter you need, see what it looks like, and learn what it can be used for.

Step 4: Connect your displays to your Mac

Connect your displays to your Mac using the identified video ports, cables, and adapters (if needed).

After your displays are connected, you may want to adjust their settings. Choose Apple menu > System Settings, then click Displays in the sidebar to see your displays’ settings, including resolution, brightness, and color profile. You can also decide whether to extend or mirror your Mac desktop across your external displays.

If you have a third-party display, check the documentation that came with the display to get more information on the display’s video ports and cables, and to make sure you’re connecting the display according to the manufacturer’s guidelines.

If the external display isn’t working

If your Mac doesn’t recognize that a separate display is connected or if the display appears blurry, you can try to detect it in System Settings, or try one of the other troubleshooting tips below.

On your Mac, choose Apple menu > System Settings, then click Displays in the sidebar. (You may need to scroll down.)
Press and hold the Option key to make the Detect Displays button appear in place of the Night Shift button, then click Detect Displays.
If your Mac still doesn’t recognize the attached display, try any of the following:
- Unplug the display from your Mac, then plug it back in.
- Make sure your display is turned on.
- Make sure the cable you’re using is securely connected to the correct port.
- Make sure you’re using the correct cable to connect your display.
- Make sure you’re using the correct adapter, if needed. See the Apple Support article Adapters for the Thunderbolt or USB-C port on your Mac.
- Put your Mac to sleep and then wake it.
- Make sure your Mac supports the type and number of connected displays. To do so, check the tech specs for your Mac: Choose Apple menu > System Settings, click Help in the menu bar and choose [your Mac’s name] Specifications, then scroll down to Display Support or Video Support (depending on your Mac).
- If you’re using a third-party display, check the included documentation to ensure you’re connecting the display according to the manufacturer’s guidelines.