The bright and shiny colors on your Mac are scattering your focus or straining your eyes? Find out here how to use grayscale mode and eliminate or reduce glaring colors for a calming and comfortable viewing experience on a Mac ⤓ using macOS; using an app. you can even set up grayscale mode per application.
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How to Use Grayscale Mode or Reduce Color Intensity on a Mac
Time needed: 2 minutes
To turn on grayscale mode on a Mac and work in an environment free from distracting colors:
- Open System Settings on the Mac.
Here’s how: Select System Settings… from the Apple menu, for example.
- Go to Accessibility.
- Choose Display.
- Turn on Color filters.
- Choose Grayscale for Filter type.
A paler shade of gray: You can reduce the amount of filtering applied under Intensity to get a Mac with merely reduced color saturation but still not monochrome.
Shortcuts: See below for using the menu bar and keyboard to toggle grayscale mode quickly.
Their word: Apple include information on color filters in the Mac User Guide.
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Toggle Mac Grayscale Mode Fast using Menu Bar or Keyboard
To access grayscale mode from the macOS menu bar:
- Open System Settings.
- Go to Control Center.
- Select Show in Menu Bar for Accessibility Shortcuts.
Toggle: Click the accessibility icon in the menu bar and choose Color Filters (under Vision) to toggle the setting.
No “Color Filters”: If you do not see Color Filters in the menu, add it to accessibility shortcuts; see below.
To turn grayscale mode on or off using the keyboard:
- Press Command Option F5 to bring up accessibility shortcuts.
- Use Tab to highlight the Color Filters checkbox.
- Press Space.
- Now press Enter.
More permanent grayscale: How to Convert a PDF File to Grayscale on a Mac
Add Color Filters to Mac Accessibility Shortcuts
To have Color Filters appear in accessibility shortcuts for fast toggling:
- Open System Settings.
- Go to Accessibility.
- Now open Shortcut under General.
- Check Color Filter.
On an iPhone: How to Use Grayscale Mode on iPhone (Less Distracting)
How to Use Grayscale Mode or Reduce Color Intensity on a Mac: FAQ
Can I make only certain apps grayscale?
Yes, to some extent.
While macOS alone will not let you set up rules to turn grayscale mode on or off based on the app in use, for example, in any straight forward manner, you can use the grayscale app:
- Install and launch grayscale.
- Switch to the app for which you want to change the default grayscale mode.
- Click the grayscale icon in the menu bar with the right mouse button.
- Select the app’s name in the menu.
- Choose from Enable Grayscale, Disable Grayscale or the overall grayscale mode setting for the application.
Conversely, tired of a grayscale cursor? How to Change the Mouse Cursor Color on a Mac
Will grayscale mode slow down my Mac?
No.
The impact of grayscale mode on the performance of macOS (or your Mac’s battery) should be negligible.
(Tested with macOS Tahoe 26, Sequoia 15 and Sonoma 14; first published July 2024, last updated July 2026)