iPhone Mirroring Not Working on Mac? Try These Fixes

Sep. 16, 2024

Thenew iOS 18and macOS Sequoia bring a much-useful iPhone Mirroring feature that lets you use your iPhone from your Mac’s display. It’s one of my favoritemacOS Sequoia featuresthat delivers a more connected experience across my devices. However, there can be instances when iPhone Mirroring isn’t working and you have no idea what to do. This is pretty common as there’s a whole set of prerequisites to get your iPhone screen to appear on your Mac. You need not worry as we’re here to help youenable and use iPhone Mirroring on your MacBook.We’ve mentioned 9 tried and tested methods that should help you fix iPhone Mirroring problems. Without any ado, let’s begin!

Method 1: Check Device Compatibility

If you can’t use iPhone Mirroring on your Mac, you must first ensure that your devices are compatible with this feature. It’s worth knowing that iPhone Mirroring is a macOS Sequoia feature and it’s available only on the latest iOS 18 andmacOS Sequoia-supported devices. So, you’ll need a Mac with an Apple silicon chip or a T2 Security chip, and asupported iPhone model.If you haven’t got a compatible device, iPhone Mirroring won’t work for you.

The iPhone Mirroring feature requires an iPhone running iOS 18 and a Mac running macOS Sequoia. If you’re running iOS 17 or macOS 14 Sonoma, you can’t use iPhone Mirroring on your devices. Therefore, you must update both of your devices to access this brand-new feature.

After months of beta testing, the stable versions of iOS 18 and macOS Sequoia are now available for everyone. On your iPhone, go toSettings -> General ->Software Updateand download iOS 18. On your Mac, go toSystem Settings -> General -> Software Updateto download and install the latest macOS 15 Sequoia.

Once you’ve updated your devices, you should be able touse your iPhone on your Mac wirelessly, without even needing your iPhone to be around.

Once you’re sure that your devices are running the latest OSes, the next thing you must do is double-check that both your iPhone and Mac are signed in with the same Apple ID with two-factor authentication enabled. Yes, this is one of the prerequisites to use the iPhone Mirroring feature. Well, if you’re the primary user and have set up both devices yourself, you should have signed in with the same Apple ID.

In case you use multiple Apple IDs for multiple devices or are using a MacBook from a family member, you may need tochange Apple IDs. You are allowed to switch back and forth between multiple Apple IDs, but it will erase and replace all the iCloud data each time, which doesn’t sound practical.

Here’s how to quickly check if you’re using the same Apple ID on your iPhone and Mac:

For more details, you can refer to our guide onhow to switch Apple ID on iPhone and iPad.

Another thing you can do to fix iPhone Mirroring not working problems is to check if you’ve enabled Bluetooth on both devices and connected them to the same Wi-Fi network. To enable iPhone Mirroring in macOS Sequoia, you have to enable Bluetooth and Wi-Fi on your iPhone and Mac, and both devices should be near each other for the initial link-up. After you’ve enabled iPhone Mirroring, you can fully access your iPhone right on your Mac’s display, without needing your iPhone to be around.

To be on the safer side, do the following:

It’s worth knowing that iPhone Mirroring works only when your iPhone is locked and not in use. If you unlock your iPhone, iPhone Mirroring will stop automatically and won’t work until you lock your iPhone.

In fact, you’ll see a message on your Mac saying that the iPhone is in use and it will advise you to lock your iPhone and click onTry Againto continue mirroring the iPhone display. When you lock your phone and the iPhone Mirroring starts, your iPhone will show a message saying“iPhone in Use”.

The iPhone Mirroring app on macOS Sequoia won’t work if you’re using AirPlay or Sidecar. So, if you’reusing AirPlayto stream video ormirror the screen of your iPhone on your Apple TVor Mac, you must first disconnect AirPlay and then try again. In the same way, if you’re using theSidecar Continuity featureto use your iPad as the second display for your Mac, you can’t activate iPhone Mirroring on macOS Sequoia. To avoid any issues, make sure you aren’t using AirPlay or Sidecar on your MacBook.

There can be instances when you’ve got multiple iPhones signed in with an Apple ID, and you wish to specific iPhone to your Mac. In such a case, you have to configure the iPhone you wish to use with iPhone Mirroring. If you’ve selected a different iPhone, you might feel that iPhone Mirroring isn’t working for you. However, that’s not the case. To verify, go toSystem Settings -> Desktop & Dockon your Mac and scroll down to theWidgets section.Here, you’ll see a drop-down box for iPhone. Select the iPhone you wish to use for iPhone Mirroring.

Similarly, if you wish to use iPhone Mirroring on another Mac, you can do that as well. Just head toSettings -> General -> AirPlay & Continuity -> iPhone Mirroringand choose a Mac running macOS Sequoia.

You might have removed your Mac from the list of devices that are allowed to mirror your iPhone, and that’s the reason why you can’t use iPhone Mirroring. You might have done this accidentally or purposely while lending your Mac to your friend or a family remember. To verify if that’s the case, you should head toSettings -> General -> AirPlay & Continuity -> iPhone Mirroringand check if you can see your Mac’s name. If you can’t, it means your Mac isn’t allowed to mirror your iPhone. In such a case, you should enable iPhone Mirroring again.

For complete steps, you can check out our guide onhow to set up and use the iOS 18 iPhone Mirroring feature.

If you’ve checked all the basics and are still wondering why iPhone Mirroring isn’t working, you can try restarting your devices. Sometimes, some minor software bugs and glitches might prevent you from wirelessly mirroring your iPhone to your Mac. Thankfully, you can fix these glitches with a simple reboot. So, make sure torestart your iPhoneand your Mac, and try using the iPhone Mirroring feature. In most cases, this should help you fix the problem.

At the moment,drag-and-drop functionality in the iPhone Mirroring feature is only available in fifth developer betas of iOS 18.1 and macOS Sequoia 15.1.Apple hasn’t added this feature to the stable versions yet. So, if you running a public version and you can’t move your photos, videos, and files between your ‌iPhone‌ and Mac, you shouldn’t worry. Apple plans to add the new functionality later this year.

We hope this article helped you fix iPhone Mirroring not working problems and you can now mirror your iPhone to your Mac. Which trick worked for you? Don’t forget to share your experiences in the comments below.