Put your Mac to sleep and wake it up again

Why it happens

Sleep pauses your Mac with everything still open and uses very little power. When it wakes, your apps and windows are exactly where you left them. Your Mac also sleeps by itself after it's been idle for a while, and it saves even more power during a long sleep, so there's no separate hibernate setting to look for.

How to fix it

1. Click the Apple menu in the top-left corner of the screen and choose Sleep. The screen goes dark within a few seconds.

   Apple menu›Sleep

2. On a MacBook, you can simply close the lid. If an external display, power and a keyboard or mouse are connected, it may keep running on the big screen instead.

3. Prefer the keyboard? On a keyboard without Touch ID, press Control and the power button together, then click Sleep in the box that appears.

4. To wake your Mac, press any key, click the mouse or trackpad, or open the lid. Then log in with your password or Touch ID if asked.

Still not fixed?

1. If your MacBook never sleeps on its own while plugged in, open Battery > Options… and turn off Prevent automatic sleeping on power adapter when the display is off.

   Battery›Options…›Prevent automatic sleeping on power adapter when the display is off

2. On a desktop Mac, the same kind of switch lives in Energy. Turn off Prevent automatic sleeping when the display is off.

   Energy›Prevent automatic sleeping when the display is off

3. An app can keep your Mac awake too, for example a video, a big download or screen sharing. Open Activity Monitor, click Energy and look at the Preventing Sleep column to find it.

   Activity Monitor›Energy

4. Want the screen to switch off sooner when you walk away? Set the display timers in Lock Screen.

   Lock Screen

5. If closing the lid never puts your MacBook to sleep, even after a restart with nothing plugged in, contact Apple Support or a repair shop. The sensor that notices the lid may need checking, and that's a hardware repair.