How to turn off Siri on your Mac

Why it happens

Siri is switched on during setup on most Macs, and it can start from a key or a spoken phrase. If you never use it, those can bring it up by surprise. Turning Siri off stops all of them at once, and you can turn it back on whenever you like.

How to fix it

1. Click the Apple menu and choose System Settings.

2. On macOS 26, click Apple Intelligence & Siri in the sidebar and turn off the Siri switch. On macOS 27, click Siri in the sidebar, scroll to the bottom, click Turn Off Siri, and click it again if your Mac asks you to confirm.

   macOS 26 Tahoe Apple Intelligence & Siri›Siri

   macOS 27 Golden Gate Siri›Turn Off Siri

3. Try the key or phrase that used to bring up Siri. Nothing should happen now.

On macOS 26, Siri has a switch in Apple Intelligence & Siri. On macOS 27 the pane is just called Siri, and you use the Turn Off Siri button at the bottom instead of a switch.

Still not fixed?

1. Want to hide the Siri icon from the menu bar too? Turn off Siri under Menu Bar Controls in Menu Bar settings.

   Menu Bar›Menu Bar Controls›Siri

2. On macOS 26, turning off Siri leaves Apple Intelligence on. If you want that off as well, turn off the Apple Intelligence switch on the same Apple Intelligence & Siri page.

3. If the Siri setting is greyed out, Screen Time or your school or company may control it. Look in Screen Time under Content & Privacy, or ask whoever manages the Mac.

   Screen Time›Content & Privacy

4. If Siri switches itself back on after a restart and nobody manages your Mac, install the latest update in Software Update. If it still comes back, contact Apple Support.