In this article, I’ll explain exactly how you can fix if your mouse cursor (also called pointer) randomly disappears on your Mac. To be precise, the real focus of this problem is that the cursor becomes invisible rendering the Mac unusable.
This is a serious problem. Your mouse cursor or pointer is a graphical image on your screen that mimics the movements of your mouse. This is how you interact with your Mac. If your cursor or pointer goes missing on your Mac, your enjoyment of your computer and your interaction with it will come to a standstill. If your pointer disappears on Mac, then this troubleshooting guide is for you.
This problem is known to happen randomly. There may be several issues that cause your Mac cursor to disappear. It’s important to try the troubleshooting steps below in order. Test your computer between steps to see if you’ve fixed your missing pointer problem.
1. Cursor disappears on my Mac too. When my cursor disappears on my MacBook, I usually do two things to fix:
- I quickly keep moving the mouse from side to side (or quickly move my finger on the trackpad), this will temporarily cause the pointer to enlarge. This helps me to pinpoint my cursor.
2. On your keyboard hit Command + Tap (hold Command then hit Tab) to bring up a quick application switcher. Shift to the Finder (or to another app). Is your cursor working in Finder or in a different app? Then press Command + Tap again to go back to the original app. This may restore your lost cursor.
3. Test to see if opening the Force Quit window will restore the cursor. Since your mouse does not seem to be working, hit the Command + Option + Escape keys at the same time.
4. Is Mac cursor missing in one app? Try force quitting the app by pressing the Command + Option + Escape keys. If the mouse has disappeared in all apps, then force quit all apps that are running. It’s worth noting that you may lose unsaved data when you force quit an app.
Additionally, if mouse disappears on MacBook on a specific app, the app may be the the issue. You may want to
contact the app developer
for more help.
5. Restart your Mac. Restarting your Mac may bring back the cursor. To restart your Mac, click the Restart option from the Apple menu.
6. Change your cursor size. Follow these steps to change your cursor size:
- from the Apple menu, click System Preferences.
- Now, click Accessibility.
- Next, click Display.
- Next on, click the Cursor tab.
- Finally, change the size by dragging the slider.
7. Reset NVRAM or PRAM. Here is how:
- Power off your Mac.
- Power on your Mac and immediately press and enter these keys together: Option + Command + P + and R.
- Keep holding down these keys for about twenty seconds.
- You can let go the keys when you hear the second chime sound (if your Mac is making startup sounds) or when you see the Apple logo appears and disappears for the second time.
8. If you are still experiencing problem, restart your Mac in Safe Mode to find out that there are no third-party apps causing the problem. Please follow these steps:
- Power off your Mac.
- Power on your Mac and immediately press and hold down the Shift key.
- Keep holding the Shift key until the login screen appears.
- Login.
- Now your computer is in Safe Mode. In Safe Mode, your Mac will be slower. Don’t worry, this is normal. Does your cursor work?
- In either case, restart your Mac normally to Quit Safe Mode.
9. Reset the System Management Controller (SMC).
Finally, if your cursor still disappears,
contact Apple
You may want to
Make a Genius Bar reservation
before visiting the Apple store. Apple also offers
live chat support.
