How to magnify the screen in macOS 14 Sonoma

5. If you are using the scroll gesture to start Zoom, you can choose which key you need to hold down while scrolling. To change the modifier key, select the drop-down menu for Modifier key for scroll gesture and choose from Control (^) + Option (Alt ⌥), or Command (⌘).

6. Select the drop-down menu for Zoom style and choose from Full screen, Split screen, and Picture-in-picture. See the examples at the beginning of this step-by-step guide for more information about each Zoom style.

7. To customise the style of Zoom you have selected, click the Advanced button.

Note: There are some differences between the settings for each zoom style. Below, we will list all the available settings and make a note of which zoom style they apply to if they are not universal.

8. Choose from the following options for Zoomed image moves:

9. If you would like to start Zoom at the same magnification level as when you last closed it, turn on the toggle switch for Restore zoom factor on startup.

This option is only available for Split screen and Picture-in-picture styles

10. If you would like the colours of the zoomed area to be inverted, turn on the toggle switch for Invert colours in split screen and picture-in-picture style.

11. Text and images can appear pixelated when they are zoomed in. To smooth their appearance, turn on the toggle switch for Smooth images.

12. When you are zoomed in, you might not see notifications. When this happens, you can get the screen to flash the screen. Click the toggle switch for Flash screen when notifications banner appears outside zoom view to turn it on.

13. Universal Control is a feature that allows uses to control multiple Apple computers and iPads with a single mouse/trackpad and keyboard. If you are using this feature but would like to disable it when zoomed in, turn on the toggle switch for Disable Universal Control while zoomed in.

This option is only available for the Picture-in-picture style.

14. By default, the Picture-in-picture window moves as you move the pointer. Alternatively, you can keep the picture-and-picture window in a fixed position on the screen. Click the toggle switch for Keep picture-in-picture window stationary to turn it on.

15. To enable keyboard shortcuts to adjust the zoom window, tick the checkbox for Use keyboard shortcuts to adjust zoom window. Once enabled, you can use the following shortcuts:

16. Adjust the sliders for Set range for rapid zooming in and out to set Maximum zoom and Minimum zoom magnification levels.

You can set how Zoom reacts to the element on the screen that is currently in focus, i.e., when you are focusing on an element that can receive keyboard input, such as text boxes, buttons, and links.

17. Select the drop-down menu for Follow keyboard focus and choose how you would like Zoom to react.

18. You can choose when the screen image should move if it might become unviewable. Select the drop-down menu for Move screen image when focus item is and choose from the options.

19. Choose how the screen image should move when the focus item changes. Under Move screen image, choose from:

20. Use the slider for Movement speed to set how quickly the screen image moves when the focus item changes.

21. Whilst using Zoom, you can switch between Full screen and Picture-in-picture styles using the Option (Alt ⌥) + Command (⌘) + F keyboard shortcut. To enable this, turn on the toggle switch for Toggle between full screen and picture-in-picture.

Note: You can’t switch the view to Spilt screen, but you can switch from Split screen to one of the other styles. 

22. If you use more than one display with your computer you can use a keyboard shortcut to move the zoom cursor between displays. Double-click 'none' in the Move cursor to next monitor then press the key combination you would like to use for the shortcut. To enable the shortcut, click the toggle switch to turn it on.

23. If you use a trackpad with your computer, you can use a trackpad gesture to move the zoom cursor between displays. Click the drop-down menu for Use trackpage gesture to move cursor between monitors and choose from the options.

24. When zoomed in, you can temporarily view the screen at normal size whilst holding down the Control (^) + Option (Alt ⌥) keys. To enable this, turn on the toggle switch for Toggle zoom.

25. If you find it difficult to see the content underneath the pointer when you are zoomed in, hold down the Control (^) + Command (⌘) keys to temporarily hide the pointer. To enable this, turn on the toggle switch for Detach zoom view from pointer.

26. If you’re using Full Screen zoom with more than one display, you can use a shortcut to keep the zoom window in place when you move the pointer to another display. Double-click 'none' in the Disable panning then press the key combination you would like to use for the shortcut. To enable the shortcut, click the toggle switch to turn it on.

27. When you are happy with your settings, close System Settings by clicking the Close button (red circle) in the top-left corner of the window or using the Cmd + W keyboard shortcut.

Note: If this does not work it could be because your computer settings are managed by someone else (an IT department or administrator for example). If so, you will need to contact them to access these settings or for help.