Content

• To step
• Method 1 of 4: Press the Control key
• Method 2 of 4: Secondary two finger click on the trackpad
• Method 3 of 4: Click in the bottom corner
• Method 4 of 4: Using an external mouse
• Tips

At first glance, it looks like you can't use the right mouse button on a Mac. How can you click the right mouse button when there is only one button? Fortunately, you can also use the secondary menu on a Mac, it just works slightly differently than with Windows. Stay productive on your Mac by following the steps in this article.

To step

Method 1 of 4: Press the Control key

1. Press the Control key (Ctrl). Hold down the key while clicking with your mouse.
   • This is exactly the same as the right mouse button on a mouse with two buttons.
   • Then you can release the Control key.
   • This method works with a mouse with one button, with the trackpad of a MacBook or with the built-in button of the separate Apple trackpad.
2. Select the desired menu item. Control-click displays the appropriate contextual menu.
   • The example below is a contextual menu within the Firefox browser.

Method 2 of 4: Secondary two finger click on the trackpad

1. Turn on two finger clicks.
2. Open the trackpad preferences. In the apple menu, click System Preferencesthen click Trackpad.
3. Click on the tab Point and click. Select Secondary click then select Click with two fingers, you can then click with two fingers to secondary click. You will see a short video example of exactly how to click.
4. Take a test. Go to Finder and place two fingers on the trackpad. Now a contextual menu should appear.
5. This method works with all trackpads.

Method 3 of 4: Click in the bottom corner

1. Open the trackpad preferences as described above. In the Apple menu, click System Preferencesthen click Trackpad.
2. Click on the tab Point and click. Select it Secondary click then select Click in the lower right corner (you can also choose links). You will see a short video example of exactly how to click.
3. Take a test. Go to Finder and place one finger on the bottom right of the trackpad. Now a contextual menu should appear.
4. This method works with the Apple Trackpad.

Method 4 of 4: Using an external mouse

1. Buy a separate mouse. Apple has its own mouse, the "Magic Mouse" (and its predecessor "Mighty Mouse"), which at first glance appears to have no buttons. however, you can set the mouse so that clicks on the left and right sides have different functions. If you don't want to buy a mouse from Apple, you can use any other mouse with two buttons.
2. Connect your mouse. Plug the USB plug of the mouse into a free USB port on your computer. The mouse should work immediately. If not, it is best to read the manual for your specific mouse.
3. Enable right click. An Apple mouse will first have to be set up properly to be able to use secondary clicks.
   • Open System Preferences, choose Keyboard and mouse.
   • Click on the tab Mouse, here you can set the click on the left side Primary button is and click on the right side the Secondary button. Or vice versa, whatever you want.

Tips

• The control key method works on both OS X and Mac OS 9.