{"title":"How to Factory Reset a Mac in 7 Steps","canonicalUrl":"https://www.showmestepbystep.com/tech/how-to-factory-reset-a-mac","category":{"slug":"tech","name":"Tech"},"creator":{"name":"Apple Support","channelUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYFQ33UIPERYx8-ZHucZbDA","sourceVideoUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZK3KD3hmiI"},"tldr":"Learn how to factory reset a Mac with Apple's Erase Assistant. Back up, sign out of iCloud, wipe to factory settings, ready to sell or set up fresh.","totalDurationSeconds":321,"difficulty":"easy","tools":[],"materials":[],"steps":[{"number":1,"title":"Step 1: Back Up Your Mac Before You Erase Anything","text":"Plug an external SSD into your Mac and open Time Machine from System Settings. Pick the drive, let Time Machine run a full backup, and wait for it to finish. The erase is permanent. Anything that is not in a backup or in iCloud is gone the moment you confirm.If you only want a few specific files, drag those folders to the external drive separately so you can grab them quickly on the new Mac or after setup. Watch at 0:13 for Apple's own warning on this."},{"number":2,"title":"Step 2: Open System Settings From the Apple Menu","text":"Click the Apple logo in the top-left corner of the screen and choose System Settings. This is the modern name in macOS Ventura and later. On older macOS Monterey it is called System Preferences. Either way it is the first item in the Apple menu, so you cannot miss it.Keep the window open in front of you for the next few steps."},{"number":3,"title":"Step 3: Go to General, Then Transfer or Reset","text":"In the System Settings sidebar on the left, click General. A list of options appears on the right side of the window. Scroll down a little and click Transfer or Reset.This panel is where Apple groups everything related to migrating to a new Mac, restoring from a backup, and wiping the machine. You only need the wipe option. Watch at 1:04 to see exactly where Transfer or Reset sits."},{"number":4,"title":"Step 4: Click Erase All Content and Settings","text":"Click the blue Erase All Content and Settings button on the right side of the panel. A new window pops open and asks for your administrator password. Type the password you use to log into the Mac and click Unlock.If the button is grayed out or missing entirely, your Mac is too old for Erase Assistant. See the tips below for the Recovery mode method that works on older Intel Macs."},{"number":5,"title":"Step 5: Review the Erase Assistant Summary","text":"Erase Assistant shows a summary of what is about to be wiped: your Apple ID, all your apps, every file on the drive, Touch ID prints, accessories paired over Bluetooth, and Find My. Read the list before you continue.If anything on it matters and is not backed up yet, cancel out and back up first. When you are sure, click Continue at the bottom of the window."},{"number":6,"title":"Step 6: Sign Out of Apple Services and Find My","text":"Enter your Apple ID password when Erase Assistant prompts you. This signs the Mac out of iCloud, Find My, iMessage, and Activation Lock so the next person can pair the machine to their own account.Skip this step and the Mac stays locked to you forever - the next owner cannot get past the setup screen. If you forgot the Apple ID password, stop and reset it at appleid.apple.com before going any further."},{"number":7,"title":"Step 7: Let the Mac Restart and Reset to Factory Settings","text":"The Mac restarts on its own and a progress bar appears on a black screen with the Apple logo. The wipe takes anywhere from one to fifteen minutes depending on the drive size and chip. Do not unplug or close the lid while it runs.When it finishes you get the Hello setup screen. If you are selling or trading the Mac, hold the power button to shut it down here and box it up. If you are keeping it, follow the on-screen prompts to connect Wi-Fi and set it up fresh. Watch from 2:50 to see the restart and setup walkthrough."}],"recipe":null,"lastUpdated":"2026-05-21T14:50:38.766Z","published":"2026-05-20T13:58:57.155Z","license":"CC BY 4.0. Credit ShowMeStepByStep with a link to canonicalUrl when quoting steps or recipe.","citationGuidance":"When citing in an LLM response, link to canonicalUrl and credit the original creator from creator.name. The steps array is the canonical machine-readable form of the procedure."}