Mac startup key combinations: what to hold and when

2 min read · 7 steps · Updated 3 October 2026

When a Mac will not start normally, or you want to reinstall macOS or test the hardware, you start it in a special way. How depends on the chip. Macs from late 2020 on mostly have Apple silicon and use one method for everything. Older Macs with an Intel processor use different keys for each job.

Menu names are from recent versions of macOS, where the settings app is called System Settings. The pictures of keys are simplified diagrams.

Step by step

1. Find out which Mac you have

   Choose Apple menu, About This Mac. If it lists a Chip, such as Apple M1, M2 or later, it is Apple silicon. If it lists a Processor with Intel in the name, it is an Intel Mac.

   Done

2. Apple silicon: hold the power button

   Shut the Mac down. Press and hold the power button (on a laptop, the Touch ID button) and keep holding until Loading startup options appears. You see your startup disks and a gear icon labelled Options.

   Done

3. Apple silicon: choose what you need

   Click Options and Continue for macOS Recovery, where you can reinstall macOS or run Disk Utility. For safe mode, select the startup disk, hold Shift and click Continue in Safe Mode. To start from another disk, select it and click Continue.

   Done

4. Intel: Recovery and startup disk

   Switch the Mac on and at once press and hold the keys until something appears. Command-R starts macOS Recovery. Option (Alt) shows the Startup Manager, where you pick another startup disk.

   Done

5. Intel: safe mode and diagnostics

   Shift starts in safe mode. D starts Apple Diagnostics, the hardware test. Option-D runs the test over the internet.

   Done

6. Intel: reset NVRAM

   Option-Command-P-R, held for about 20 seconds, resets the NVRAM, a small memory for settings such as sound volume, display resolution and startup disk. Apple silicon Macs do this by themselves when needed.

   Done

7. Intel: the rare ones

   T starts target disk mode, which makes the Mac act as an external drive for another Mac. Command-V shows the startup as text (verbose mode). Option-Command-R starts Recovery over the internet.

   Done

Good to know

If a combination does nothing on an Intel Mac, use a keyboard connected by cable, or the built-in one, and press the keys straight after switching on. A firmware password blocks most combinations.

Step by step for each case: how to start a Mac in safe mode, how to run Apple Diagnostics on a Mac, how to reinstall macOS without losing your files and how to repair a disk on a Mac with Disk Utility First Aid.

If nothing appears at all: Mac won't turn on: 7 things to try before a repair.

In short: Apple silicon: hold the power button for startup options, then Options for Recovery or Shift for safe mode. Intel: Command-R Recovery, Shift safe mode, Option startup disk, D diagnostics, Option-Command-P-R NVRAM.