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How to use your iPhone as a trackpad for your Mac

In short: install Remolo on your iPhone and the free Remolo Helper on your Mac, and the phone becomes a trackpad: slide a finger, tap to click, use two fingers to scroll or right-click, spread them to zoom, hold and drag. There is a keyboard in any language too. All free, with no ads.

Updated

What you need

  • An iPhone or iPad on iOS 18 or later.
  • Any Mac on macOS 15 or later — including a Mac mini, Mac Studio or Mac Pro with no trackpad of its own.
  • One Wi‑Fi network — or Wi‑Fi and Bluetooth on both devices when there is no shared one.

Step by step

  1. Install Remolo Helper on the Mac

    It is free: download it, drag it into Applications and open it.

  2. Allow Accessibility

    System Settings → Privacy & Security → Accessibility → Remolo Helper. Without it macOS lets no remote move the cursor.

  3. Pair the iPhone

    Open Remolo, pick the Mac and enter the six digits from its screen — once.

  4. Use it

    A short tour teaches the gestures right on the phone — the Mac doesn’t react meanwhile, so try freely.

The Remolo trackpad with the Mac’s screen and the Dock

Gestures

  • One finger moves the cursor; tap to click, double tap to double-click.
  • Two fingers scroll with momentum; a two-finger tap is a right click; spread to zoom.
  • Hold a finger and drag a file or window.
  • Pro: three- and four-finger gestures as set on your Mac, or 11 gestures of your own, a bar of 21 shortcuts, landscape on iPhone (free on iPad).

Keyboard and Dock

Type in any language or dictate — the text appears in the active field on the Mac. There are ⌘⌥⌃⇧, esc, tab, arrows and F1–F12. Above the trackpad sits your Mac’s Dock: pinned and open apps, and search finds even closed ones.

When it comes in handy

A MacBook hooked up to the TV while you are on the sofa; a Mac mini or Mac Studio with no trackpad; a broken trackpad or a flat Magic Mouse; controlling the Mac without getting up from the kitchen table.

Honest limits

  • At home no internet is needed, but the phone and the Mac must see each other: one Wi‑Fi network, or Wi‑Fi and Bluetooth on both. Hotel guest networks sometimes isolate devices — then the iPhone’s Personal Hotspot helps.
  • The first setup on the Mac needs a mouse or keyboard — once, to allow Accessibility.
  • Three- and four-finger gestures and control from any network are part of Remolo Pro.

Questions

Is it free?

Yes: the trackpad, keyboard, Dock and several Macs are free forever, with no ads. Pro adds 3–4-finger gestures, the Mac’s screen on the phone, control from any network and more.

Does it work with an iPad?

Yes — the trackpad is bigger there, and landscape is free.

Do I need an account?

No. The phone and the Mac pair with a code from the Mac’s screen, and the connection is end-to-end encrypted.

More guides

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