Turn On Siri on your Mac

Why it happens

Siri is optional on a Mac, so it's often left off during setup, or someone turned it off later. While it's off, the keyboard shortcut and the voice command do nothing. Turning it on is all it takes.

How to fix it

1. Click the Apple menu and choose System Settings.

2. On macOS 26, click Apple Intelligence & Siri in the sidebar, turn on the Siri switch, then click Enable in the box that appears. On macOS 27, click Siri in the sidebar and click Turn On Siri.

   macOS 26 Tahoe Apple Intelligence & Siri›Siri

   macOS 27 Golden Gate Siri›Turn on Siri

3. Follow any setup steps on screen, then try it. On macOS 26, use the keyboard shortcut in Siri settings, where one choice is holding the Microphone key in the top row if your keyboard has one, or say Hey Siri if you turned it on. On macOS 27, say “Siri” or “Hey Siri” once you've chosen it under Requests. Ask something simple like the weather.

On macOS 26, Siri lives in Apple Intelligence & Siri and has a switch, followed by an Enable button. On macOS 27, Siri has its own place in the sidebar with a Turn On Siri button, and the wake phrase is chosen under Requests. macOS 27 has no Siri keyboard shortcut setting.

Still not fixed?

1. Want to talk to Siri without pressing anything? On macOS 26, set Listen for on the same page to the phrase you want. On macOS 27, open Requests in Siri settings and choose "Siri" or "Hey Siri".

   macOS 26 Tahoe Apple Intelligence & Siri›Listen for

   macOS 27 Golden Gate Siri›Requests

2. On macOS 26, if the shortcut does nothing, look at Keyboard shortcut on the same page to see which keys call Siri, or pick ones that suit you better. macOS 27 has no shortcut setting: turn on Hey Siri under Requests in Siri settings instead.

   Apple Intelligence & Siri›Keyboard shortcut

3. Is the switch greyed out? Screen Time may be blocking it. Open Screen Time, click Content & Privacy and check the Siri settings there. On a work or school Mac, ask whoever manages it.

   Screen Time›Content & Privacy

4. If Siri turns on but doesn't hear you, check that the right microphone is picked in Sound settings under Input, and that you're online.

   Sound›Input

5. If Siri still won't turn on or keeps switching off after a restart and the latest macOS update, contact Apple Support.