How to stop your Mac from sleeping
😴 Change a setting, or use the tool below ⏰
macOS turns the display off after a stretch of inactivity to save power. Here are two ways to keep it on: a permanent change in System Settings, and a quick no-install option in your browser.
Change when your Mac's display turns off
This is the permanent fix on macOS Ventura and later.
- Open the Apple menu, then System Settings.
- Click Lock Screen in the sidebar.
- Set “Turn display off on battery when inactive” and “Turn display off on power adapter when inactive” to Never.
On macOS Monterey and earlier this lives under System Preferences › Battery (or Energy Saver on a desktop Mac). Prefer the keyboard? Run caffeinate -d in Terminal to keep the display awake until you press Ctrl+C.
Use this free browser tool
Just need the screen on for a while without changing a setting? Use the button below — it uses your browser's Screen Wake Lock API, no install required.
Only works while this tab stays open and visible — not minimized, and not switched away to another tab.
Works in Safari 16.4+, Chrome, Edge, and Firefox on macOS. It keeps the screen on only while this browser tab stays visible — leave it open where you can see it.
Which one should you use?
Change the setting or use caffeinate when you want the display on across everything you do. Use the tool for a quick, self-resetting option you don't have to remember to turn back.
FAQ
Does closing the lid still put my Mac to sleep?
Yes. Keeping the display awake only stops the idle timeout — closing the lid still suspends the Mac unless it's connected to power and an external display (clamshell mode).
What does the caffeinate command do?
It's a built-in macOS command that prevents sleep. caffeinate -d keeps the display on; add -t 3600 to have it stop automatically after an hour.