The same goes for Thunderbolt 1 or 2 and MiniDisplay ports on older Macs. If your monitor needs a Thunderbolt connection, you need to connect it to a Thunderbolt port. It’s important to know that Thunderbolt 3 ports and USB-C ports are not the same, even though they look identical from the outside. View the About This Mac window to find details about your computer. Click the System Report button for more information about the ports on your Mac. Then go to Apple > About This Mac to make sure your Mac meets them. Visit the manufacturer’s website for your external monitor to check its compatibility requirements. Even if you use an adapter to connect both devices together, they still need to run compatible software for every feature to work. Unfortunately, not every external monitor is compatible with every Mac. Check the compatibility of your external monitor

You should also check for updates to any hubs, extenders, or adapters you’re using. Check for new software updates to your Mac.įinally, visit the manufacturer’s website for your external monitor or display cable to check if there are other firmware updates to install. Then open the App Store and click Updates in the sidebar to install app and firmware updates. Open the Apple menu and go to System Preferences > Software Update to update macOS. If your external monitor isn’t working in any way, the first thing to do is make sure everything is updated. There’s your operating software (macOS), the particular app you’re using, and firmware built into the monitor, Mac, or even cables. Various pieces of software are involved in making an external monitor work with your Mac. If your Mac’s external monitor isn’t working but you can’t find the exact problem above, you still might be able to fix it with the tips below. This list isn’t exhaustive, but it covers the most common external monitor problems.

Everything appears too large or too smallĪ blurry monitor might be the result of using the wrong resolution.

External display appears blank or black.

To make sure this is the best article for you, here is a short list of the issues we’ll show you how to fix: The tips below can fix a wide number of problems you might experience with your Mac’s external monitor.

Use your iPad as an external Mac monitor with Sidecar.

Adjust the System Preferences for your Mac’s display Restart your Mac with the external monitor connected Reconnect all the cables and use a different port

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