How to Zoom in on a Mac

Do you find yourself squinting at the screen sometimes, and wish things were just "bigger?" Whether you have vision disabilities, or just like to zoom in for a close view of your screen, it's easy to do with just a couple keystrokes. This article will show you how to zoom in for a closeup of your browser or desktop.

EditSteps

EditZooming in a Browser

1. Launch a browser. Any browser will do: this method works the same on all!
   
2. Press Command and + (plus/equal button). Each repetition will increase the zoom by degrees. You can zoom in to varying degrees in different browsers:
   
   • Up to 7x with Safari.
   • Up to 8x with Chrome and Firefox.
   • No limit with Opera, and each zoom is smaller than with other browsers.
   • Pressing Command-0 will reset your zoom level in all browsers.
   • Pressing Command-(minus) will zoom out in all browsers.

EditZooming the Monitor

1. Turn on Universal Access. From the Apple menu, select "Preferences." In the System Preferences pane, click on Universal Access.
   
2. Click the Seeing button. In the Universal Access control panel, click the Seeing button to adjust the various visual controls of the interface.
   
3. Set Zoom to On. In the Seeing control panel, locate and click the Zoom control button. You can also activate (and de-activate) zooming by pressing Command-option-8.
   
4. Click "Options." Locate the "Options…" button to the right of the Zoom activation buttons. This will let you fine-tune your zooming controls.
   
   • Maximum Zoom: when you press the zoom-in keyboard shortcut (Command-option-equals), your screen will zoom to the magnification you set here. You can set the zoom anywhere from 1.1x the current screen size, to 20x the current screen size!
   • Minimum Zoom: when you press the zoom-out keyboard shortcut (Command-option-minus), the screen will only zoom out to this preset level.
     • In either case, continuing to hold down the keyboard shortcut will continue zooming in or out to the maximum levels.
   • Show preview rectangle when zoomed out: To see what part of your screen will be magnified, enable this. It will show as a black rectangle on your screen.
   • Smooth images: check this to add a smoothing function to the zoomed-in screen. While it improves the look of zoomed-in images, it can make text appear a little blurry.
   • Zoom follows keyboard focus: when you are zoomed in, and type something that goes beyond the boundaries of the zoomed area, the screen will track your cursor so your text will always be displayed.
   • Continuously with pointer: when zoomed in, the screen moves continuously as you move your cursor.
   • Only when the pointer reaches an edge: your screen stays put until your cursor reaches the edge of the screen.
   • So the pointer is at or near the center of the image: this keeps your cursor in the center of the screen, and only the screen moves.
   • If your mouse features a scroll wheel, you can hold down the modifier keys and scroll. Rather than a quick zoom in and out to the preset maximum and minimum levels, using the scroll wheel provides a smooth, slow zoom in and back out. Set the modifier keys by clicking in the field, then pressing your preferred modifier keys.
   • When you've finished setting the options, click the "Done" button.

EditZooming the Monitor (OS X Maverick)

1. Enter System Preferences from the Apple Menu
   
2. Click "Accessibility" to open the Accessibility settings dialog
   
3. Click "Zoom" under the Seeing section in the left-hand side navigation.
   
4. Click on "More Options" and adjust according to the reference in the previous section.
   

EditZooming in a Window

1. Zoom in a window. Click this checkbox, and rather than zooming your entire screen, a "magnifying glass" enlarges everything underneath it. Like zooming the screen, you can adjust the level of zoom with Control-Option-Equals or Minus.
   
2. Click on Options. Like regular zoom, zooming in a window has a set of options, as shown in the image below.
   
   • Magnification: sets the zoom level when you activate Zoom in Window (Command-Option-8).
   • Stationary: when the window position is set to "Stationary," the zoom window shows in the center of the monitor, and the cursor location determines what appears under the window.
   • Follow mouse cursor: the window remains under your cursor, and can be dragged anywhere. This is similar to the way a real magnifying glass works.
   • Tiled along edge: sets the zoom area to be a full-length column on the left side of your monitor, displaying zoomed content that tracks your cursor.
   • Invert colors turns white to black, black to white, and green to purple.
   • Smooth images: smoothes the edges of both text and images.
   • Zoom follows keyboard focus: when you are zoomed in, and type something that goes beyond the boundaries of the zoom window, the cursor stays centered in the window while the magnified parts track your keyboard focus—usually your cursor or entry field.
   • Enable temporary zoom: holding down Control-option keys will pop up a zoomed window that is active as long as you hold down the modifier keys. When you let go, the window disappears.
   • Speak items under mouse after delay: will read whatever text is below your cursor. You can set the time delay from "Normal," which is instantaneous, to "Maximum," which is about five seconds.
   • Enable "Use scroll wheel with modifier keys to zoom" to give mouse control to your zooming. To set the hot keys, press and hold the desired key or keys. Allowed keys are Shift, Control, Command, and Option, only.
   • Adjust Size and Location: Press this button to resize and set the default position for whatever window you've chosen to display.^[1]

EditView Option

1. Go to the menu bar at the top of your computer screen.
   
2. Click Zoom in from the drop-down menu.
   
   • Do this as many times as you need to get a bigger browser.

EditTips

• Become familiar with the hot key combinations—even if you're not visually impaired, being able to zoom in on something quickly is a very handy feature, whether you just need a closeup, or are showing somebody something from across the room.

EditRelated wikiHows

• Use Picture in Picture Zoom in Mac Os X Lion
• Use Multi Touch Gestures in Mac Os X Lion
• Zoom In or Out on an iPhone or iPod Touch
• Turn off Inertia Scrolling in Os X Lion

EditSources and Citations

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