How to Change Scrolling Speed on a Mac

Co-authored by wikiHow Staff

Last Updated: March 29, 2019

You can fine-tune the scrolling speed of your mouse from the Mouse section of the System Preferences menu. If you're using a trackpad, the scrolling speed settings can be found in the Accessibility section.

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:
Changing Mouse Wheel Scrolling

1
Click the Apple menu. This is in the upper-left corner of the screen.
2
Click "System Preferences." If the main System Preferences menu doesn't appear, click the "Show All" button at the top of the window. This button looks like a grid of 12 dots.
3
Click the "Mouse" option.
4
Click and drag the "Scrolling speed" slider. This will adjust the scrolling speed for your mouse wheel.
- If your mouse doesn't have a wheel, you won't see this option.^{[1]
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Method 2

Method 2 of 2:
Changing Trackpad Scrolling

1
Click the Apple menu. You'll find this in the upper-left corner of the screen.
2
Click "System Preferences." If a window other than the main System Preferences window appears, click the "Show All" button at the top. The icon has 12 dots arranged in a grid.
3
Click the "Accessibility" option.
4
Click "Mouse & Trackpad." You may have to scroll down on the left frame to find it.
5
Click the "Trackpad Options" button. This will display your trackpad scrolling options in a new window.
6
Click and drag the "Scrolling speed" slider. A slower scrolling speed will require you to drag farther on the pad to scroll.
7
Click the "with inertia" menu to change acceleration. This allows you to set whether the scrolling speeds up as you accelerate your fingers, or if it scrolls at a constant rate.^{[2]
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