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How to Control+Alt+Delete on a Mac or MacBook
In This Article
Switching over from Windows to a Mac can be disorientating, as they have different approaches to various shortcuts. Windows users will know that Ctrl+Alt+Delete is a great shortcut for functions such as signing out of your account, restarting your PC or booting up the Task Manager. But what about on Mac?
Fortunately, Apple does have its own take on this shortcut, which is Command+Option+Escape. It doesn’t offer quite as much functionality, but is still a quick way to access the Force Quit menu. We’ve detailed the process below, highlighting the required keys on a Mac.
And if you’re not a fan of keyboard shortcuts, we’ve also offered up an alternative option. So without further ado, here’s how to access the Mac equivalent of Control+Alt+Delete.
What you need
The Short Version
Step1
Press Command+Option+Escape
Truth be told, macOS doesn’t have an identical equivalent to the old Ctrl Alt Delete on Windows, but the closest we’ve got is Command+Option+Escape, which is the shortcut to bring up theForce Quitmenu on a Mac so you can get rid of any misbehaving apps.There are also other ways to Force Quit, including from inside the respective apps and from within the Activity Monitor. You can also use Terminal to quit any apps.
Step2
Open the Apple menu
For Macs, the equivalent to the Control Alt Delete menu is the small Apple logo in the top-left corner, which allows you to gain access to some of the most useful functions.In there, you’ll find that you can not only open System Preferences and even the App Store, but also Restart, Shut Down and Log Out of your Mac’s account. In addition, that Apple menu also provides you with the shortcut to the Force Quit menu.You can also access the ‘About this Mac’ menu, which allows you to see the system specs of your machine and check out which version of macOS you’re running. There’s also a detailed breakdown of your storage and what’s using up the most capacity.
Troubleshooting
The Mac equivalent of ‘control alt delete’ is ‘Command+Option+Escape’, which opens up the Force Quit menu so you can close down any apps that aren’t responding.
Apple’s version of the Alt key is called Options instead. You can find it sitting to the left of the Command key.
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Formerly the Staff Writer at Stuff Magazine, Ryan’s been writing about tech since he graduated from Cardiff University. At Trusted Reviews he is focused on everything computer-related, giving him a va…
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Founded in 2003, Trusted Reviews exists to give our readers thorough, unbiased and independent advice on what to buy.
Today, we have millions of users a month from around the world, and assess more than 1,000 products a year.
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
