MacBook Pro touchscreen, how the PROLED XDR display and Touch work
The MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display, announced by Apple on 28 October 2026, is the first Mac with a touchscreen. Apple calls the feature Touch. It's on the 14-inch and 16-inch PROLED models with M5 Pro or M5 Max. The 14-inch MacBook Pro with M6 doesn't have it. This guide is accurate as of 30 October 2026.
Quick answer
Only the MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display has a touchscreen. Apple says the touch sensor is built into the tandem OLED panel, so you can scroll, pinch to zoom, drag, draw and tile windows with your finger, alongside the keyboard and trackpad. Many existing apps work with Touch straight away, because macOS translates touches into clicks.
Which MacBook Pro has a touchscreen?
Apple's MacBook Pro page lists "Touch display" for the MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display and "Touch display not applicable" for the MacBook Pro with Liquid Retina XDR display. That second group includes the new 14-inch with M6 and the Liquid Retina XDR models with M5 Pro or M5 Max.
So if you want Touch, you're choosing a PROLED model: 14-inch or 16-inch, each with M5 Pro or M5 Max. Prices and dates by country are in new MacBook Pro release date and price. For both new models side by side, see the new MacBook Pro 2026 overview.
How does Touch work on a Mac?
Apple's 28 October release says the touch sensor is built directly into the display panel rather than layered on top of it, which it says reduces latency. The tech specs page lists "Multi-Touch gesture support".
The everyday gestures Apple describes:
- Scroll a web page or document by sliding your finger across it.
- Pinch to zoom in on a photo, document or web page.
- Drag and drop, for example slides from one Keynote presentation to another.
- Double-tap a window to fill the screen, or flick it to tile it into place.
- Sketch and annotate directly on the screen.
Apple says Touch works in tandem with the keyboard shortcuts and trackpad gestures pros already know. The tech specs still list the keyboard with Touch ID and the Force Touch trackpad.
Two hardware changes go with it. Apple describes a newly designed hinge that gives greater stability while you use Touch, and video stabilisation that smooths the camera feed when you touch the screen during a video call.
The accessibility features on the PROLED tech specs page include AssistiveTouch and Touch Accommodations.
Which apps work with the MacBook Pro touchscreen?
Apple says its own apps are optimised for the new MacBook Pro, and that many existing apps work with Touch right away because macOS automatically translates touches into clicks. Updated system gesture APIs let developers design for Touch.
Apple's release names third-party apps that will take advantage of Touch, including Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook, Notion, Canva, Zoom, Adobe Lightroom, DaVinci Resolve, Blender, Maxon Cinema 4D, Maxon ZBrush, Shapr3D and Algoriddim djay Pro. A footnote says the apps listed will be available later this year.
For Apple's creative apps, the release says:
- In Logic Pro, you can play software instruments on a Multi-Touch polyphonic keyboard on the screen, with tappable chord and drum pads.
- In Final Cut Pro, you can mark ranges, drop clips into place and pinch to zoom in on a cut.
- In Pixelmator Pro, you can draw, paint and select directly on the canvas.
Apple lists these under Apple Creator Studio, and says Apple Creator Studio updates come to the App Store this November. Apple also says app developers can test how Touch performs in their iOS and iPadOS apps directly on the MacBook Pro display.
What is the PROLED XDR display?
PROLED XDR is Apple's name for the display on these models. Apple describes it as tandem OLED, with two self-illuminating pixel layers. Each pixel turns on and off on its own, which Apple says gives deep blacks next to bright highlights without the blooming and halos of backlit displays.
From the UK tech specs page:
- Up to 1,000 nits sustained full-screen brightness, and 2,000 nits peak for HDR content only.
- SDR brightness up to 2,000 nits peak outdoors, and 1 nit minimum.
- A 10,000,000:1 contrast ratio.
- 1 billion colours, P3 and Adobe RGB wide colour gamuts, and True Tone.
- ProMotion with adaptive refresh rates from 10Hz to 120Hz.
- An anti-reflective coating, a fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating, and a nano-texture glass option.
| 14-inch | 16-inch | |
|---|---|---|
| Screen size | 14.2 inches | 16.3 inches |
| Native resolution | 3024 x 1986 | 3472 x 2266 |
| Pixel density | 254 pixels per inch | 254 pixels per inch |
Apple says the nano-texture option is now etched into the cover glass. The release also says the display covers more than 80 percent of Rec. 2020.
