How to Turn On Night Shift on Mac (and Schedule It)

Night Shift warms your Mac’s screen toward the orange end of the spectrum, which many people find easier on the eyes in the evening. It’s been built into macOS since Sierra 10.12.4 in 2017. Here’s how to turn it on, schedule it, and pick a warmth you’ll actually like.

Turn On Night Shift in System Settings

On macOS Ventura and later:

1. Open the Apple menu → System Settings.
2. Click Displays in the sidebar.
3. Click the Night Shift… button near the bottom of the window.
4. Switch on Turn on until tomorrow to start it right away, or choose a Schedule (below).

On macOS Monterey and earlier, the same controls live in System Preferences → Displays → Night Shift tab.

Turn It On Faster from Control Center

1. Click the Control Center icon in the menu bar (the two toggle switches).
2. Click Display.
3. Click Night Shift.

This is the same as the “Turn on until tomorrow” switch: Night Shift stays on until the next morning, then follows your schedule again.

Set a Night Shift Schedule

In the Night Shift panel, the Schedule menu has three choices:

• Off — Night Shift only runs when you switch it on manually.
• Sunset to Sunrise — follows local sunset and sunrise. This needs Location Services turned on (System Settings → Privacy & Security → Location Services), including the system services macOS uses to set your time zone.
• Custom — pick your own start and end times, for example 7:00 PM to 7:00 AM.

Want it on all day? There’s no “always” option. A custom schedule like 4:00 AM to 3:59 AM gets close, but macOS can still switch it off after sleep or a restart — our guide to keeping Night Shift on all the time covers every workaround.

Choose the Right Warmth

The Color Temperature slider runs from Less Warm to More Warm. The default sits near the middle, which is subtle enough that some people don’t notice it.

• For evenings: try two-thirds of the way toward More Warm.
• For daytime use: stay closer to the middle so colors don’t look too orange.
• For photo, video, or design work: turn Night Shift off while you edit, since it changes how colors look on screen.

Most people get used to a warmer screen within a day or two. Night Shift doesn’t affect screenshots or screen recordings — they capture the normal colors.

Automate It with Shortcuts

In recent versions of macOS, the Shortcuts app includes a Set Night Shift action. Build a one-step shortcut that turns Night Shift on, then give it a keyboard shortcut in the shortcut’s details or add it to the menu bar for one-click access.

Night Shift Missing or Greyed Out?

Your Mac or macOS version is too old

Night Shift needs macOS Sierra 10.12.4 or later and a roughly 2012-or-newer Mac. Apple’s support article “Use Night Shift on your Mac” lists the exact supported models.

You’re looking at an external display

Night Shift works on many external monitors, but not all connections support it — DisplayLink docks and adapters are a common culprit. If it works on your MacBook’s screen but not the monitor, try connecting the monitor directly.

It was on, and now it’s off

That’s usually the schedule, sleep, or a restart. See Night Shift keeps turning off on Mac for each cause and fix.

Night Shift vs True Tone vs Dark Mode

They sit next to each other in Control Center but do different things: Night Shift warms colors, True Tone matches the screen to the room’s lighting, and Dark Mode changes the interface to dark backgrounds. You can use all three together. We break down the differences in Night Shift vs True Tone vs Dark Mode.