How to Share a Mouse and Keyboard Between Multiple Macs and iPads

If you want to use multiple Macs, managing multiple keyboards, mice, and other pointing devices can be cumbersome. What if you could use a single set of input devices to control multiple Macs, and sometimes iPads?

From Monterey, Apple offers Universal Control for Mac and iPad, a solution for sharing keyboards and mice between two Macs. Where Universal Control doesn’t fit, you can try a hardware or software KVM, which can share a set of input devices between multiple computers.

What is Universal Control?

Universal Control will let you use the same keyboard and mouse for all the Macs and iPads you work on. All you have to do to switch devices is move the pointer until it crosses the edge of the screen. The new feature also makes it easier to copy content between devices using drag and drop.

Universal Control builds on the Continuity features Apple added years ago that make it easy to switch from one device to another seamlessly. Then with Catalina in 2019 came Sidecar, which made it easy to use an iPad as an extra display for your Mac. Read: How to use an iPad as a second screen with a Mac.

But Universal Control goes a step further than Sidecar: rather than turning your iPad screen into a secondary Mac display, Universal Control will keep iPadOS on the iPad, so you can interface with the iPad like a iPad, rather than as a second screen for your Mac.

Similarly, Universal Control brings Sidecar-like functionality to the Mac, so you can extend the primary screen to the secondary Mac, but you can also choose to use the two Macs independently so you can connect between the two devices.

Here, we’ll walk you through how to use a keyboard and mouse with two Macs or a Mac and an iPad. Continue reading!

What you need for Universal Control

Universal Control lets you use one keyboard, mouse, or trackpad on multiple devices that are signed into the same iCloud account and are near each other. MacOS Monterey version 12.4 or later and iPadOS 15.4 or later are required. You also need to enable Bluetooth and Wi-Fi.

Universal control is enabled by default on your Mac and iPad, but you need to configure some things.

• Universal Control arrived in March 2022 in macOS 12.3 or iPadOS 15.4. For Universal Control to work, you’ll need at least macOS 12.3 on your Mac and iPadOS 15.4 on your iPad.
• You’ll need a compatible Mac and iPad (see compatibility list below).
• You also need Bluetooth and Wi-Fi enabled on your Mac and iPad, so make sure they are all enabled.
• You will also need to be signed into the same iCloud account on both devices.
• You’ll also need to move your secondary iPad or Mac within 30 feet/10 meters of your Mac.

Apple offers this detailed setup guide that includes the minimum hardware requirements for Macs and iPads.

Universal Control Compatibility

Universal Control will not work with all Macs or iPads. If you want to use multiple Macs and iPads with one keyboard, mouse and trackpad, you will need a recent Mac and a recent iPad, both devices will need to be signed in to the same Apple ID, you will also need a two-factor authentication, and you’ll need to be running macOS 12.3 or iPadOS 15.4.

Compatible Macs:

• MacBook Pro (2016 and later)
• MacBook (2016 and later)
• MacBook Air (2018 and later)
• 21.5-inch iMac (2017 and later)
• 27-inch iMac (2015 and later)
• 24 inch iMac
• iMacPro
• Mac mini (2018 and later)
• Mac Pro (2019)

Compatible iPads:

• iPadPro
• iPad Air (3rd generation and later)
• iPad (6th generation and later)
• iPad mini (5th generation and later)

This means that if your Mac is from 2015 or earlier, this isn’t a feature you’ll be able to take advantage of (unless you have a 27-inch iMac from that era).

Does Universal Control work with Intel Macs?

Universal Control will work with some recent Intel Macs.

Does Universal Control work with iPhone?

Universal Control only connects Mac and iPad, not iPhone. The iPhone is not really suitable for use as an additional screen in this type of configuration.

How many devices can you link with Universal Control?

Up to three Macs or iPads can be linked this way. But you’ll need a Mac to use it with an iPad – you can’t use Universal Control to link two iPads (yet, anyway).

