In this step-by-step guide, I will show you how to fully erase all data and settings on your Mac the right way without getting stuck on the Apple Account sign-out page!
Reasons to factory reset your Mac
I recently erased everything on my five-year-old M1 MacBook Pro to pass it on to my wife. Earlier, we had two separate user accounts on that computer, but now it’s entirely hers, as I have moved to a MacBook Air with an M4 chip.
If you’re planning to sell, recycle, or trade in your Mac or simply start fresh with a clean slate with no system data, leftover app files, cache, stuck Xcode Command Line Tools that refuse to be deleted, and so forth, you can factory reset your Apple computer. After that, its software will essentially be the same as it was on the very first day you took it out of the box.
Factory resetting can also help if you’re facing severe lag, system freezes, and other major issues on your Mac. But in this case, I first recommend updating to the latest version of macOS and reinstalling macOS without losing data. If these don’t help, then you can consider erasing your Mac.
Prepare for the process…
1) This tutorial is for:
- Mac desktop and MacBook with Apple silicon chip (M1, M2, M3, M4, M5, and their varients)
- Intel Mac with the Apple T2 Security Chip
- Mac running macOS Monterey or later
If you have an older Mac, consider updating it to macOS Monterey or newer and then follow these steps. Or, use Disk Utility to erase it instead.
2) If you use a wireless keyboard and mouse or trackpad with your Mac mini, Mac Studio, Mac Pro, or iMac, connect them via a USB cable, then turn off Bluetooth, and see if the accessory works. If not, you’ll need a wired keyboard or mouse to finish setting up the erased Mac.
3) You must know your Apple Account password. If you don’t, reset it before moving forward.
4) Make sure you’re in an area with Wi-Fi, as you’ll need it to activate your erased Mac.
Take a backup before erasing your Mac
If you’ve been using your Mac for a while, chances are it has tons of important PDFs, documents, downloaded music, photos, and more. So, before you erase your Mac, do one or more of the following:
- Create a Time Machine backup.
- Back up important stuff to iCloud Drive.
- AirDrop important media to your other Apple device.
- Go to the main user account folder and copy the Desktop, Documents, Downloads, and other useful folders onto an external drive.
Important: If you use more than one user account on this Mac (like my wife’s account and mine), make sure you log in to the other account and back up its data as well.
Delete other user accounts
If you have more than one account, log in to your main admin account and delete all the other accounts beforehand to keep the process simple and error-free. When you’re deleting it, don’t choose to save the data in a folder, as you’ll be erasing everything anyway.
Turn off FileVault
FileVault encrypts everything on your Mac’s internal SSD or hard disk. To ensure the factory reset process goes without any hiccups, I recommend turning it off beforehand:
- Open System Settings and click Privacy & Security.
- Click FileVault at the bottom, then turn it off. Wait until decryption is finished.
Sign out of your Apple ID first so you don’t get stuck
I tried to reset my MacBook four times, and in all cases, I was stuck on the iCloud/Apple Account sign-out step for minutes on end (I know people who were stuck for hours).
After a while of waiting, I knew this wasn’t going anywhere. So, I quit Erase Assistant and restarted my Mac.
Then I turned off Find My and logged out of my iCloud account. After that, the factory reset process worked like a charm.
- Open System Settings and click Apple Account.
- Click iCloud > See All > Find My Mac and turn it off to remove Activation Lock.
- Then, return to your Apple Account page in System Settings and Sign Out. Since you’re already erasing your computer, there is no need to keep a copy of any data on it.
If the Sign Out button is grayed out, go to Screen Time settings and turn off its lock as well as disable ‘App & Website activity.’
How to factory reset your Mac
With essential files backed up, extra user accounts deleted, FileVault encryption turned off, Find My Activation Lock disabled, and iCloud signed out, follow these steps to factory reset your Mac without hiccups:
1) Restart your Mac. This will clear temporary files and refresh the system, ensuring everything goes as planned. If some apps open automatically after boot, Force Quit them by clicking the Apple icon .
2) Open System Settings, go to General > Transfer or Reset, and click Erase All Content and Settings.
If your Mac is on macOS Monterey, open System Preferences, then click System Preferences next to the Apple icon , and select Erase All Content and Settings.
3) Enter your Mac’s password in the Erase Assistant pop-up and click Unlock.
4) Review what content and settings will be erased. Since you have already signed out of your Apple Account, this screen will show only a few options, such as Touch ID and Bluetooth accessories. If you had not signed out beforehand, the screen would look like the one shown in the screenshot below.
5) Click Erase All Content & Settings and wait.
Even after deleting most of my data from my MacBook beforehand, I had to wait about 3 minutes for the Apple logo to appear. Leave the computer untouched; it’s normal if it takes longer than 3 minutes. The Apple logo and progress bar may appear and disappear from the screen a few times, which is expected.
6) After that, you’ll see the Activate Mac screen in recovery mode. Click the Wi-Fi icon in the top menu bar, connect to a working network, and click Next.
7) Wait for a while, and you’ll see a message on the screen that reads “Your Mac is activated. It will restart in 60 seconds.” Wait a minute for Mac to auto-restart, or click the Restart button to do it now.
8) Soon, your Mac will boot up and show the ‘hello’ screen.
After you have factory reset your Mac
The ‘hello’ screen confirms you’ve successfully factory reset your Mac, and it’s brand new now, at least on the inside.
- Set it up like a new computer with your Apple Account if you plan on using it.
- If you’re selling, recycling, trading, or giving it away, just shut down the machine without setting it up with your Apple Account. The new owner will set it up with their account details and preferences.
Also, check out: 43 things to do after setting up a Mac