Let’s say you want a second screen for your Mac to extend or mirror your current display. If you’re running macOS Catalina or higher and own an iPad, you can do it through a feature called Sidecar.
Sidecar extends the display from your Mac to your iPad to give you more space to work or play. You can also mirror what’s on your Mac’s display to the tablet so you don’t have to sit in front of the computer to continue using it.
When your Mac and iPad are connected, you’re able to use touch gestures on your tablet, edit text using editing features in iPadOS, and use an Apple Pencil on your iPad to work with Mac apps. A sidebar puts modifier keys such as Command, Control, Shift, and Option on your tablet so you can better control your Mac. And a Touch Bar offers app-specific controls at the bottom of your iPad screen (even if your Mac doesn’t have a Touch Bar).
Which Mac and iPad Models Support Sidecar?
To use Sidecar, you’ll need Apple devices that support the feature. Sidecar-compatible Macs include the following models:
- MacBook from 2016 or later
- MacBook Pro from 2016 or later
- MacBook Air from 2018 or later
- iMac from 2016 or later (or the Retina 5K 27-inch from late 2015)
- iMac Pro
- Mac mini from 2018 or later
- Mac Pro from 2019 or later