For colour work, the tech specs list reference modes for cinema, design and print, photography and medical imaging. Apple says the medical imaging presets are intended only for research and educational purposes.
How is it different from the Liquid Retina XDR display?
The 14-inch MacBook Pro with M6 keeps the Liquid Retina XDR display, which Apple lists as mini-LED. Here's how Apple's own figures compare, from the two tech specs pages.
| PROLED XDR | Liquid Retina XDR | |
|---|---|---|
| Panel | Tandem OLED | Mini-LED |
| Peak HDR brightness | Up to 2,000 nits | 1,600 nits |
| SDR brightness, outdoors | Up to 2,000 nits peak | Up to 1,000 nits |
| Contrast ratio | 10,000,000:1 | 1,000,000:1 |
| Colour gamut | P3 and Adobe RGB | P3 |
| Touch | Yes | No |
What is the Dynamic Island on a Mac?
The PROLED models bring the Dynamic Island to the Mac. Apple calls it the new home for Spotlight, Live Activities and Siri AI, at the top of the screen. You can search your Mac, ask a question or control music from it, and with Live Activities you can accept an AirDrop request or pause a song with a tap.
Apple's footnote says Spotlight only moves to the Dynamic Island if Siri AI is available and turned on.
Where Failshot fits
A new Mac is the moment to add the second layer. Your password is the first layer. Failshot is the second: second layer device security for the moment someone sits down at your Mac and unlocks it.
While it's on, Failshot photographs whoever unlocks your Mac, then, with Pro, records a 5-second video, and its window tells them the unlock was photographed. With the Mac's built-in camera, the green light comes on. With Pro, turn on alerts and Failshot emails you about an unlock you don't confirm as yours, a wrong Failshot PIN or answer, or its camera access being switched off while it's on. Switching it off, or quitting it from its menu, takes Touch ID or your Failshot PIN and answer, never your Mac password.
Failshot is for macOS 14 or later. Free to download. It's free to use. Pro adds video, email alerts and the encrypted vault, and you can try Pro free for 7 days. The trial is on failshot.app, for the Mac app. iPhone, Android and Windows are coming soon.
More questions
Does the MacBook Pro with M6 have a touchscreen?
No. Apple's MacBook Pro page lists "Touch display not applicable" for the Liquid Retina XDR models, and the 14-inch MacBook Pro with M6 is one of them. Touch is only on the MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display, which comes with M5 Pro or M5 Max.
Is the 16-inch MacBook Pro a touchscreen?
The 16-inch MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display is. Apple's tech specs list Multi-Touch gesture support for the 16.3-inch PROLED model. The 16-inch MacBook Pro with Liquid Retina XDR display has no touchscreen, according to Apple's MacBook Pro page.
Does the MacBook Pro touchscreen work with Apple Pencil?
Apple's announcement, product pages and tech specs describe Touch with your fingers, and none of them mention Apple Pencil. If you need a stylus for your work, check Apple's MacBook Pro pages again before you order.
Do I have to use the touchscreen?
No. Apple says Touch works in tandem with the keyboard shortcuts and trackpad gestures, and the tech specs still list the keyboard with Touch ID and the Force Touch trackpad. You can use the screen, the trackpad, the keyboard, or all three.
Is the MacBook Pro display OLED?
On the PROLED models, yes. Apple describes PROLED XDR as a tandem OLED display with two self-illuminating pixel layers. The 14-inch MacBook Pro with M6 uses the Liquid Retina XDR display, which Apple lists as mini-LED.
Sources
- Apple unveils groundbreaking MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display, Apple Newsroom, 28 October 2026
- Apple unveils groundbreaking MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display, Apple Newsroom (UK)
- Apple introduces the new 14-inch MacBook Pro with M6, Apple Newsroom, 27 October 2026
- MacBook Pro, Apple (UK)
- MacBook Pro, Apple (US)
- MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display, Apple (UK)
- MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display, Apple (US)
- MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display, tech specs, Apple (UK)
- MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display, tech specs, Apple (US)
- MacBook Pro, tech specs, Apple (UK)