Resetting your MacBook to factory settings: step by step

You reset your MacBook to factory settings when you sell it, give it away or want to start completely fresh. On newer Macs that takes one option: Erase All Content and Settings. On older Macs it goes through Recovery mode. This article explains both, and above all what to do before the reset so you do not lose files and do not run into Activation Lock.

Blue Apple repairs MacBooks in Amsterdam. We regularly see Macs that cannot be activated after a reset, because the previous owner had not signed out. That is avoidable.

First: do this before you reset

1. Make a backup. With Time Machine to an external drive, or make sure everything is in iCloud. After the reset everything on the Mac is gone.
2. Sign out of your Apple Account. Go to System Settings, click your name at the top and choose Sign Out. That also turns off Find My Mac and removes Activation Lock.
3. Unpair Bluetooth devices you are keeping, such as your mouse or AirPods, if the Mac goes to someone else.
4. Note down licences of paid software you want to use on a new computer.

Method 1: Erase All Content and Settings

This works on Macs with an Apple chip and on Intel Macs with the T2 security chip, running macOS Monterey or newer.

1. Open System Settings and choose General.
2. Click Transfer or Reset.
3. Click Erase All Content and Settings.
4. Enter your password and follow the steps. The Mac may ask you to sign out of your Apple Account.
5. The Mac restarts and is then empty, with macOS still installed. You see the welcome screen.

This is quick, because the Mac only throws away the encryption key. Your files can no longer be read afterwards.

Method 2: via Recovery mode (older Macs)

1. Start up in Recovery mode: hold Command + R during startup (Intel), or hold the power button and choose Options (Apple chip).
2. Open Disk Utility, select your startup disk (usually "Macintosh HD") and click Erase. Choose APFS as the format (or Mac OS Extended on very old Macs).
3. Close Disk Utility and choose Reinstall macOS.
4. Stop at the welcome screen if you are selling the Mac: the new owner sets it up. Press Command + Q to shut it down.

After the reset the Mac asks for an Apple Account

Then Activation Lock is still on: the Mac was not removed from Find My. Sign in with the previous owner's Apple Account, or have them remove the Mac from Find My via icloud.com. Without that account the Mac cannot be used; a repairer cannot get around that lock either.

Does a reset fix problems?

For software problems, such as a Mac that has become slow after lots of installing, a clean installation can help. For hardware problems it does not: a worn battery, a faulty screen or a logic board that sometimes gives up stay exactly the same after a reset. If in doubt, have it tested first. Also read MacBook will not start up.

What we do at Blue Apple in Amsterdam

If the reset fails, the Mac no longer starts properly, or you want to be sure the hardware is fine before you sell it, we test it for you. If data still has to come off a Mac that no longer starts, see MacBook data recovery. More on our page about MacBook repair in Amsterdam.

Frequently asked questions

How long does a factory reset take?

With Erase All Content and Settings a few minutes. Via Recovery mode, with reinstalling, easily an hour or more, depending on your internet.

Do I lose macOS if I erase the drive?

Yes, but you reinstall it straight away from Recovery mode. That needs an internet connection.

Do I also have to remove my Mac from the device list in my Apple Account?

Signing out on the Mac is enough. Afterwards check on icloud.com that it no longer appears in Find My.