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Key Takeaways

  • Factory reset your Mac before you give it away or sell it to ensure none of your data is on it.
  • Modern macOS versions let you factory reset your Mac from the System Settings or System Preferences panel.
  • You'll need to enter macOS Recovery on older Macs to erase the drive and reinstall macOS.

If you're planning to sell your Apple computer or give it to a family member, you must factory reset your Mac so your personal data is no longer on it. Whether you have a MacBook or Mac desktop, we'll teach you how to do so.

Factory Resetting a Modern MacBook or Mac Desktop

If your machine is running macOS Sonoma, Ventura, or Monterey, there is a quick way to factory reset your Mac. You can do this through System Settings (or System Preferences). On macOS Ventura or Sonoma, follow these steps:

  1. Click the Apple logo in the menu bar and choose System Settings from the dropdown.
  2. Select General from the sidebar, then click Transfer or Reset on the right.
  3. Click Erase All Content and Settings.
Erase All Content And Settings option

On the other hand, if your Mac is running Monterey, here's what you need to do:

  1. Click the Apple logo in the menu bar and choose System Preferences.
  2. Next, click System Preferences in the menu bar and select Erase All Content and Settings from the dropdown.

After selecting Erase All Content and Settings, you'll have to enter your Mac's admin password. Erase Assistant will open next and ask if you want to back up your Mac using Time Machine.

Once you go through some more steps, such as signing out of your Apple ID and clicking Erase All Content & Settings again, your Mac will start to reset.

The method of factory resetting your Mac on older macOS versions differs considerably. We'll cover that next.

Factory Reset Older MacBooks and Mac Desktops in macOS Recovery

If your Mac is running a macOS version that is older than Monterey, you will need to use macOS Recovery to erase your Mac. We're not going to dive into that here, but whether you have an Intel or Apple silicon Mac, it's easy to learn how to boot into macOS Recovery. But if you're having trouble, try our fixes to enter macOS Recovery.

Before you enter macOS Recovery, be sure to log out of your iCloud account.

You'll know if you're in macOS Recovery as the wallpaper will be black, and there will be no apps or files available.

Screenshot of macOS Recovery

Erasing Your Mac in macOS Recovery

Before you go ahead with this step, make sure you've backed up all your important data first. Remember, you can use Time Machine to back up your Mac easily.

Once you're in macOS Recovery, select Disk Utility from the options on the screen and click Continue. Then, select the Macintosh HD drive under the Internal section on the left pane.

Screenshot of Disk Utility inside macOS Recovery

Now click Erase in the toolbar at the top of the window. A dialog box will appear on the screen. Here, name the new drive Macintosh HD and set the format to APFS or Mac OS Extended. Then click Erase (sometimes, you'll see Erase Volume Group instead).

Make sure you complete the same process for any other drives under Internal, but most people won't have any. Any external hard drives or USBs would show under External, and you won't erase those, but it's best to keep them unplugged anyway.

Exit Disk Utility to return to the macOS Recovery screen.

Reinstall macOS Using macOS Recovery

Once you're back on the main macOS Recovery window, you can reinstall a fresh copy of macOS. This is a necessary step to use the device again, as you basically deleted the OS when you wiped the hard drive in Disk Utility.

Before you proceed, plug in your Mac to charge and connect to a Wi-Fi network. Then, select Reinstall macOS and click Continue in macOS Recovery.

Screenshot of the option to reinstall macOS in recovery mode

Your Mac will take you through a set of on-screen instructions to complete the reinstallation of macOS. Each instruction is self-explanatory, and you don't need to do much. Essentially, your Mac will download and install the latest macOS version from the web.

This process could take several minutes, so please be patient. But once it's done, you can either leave your Mac as it is if you're selling it or boot it up and use Setup Assistant to go through the initial macOS setup process like it's a new device.

Setup Assistant will prompt you to choose your country and region, and after that, you'll need to sign in with your Apple ID. You'll also need to choose some basic settings for your Mac and connect it to a Wi-Fi network. Your Mac will be ready to use once you go through these little steps. And since you wiped all the data, your Mac should feel snappier.