Before your Mac goes to a new owner, you need to remove everything personal from it and unlink it from your Apple Account. On modern Macs this takes a few clicks.
⚠️ A factory reset permanently erases everything on the Mac. Follow step 1 first.
Step 1: Back up your Mac
Make sure you have a copy of everything you want to keep.
- Time Machine: connect your backup drive, click the Time Machine icon in the menu bar and choose Back Up Now. Wait for it to finish.
- iCloud: check that your photos, documents and desktop have finished syncing.
- Moving to a new Mac? Set the new one up first using Migration Assistant, and check that everything has arrived before you erase the old one.
Step 2: Check which method your Mac uses
Click the Apple menu > About This Mac.
- Apple silicon Macs (M1 or later), and Intel Macs with a T2 security chip, running macOS Monterey or later: use Erase All Content and Settings (Method A). This covers most Macs sold since 2018.
- Older Intel Macs: use Recovery (Method B).
Method A: Erase All Content and Settings
This is the quick, modern way. It works much like resetting an iPhone.
- Click the Apple menu > System Settings.
- Go to General > Transfer or Reset.
- Click Erase All Content and Settings.
- Enter your Mac password and click Unlock.
- You’re shown what will be removed: your data, your Apple Account, Touch ID fingerprints, Bluetooth accessories and Find My. Click Continue.
- Enter your Apple Account password to sign out and turn off Activation Lock.
- Click Erase All Content and Settings to confirm.
Your Mac restarts and erases itself. After a few minutes it shows the “Hello” setup screen. Hold the power button to shut it down. It’s now ready for its new owner.
On macOS Monterey, you’ll find this under System Preferences in the menu bar: choose System Preferences > Erase All Content and Settings.
Method B: Older Macs (Recovery)
Do these steps in order.
1. Sign out of your accounts – iCloud: go to System Settings (or System Preferences), click your name (or Apple ID), then Sign Out. This also turns off Find My. – iMessage: open Messages > Settings > iMessage > Sign Out.
2. Unpair Bluetooth devices you’re keeping, such as a keyboard or mouse, in Bluetooth settings.
3. Erase the drive 1. Shut down the Mac. Turn it on and immediately hold Command + R until the Apple logo appears. 2. Choose Disk Utility and click Continue. 3. Select Macintosh HD in the sidebar and click Erase. 4. Choose APFS (or Mac OS Extended (Journaled) on very old Macs) and click Erase (or Erase Volume Group). 5. Quit Disk Utility.
4. Reinstall macOS 1. Back in the Recovery window, choose Reinstall macOS and follow the steps. 2. When the Mac restarts to the setup screen, press Command + Q and choose Shut Down. Leave the setup for the new owner.
Final checks before you hand it over
- Remove the Mac from your Apple Account. On your iPhone, go to Settings > [your name], scroll to your devices, tap the Mac and choose Remove from Account. You can also do this at account.apple.com.
- Check Activation Lock is off. If the setup screen asks for your Apple Account, the Mac is still locked to you. Sign in at icloud.com/find and remove it.
- Cancel or transfer AppleCare if the Mac still has cover.
- Clean it up and include the charger.
Just having problems? You may not need a reset
A factory reset is a big step. If your Mac is only running slowly, try freeing up storage, updating macOS and restarting first.
Wrapping up
On a modern Mac: back up, then System Settings > General > Transfer or Reset > Erase All Content and Settings. Your data is erased, your Apple Account is removed, and the Mac is ready for someone new.
