How to Customize the Dock on macOS

Step by step

1. 1 min

   Access Dock system settings

   Open the Apple menu in the top-left corner of your screen and select System Settings. Navigate to the Desktop & Dock tab in the left-hand sidebar to view all available customization options.

   Note: You can also right-click the separator line on the right side of your Dock and select Dock Settings.
2. 30 sec

   Add or remove application icons

   To add an app, drag its icon from the Applications folder into the Dock. To remove an app, drag the icon out of the Dock toward the middle of your desktop until you see the Remove label, then release it.

   Note: Removing an icon does not uninstall the application; it only removes the shortcut from the Dock.
3. 30 sec

   Resize the Dock icons

   Within the Desktop & Dock settings, move the Size slider to the left or right to decrease or increase icon dimensions. Alternatively, hover your cursor over the separator line in the Dock until it turns into a double-ended arrow, then click and drag to resize manually.

4. 30 sec

   Change the Dock position

   Locate the Position on screen option within System Settings. Select Left, Bottom, or Right to anchor the Dock to your preferred edge of the display.

5. 30 sec

   Enable or disable auto-hide

   Toggle the Automatically hide and show the Dock switch to ON to reclaim screen space. The Dock will now disappear when not in use and reappear when you move your cursor to the edge of the screen where the Dock is positioned.

   Note: Use the keyboard shortcut to toggle this setting instantly without opening System Settings.
6. 1 min

   Add a stack for folders

   Drag any folder from Finder onto the right side of your Dock, near the Trash icon. Right-click the folder icon in the Dock to choose how the stack is displayed, such as Fan, Grid, or List view.

   Note: Right-click the stack to toggle between Folder or Stack display modes.