How to connect and use a mouse or trackpad with your iPad

This article will guide you through the steps to connect and use a mouse or trackpad with your iPad, which should provide a more confortable user experience.

Mouse and trackpad connected to iPad

Using a mouse or trackpad to control your iPad pointer more precisely can be particularly helpful when using creative and productivity apps such as the Microsoft Office, performing image & video editing, creating vector art in illustration apps, and so forth.

The steps here work for all iPad models, including iPad Pro, iPad Air, and iPad mini.

Connect a mouse to your iPad

Wireless mouse

  1. Go to iPad Settings and tap Bluetooth.
  2. Flip the power or pairing switch of your wireless mouse to the ON position.
  3. Within seconds, you should see your mouse name appear below the Under Devices heading. Tap the mouse name to connect it to your iPad.
  4. Finally, move your mouse a bit, and you should see the circular mouse pointer on your iPad screen.
Connect wireless mouse to iPad

Wired mouse

  1. Connect your wired mouse to your iPad directly if it has a USB-C connector at one end, or use an USB-C dongle.
  2. Once the mouse is connected, you can start using it to control your iPad.
Wired mouse connected to iPad
I have connected my wired mouse using a USB-C hub.

Connect a trackpad to your iPad

Connecting a trackpad to your iPad is the same as a mouse. Here’s how:

  1. Switch on your wireless trackpad. If it has a pairing mode switch, push it to the ON position.
  2. Open the Settings app on your iPad and tap Bluetooth.
  3. You should see your trackpad appear under the Other Devices heading. Tap its name to connect it to your iPad.
  4. Once the trackpad is connected, you can start using it instantly.
Connect wireless trackpad to iPad

Use a mouse or trackpad on iPad

iPadOS doesn’t discriminate depending on which mouse or trackpad you’re using. But if you use a Magic Mouse or Magic Trackpad, you obviously benefit from the awesome gestures they support.

Irrespective of whether it’s a wired or wireless mouse or trackpad, you can perform the following actions:

  • Go home: Click the Home bar at the bottom of the screen.
  • Open Control Center: Take the pointer over the battery icon in the top right and click.
  • Open Notification Center: Take the pointer to the time indicator in the top left and click.
  • Scroll: Use the standard gesture supported by your mouse or trackpad.
  • App Switcher: Bring the mouse pointer to the bottom of the screen and continue to drag it down until you see the App Switcher with all open app tiles.

Related: How to right-click on iPad

Customize your mouse and trackpad experience

  1. Open iPad Settings and tap Accessibility.
  2. Tap Pointer Control.
  3. From here, you can tweak the following settings:
Pointer Control settings to customize mouse and trackpad on iPad

Increase Contrast: This will make the circular pointer a bit darker.

Automatically Hide Pointer: After a while of inactivity, the circular pointer disappears from the screen. Turning it off will always show the pointer.

Color: Use this to add a white, blue, red, green, yellow, or orange border to the gray pointer. You can also adjust the border width.

Pointer Size: Lets you increase the size of the circular gray mouse and trackpad pointer.

Pointer Animations: If you turn it off, you may notice fewer pointer animations. For example, with this enabled, when you take the mouse pointer to an app icon on the Home Screen, the pointer hides from view. But with pointer animations off, it will show the pointer over the app icon.

Scrolling Speed: Using this slider, you can increase or decrease the scrolling speed of the mouse or trackpad.

Double-Tap to Drag and Trackpad Inertia: You will see these options only when you connect a trackpad to your iPad. The former lets you customize your dragging experience. Trackpad Inertia ensures the pointer continues to move a bit and slows down smoothly after you have flicked your finger. If it’s off, the pointer comes to a quick halt.

Mouse settings with AssistiveTouch: Tap AssistiveTouch settings from the bottom > select your connected mouse. From here, you can customize your mouse buttons to work with AssistiveTouch. You can configure your mouse buttons to perform specific actions.

Customize Additional Buttons in iPad Accessibility settings

Check the battery of your mouse or trackpad

Most mice and trackpads show the battery status in the iPad Batteries widget. You can see the remaining charge here. For more, check out how to see the battery percentage of Bluetooth devices connected to your iPhone or iPad.

See battery of Magic Mouse on iPad

Disconnect the mouse and trackpad

Wired

If it’s a wired mouse or trackpad, simply unplug it from iPad’s USB-C port or USB-C hub, and it will disconnect it.

Wireless

  1. Go to Settings > Bluetooth.
  2. Tap the info button ⓘ next to the connected mouse or trackpad.
  3. From here, tap Disconnect.
Disconnect trackpad from iPad

Note: Many modern mice support simultaneous connection with two or more devices. However, if you have a Magic Mouse or Magic Trackpad or a similar wireless mouse, you will have to tap Forget This Device and then switch off and switch on the mouse/trackpad to make it available to connect with other devices like your Mac.

Do more with your iPad: