How to turn off automatic login on a Mac
To turn off automatic login on a Mac, choose Apple menu > System Settings, click Users & Groups, then set the "Automatically log in as" menu to Off. Apple warns that automatic login allows anyone to access your Mac simply by restarting it. After your next startup, the login window asks for a name and password.
Quick answer
Open System Settings, click Users & Groups in the sidebar, click the "Automatically log in as" pop-up menu and choose Off. The login window then appears at startup. If the menu is greyed out, Apple says that happens when FileVault is on, when an organisation's profile prohibits automatic login, or when the account logs in with an Apple Account password.
What does automatic login do on a Mac?
It signs a chosen user account in when the Mac starts up, so the login window is skipped. Apple says the setting takes effect the next time you restart. It only covers startup: you may still need to enter a password after logging out, after switching back from another user account, or after locking the screen.
Apple's page on a missing login window gives the same explanation: the Mac is set to skip the login window and log in a particular user automatically.
Why does Apple warn against automatic login?
Because of what happens on a restart. Apple's Users & Groups page says "Automatic login allows anyone to access your Mac simply by restarting it." Whoever restarts it lands in the account that logs in automatically, with no password asked for.
Apple adds two pieces of advice. If automatic login is on, make sure the Mac doesn't log in an administrator automatically, since someone could restart it and get administrator access. And if several people use the Mac, give each person their own user account and turn automatic login off.
Locking the screen doesn't close this gap. Apple's page on waking your Mac says locking the screen doesn't stop other users from shutting down, restarting or logging in to the Mac. With automatic login on, a restart is enough to get past the lock.
How do you turn off automatic login?
On macOS Ventura 13 or later:
- Choose Apple menu > System Settings, then click Users & Groups in the sidebar. You may need to scroll down.
- Click the "Automatically log in as" pop-up menu.
- Choose Off.
Apple says that after your next startup, the login window appears and asks for a username and password. With automatic login off, it shows a login window listing the Mac's users.
On earlier versions of macOS, the same setting lives in System Preferences > Users & Groups. Click the lock to make changes, enter your password, click Login Options at the bottom left, and use the "Automatic login" menu.
Why is automatic login greyed out on my Mac?
Apple says manual login is required, so the automatic login option is unavailable, in three cases:
- FileVault is turned on.
- An organisation supervises the Mac with a profile that prohibits automatic login.
- The account uses an Apple Account password to log in. Apple says you may see a message that a user with an encrypted home folder can't log in automatically.
On FileVault, Apple's wording is short: "When FileVault is turned on, automatic login is disabled." Apple's FileVault page says FileVault keeps others from reading your data without your login password, and that users unlock the encrypted disk with their login password.
If you came here to turn it off, Apple's point is that in these cases manual login is already required.
To check FileVault, choose Apple menu > System Settings, click Privacy & Security in the sidebar, then click FileVault. Apple says that if you forget both your login password and your recovery key, you won't be able to log in and your files and settings will be lost.
Should you also ask for a password after sleep?
Automatic login only affects startup. Asking for a password after sleep or the screen saver is a separate setting, and Apple covers it on the same page as its automatic login steps.
- Choose Apple menu > System Settings, then click Lock Screen in the sidebar. You may need to scroll down.
- Click the pop-up menu next to "Require password after screen saver begins or display is turned off".
- Choose how long the Mac waits before asking for a password.
Apple notes this setting can't be changed if iPhone Mirroring is set to authenticate automatically. On earlier versions of macOS, it's in System Preferences > Security & Privacy, as "Require password after sleep or screen saver begins".
With both done, a restart goes to the login window and a sleeping Mac asks for a password. For shortcuts and hot corners, see how to lock your Mac screen.
Where Failshot fits
Your password is the first layer. Failshot is the second: while it's on, it photographs whoever unlocks your Mac, then, with Pro, records a 5-second video, and its window tells them the unlock was photographed. With Pro, video is on by default and can be switched off. 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 for Mac is a free download for macOS 14 or later. Free to use. Pro adds video, email alerts and the encrypted vault. Try Failshot Pro free for 7 days. Your card is taken at sign-up and charged on day 8 unless you cancel. It's for your own Mac. To see what else Failshot can tell you, read who unlocked my Mac?
More questions
How do I disable auto login on my MacBook?
Choose Apple menu > System Settings, click Users & Groups, then set the "Automatically log in as" pop-up menu to Off. It's the same on every Mac running macOS Ventura 13 or later. Apple says the login window then appears at the next startup.
Does FileVault turn off automatic login?
Apple says "When FileVault is turned on, automatic login is disabled." It lists FileVault as one of the cases where manual login is required, which is why the "Automatically log in as" menu can be greyed out.
Why does my Mac log in without a password?
Usually because automatic login is on. Apple says a Mac with no login window at startup is set to log in a particular user automatically. Turn it off in System Settings > Users & Groups. Separately, check the Lock Screen setting for a password after sleep.
Should an administrator account log in automatically?
Apple advises against it. If automatic login is on, Apple says to make sure the Mac doesn't log in an administrator, because someone could restart the Mac and get administrator access.
Does locking the screen stop someone restarting my Mac?
No. Apple says locking the screen doesn't stop other users from shutting down, restarting or logging in to the Mac. If automatic login is on, a restart signs them straight into the account it's set for.