How to Switch Users in Mac in Quick Easy Steps
Jan. 5, 2021iPadOS might have become the more interesting operating system in recent years, but it still lacks some basic functions. One of those is the missing multi-user support. That’s why Macs still remain my go-to recommendation for a household. macOS comes with a bunch of impressive features. You get thecontrol center, all newwidgets, and support foriMessage effects, and more. Macs also support multiple user accounts, and if you share your Mac with other people, this is handy. So, if you want to use multiple user accounts on macOS, here are 2 ways to switch users in Mac.
2 Ways to Switch Users in Mac
There are a few ways you can use when switching from one user to another. We’ll be discussing all of the ways you can use, and then you can decide for yourself which one suits your needs best.
As always, you can use the table of contents below to skip over to any particular method that piques your interest.
First, let’s take a quick look at how you can add multiple users on your Mac, and how to enable guest users as well.
Enable Multiple Users
Enable Guest User
If you don’t usually share your Mac, but sometimes need to hand it off to other people for work, etc, you can enable a guest user. Here’s how.
Now that we have a couple of accounts on our Mac, let’s take a look at all the ways we can switch users in Mac. First let’s take a look at fast user switching.
This feature basically lets you switch over to a new user without logging out of the account that’s currently logged in. It’s disabled by default, but if you want to use it, you can check out our article onhow to enable fast user account switchingfor a step-by-step guide.
Once you have this enabled you can switch users from the Control Center or theMenu Bar.
Another way you can switch users in Mac is straight from thelock screenitself. Here’s how to do that.
This is not exactly a way to completely switch users on a Mac. However, you can use the Terminal to log into another user account on your Mac and access their files if needed.
Don’t worry, theTerminal commandshere aren’t too confusing or difficult. Here’s what you need to do.
So yeah, this isn’t really the same as switching user accounts, but it’s a neat way to take a look at files on another account if you ever need to do that.
Having multiple user accounts is the best way to share a Mac between different users. It ensures that every user gets their own space to work in, and files are not mixed between users. Plus, if you just need to temporarily let a friend or family member use your Mac, you can even use Guest accounts to let them use your Mac without having access to any of your files.
So, are you using multiple user accounts on your Mac? If so, which method do you like using to switch between them? Let us know in the comments.
