CrackMacHow to make your Mac screen smaller: resolution, zoom, underscan and using only part of the screen
It depends on what you mean by smaller. To fit more on the screen, choose a resolution towards More Space in System Settings, Displays. If the picture spills off the edges of a TV, change the TV's picture size or use underscan. If you want the Mac to use only part of its own screen, because part of it is damaged, macOS has no setting for that and you need an app.
Make everything smaller and fit more on the screen
- Open System Settings, Displays.
- Under the picture of your display you'll see options from Larger Text to More Space.
- Click one further to the right. Everything shrinks and the change happens straight away.
For more choices, click Advanced and turn on showing resolutions as a list, then turn on Show all resolutions. You'll see every resolution the display supports.
If only one thing looks too big, there's often a quicker fix. In Finder, press Command-minus to shrink icons and text. In a browser, Command-minus zooms the page out and Command-0 resets it. If the whole screen suddenly looks magnified and follows the pointer, that's the Zoom accessibility feature. Here's how to turn it off.
Shrink a picture that's cut off on a TV
When you connect a Mac to a TV, the menu bar or the Dock is often cut off. That's overscan: the TV enlarges the picture slightly and crops the edges, a habit left over from broadcast TV.
- Fix it on the TV first. In the TV's picture settings, look for Picture Size or Aspect Ratio and choose Just Scan, Screen Fit, Full Pixel or 1:1. The name depends on the brand. Some TVs only offer it when the HDMI input is labelled PC.
- Or use underscan on the Mac. In System Settings, Displays, select the TV. If you see an Underscan slider, drag it until the edges come back. The slider only appears for some TVs and displays, and the result is a little softer than fixing it on the TV.
More help with TVs: MacBook HDMI not working on a TV and how to mirror a MacBook to a TV.
Make windows smaller
To shrink a window rather than the screen, drag any edge or corner. On macOS 15 and later you can also tile windows: hover over the green button in the top-left corner of a window and choose a layout, or press Globe-Control with an arrow key to snap it to half the screen. Option-click the green button to make a window fill the screen without going into full screen.
Use only part of your MacBook screen
This is the one macOS can't do. Underscan isn't offered for the built-in display, and every resolution, including the custom ones that display utilities add, fills the whole panel. On MacBooks with a notch, a few resolutions in the full list stop just below the camera housing and leave a thin black band at the top, but that's the only built-in exception.
People usually want this because part of the screen is cracked, black or covered in lines. In that case:
- Use an external monitor as the main display. Here's how to set that up when you can barely see the screen.
- Or use CrackMac. You draw the working area on a picture of your screen, and it keeps windows, the menu bar and the pointer inside it, with the damaged part painted black. More on blocking off part of a Mac screen.
If the damage runs along one edge, CrackMac can keep windows, menus and the pointer off it. There's a free 30-minute trial.
Quick answers
How do I make everything smaller on my Mac screen?
Open System Settings, Displays, and pick a resolution further towards More Space. Text, windows and icons all get smaller and more fits on the screen.
Why is my Mac picture cut off on my TV?
Most TVs overscan, which means they enlarge the picture and crop the edges. Set the TV's picture size to Just Scan, Screen Fit or 1:1, or use the Underscan slider in System Settings, Displays if your Mac offers it for that TV.
Can I make my MacBook use only part of its screen?
Not with a built-in setting. A resolution always fills the whole panel. An app like CrackMac can keep everything inside a smaller area you choose and black out the rest, which is useful when part of the screen is damaged.
Want to use only part of the screen?
If part of your MacBook screen is cracked or dead, no resolution setting will leave it unused. CrackMac does. You draw the working area once, and windows, the menu bar and the pointer stay inside it while the rest is painted black.
- Works on macOS 13 or later, Apple silicon and Intel.
- Free for 30 minutes of use, then a one-time price. No subscription.
- A refund within 7 days, no questions asked.