How to Share a Mouse and Keyboard with Two Macs

If you want to use your keyboard and mouse with two Macs, follow these steps:

1. Open System Settings/System Preferences on your Mac and select Displays.
2. If you are using Ventura, click on Advanced, otherwise click on Universal Control.
3. Check/check all three boxes: “Allow your cursor and keyboard to move between any nearby Mac or iPad” (which is logged into your iCloud account). “Push through the edge of a screen to connect to a nearby Mac or iPad”. And “Automatically reconnect to any nearby Mac or iPad”, which will ensure that your Mac and iPad will reconnect next time.
4. Go to the other Mac and select the same three options in System Preferences/System Settings > Displays. (If you don’t, you won’t see the Pair keyboard and mouse option under Add a display in the next step.)
5. Click the drop-down menu next to Add screen. You’ll see the Pair keyboard and mouse option and your secondary Mac’s name below it. You will need to ensure that these screens are set up the same as on your desktop.
6. Now drag your mouse to the second Mac and you will see the cursor appear on this screen. Click on a document and you can type with the keyboard.
7. Drag the screens into a location that matches your desktop layout so you can find each screen.

Now when you drag your cursor to the secondary screen of your Mac, when you get to the edge of the screen, your cursor will move to the other screen and you can use your keyboard and mouse to control the device secondary.

So, for example, if you want to use FaceTime on your MacBook, you can still use the mouse and keyboard typically associated with your Mac mini. You’re using the FaceTime app on the MacBook, not the Mac mini.

How to Share Your Mouse and Keyboard with an iPad

On your iPad, follow these steps:

1. Go to Settings > General.
2. Go to AirPlay and transfer.
3. Make sure Cursor and Keyboard is selected.

Now, on your Mac, follow these steps:

1. Open System Preferences/System Settings > Displays.
2. Click Add View.
3. Under Link Keyboard and Mouse, you should see your iPad.
4. Select your iPad (if it disappears, just unlock your iPad or wake it up!)
5. You can click on the screens in the window (as shown above) and move them to a position that matches your desktop layout so you can find them easily!

Note that when we used the Home button on our iPad it stopped Universal Control, so if you do that you may need to restart it in System Preferences > Displays.

How to drag and drop between Mac and iPad

While it was already possible to copy and paste text between your Apple devices thanks to Universal Clipboard, now it’s really easy to drag and drop files and other stuff between your iPad and Mac and vice versa.

Before Universal Control, if you wanted to copy a file or photo to an iPad from a Mac (or vice versa), you could use AirDrop (see: How to AirDrop on Mac, iPhone and iPad), you could send a message or email from device to device, or you can save to iCloud where you can access it on either device, for example, anything saved on your desktop can be viewed on any of your Apple devices if you subscribe to iCloud+ (see: How iCloud Drive to sync files between Mac, iPhone and iPad).

Now that Universal Control has arrived, it’s easy to drag and drop from Mac to iPad, but you have to show the file where it needs to go on the iPad (it won’t automatically get the right place).

For example, if you want to copy a photo from your Mac to your iPad, follow these steps:

1. Open Photos on your iPad.
2. Click the photo on your Mac.
3. Drag it from your Mac screen to the iPad.
4. Drop the photo into the Photos app (If it doesn’t seem to work if you just drop onto the Photos icon, you need to open the app.)

On the other hand, if you want to drag from iPad to Mac, the process is much easier, just drag and drop onto the desktop and it will end up there (and if you selected Stacks, it will be in the corresponding folder). Read: Clean up a Mac desktop with Mojave Desktop Stacks and other tricks.

Otherwise, drag it to a folder and drop it there.

What if your Mac and iPad don’t support Universal Control?

There are alternatives to Universal Control that will also allow you to use a single keyboard and mouse with two Macs and even an iPad.

How to Use a Hardware KVM

Long ago called KVM for “keyboard, video and mouse”, a KVM switch was an important tool for system and network administrators to avoid the clutter of CRTs and bulky keyboards in server rooms and elsewhere. Later, KVMs came in handy for those who wanted to hook up a laptop alongside a desktop setup and use a larger screen, full-size keyboard, and mouse, trackball, or touchpad.

These KVMs had to include a VGA connection, several serial and audio connectors, and sometimes USB 1.1.

Today, a KVM can be much simpler: you only need USB Type-A ports and you can use USB-C adapters if needed to connect to your Macs. This UGreen two-computer switch at the list price of $19.99 might be suitable for many people.

How to Use KVM Software

If you just want to switch between Macs, a virtual KVM may be the less complicated path. Symless Synergy is just $29 for three computers, with these licenses covering macOS, Linux, Raspberry Pi and Windows – you can mix and match installs.

Synergy works similarly to Universal Control (before Universal Control existed), allowing you to trigger movement between devices by dragging your cursor across the edge of one screen and across another.

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