VoiceOver on a Mac: how to turn it on or off, and what to do with it

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To turn VoiceOver on or off on a Mac, press Command-F5. On a Mac or Magic Keyboard with Touch ID, hold Command and press Touch ID three times quickly. VoiceOver is the screen reader built into macOS: it speaks what is on the screen and lets you run the Mac from the keyboard, a trackpad, or a braille display. If your Mac suddenly started talking and drawing a dark box around things, VoiceOver was switched on by accident, and Command-F5 switches it off.

I make YapToText, a free dictation app for the Mac, and InputConfig, a free app that turns any button, switch or controller into keys and clicks. I built both because my own hands do not work well. Apple's steps are from its VoiceOver User Guide for macOS 27, read October 10, 2026.

Download YapToText on the Mac App StoreThis app is completely free. You don't have to make an account. There are no subscriptions, no difficult downloads, and nothing is locked. Made for Apple silicon Macs. Source on GitHub.

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On this page: 8 sections
  1. Every way to turn VoiceOver on or off
  2. The welcome dialog
  3. Quiet it without turning it off
  4. The VO keys, and where to learn the rest
  5. Writing with VoiceOver on
  6. VoiceOver commands on a button
  7. The short version
  8. Questions

Every way to turn VoiceOver on or off

  • The keyboard. Press Command-F5. If nothing happens, hold Fn as well: on keyboards where the top row controls features such as brightness, F5 needs Fn.
  • Touch ID. Hold Command, then press Touch ID three times quickly.
  • Siri. Ask Turn off VoiceOver.
  • System Settings. Apple menu, System Settings, Accessibility, VoiceOver, then the switch.
  • The Accessibility Shortcuts panel. Press Option-Command-F5, or Touch ID three times. Tab to the VoiceOver option and press the Space bar.

The Mac accessibility shortcuts page covers that panel and how to choose what it lists.

The welcome dialog

When VoiceOver turns on, it speaks a welcome message and shows a dialog. Four keys answer it:

  • Return. Turn VoiceOver on.
  • Space bar. Turn it on and start the interactive tutorial.
  • V. Turn it on and do not show the dialog next time.
  • Escape. Turn VoiceOver off and leave the dialog.

If VoiceOver came on by accident, Escape at this dialog is the fastest way out.

Quiet it without turning it off

  • Pause speech. Press the Control key. Press it again to resume. Other apps' audio is not affected.
  • Mute speech. Open VoiceOver Utility, the Speech category, Voices, and select Mute speech.
  • Mute sound effects. In VoiceOver Utility, the Sound category, select Mute sound effects.

VoiceOver Utility opens with VO-Fn-F8 while VoiceOver is on.

The VO keys, and where to learn the rest

VoiceOver commands start with the VoiceOver modifier, written VO. By default that is Control and Option held together, or Caps Lock alone. Press VO with other keys to move the VoiceOver cursor and act on what it is on. The built-in tutorial, started with the Space bar at the welcome dialog, teaches the basic commands by having you do them. On a trackpad, many gestures match the ones on iPhone and iPad, such as a tap to hear the item under the VoiceOver cursor.

Apple's VoiceOver User Guide is the full reference, and it is available in braille-ready format.

Writing with VoiceOver on

VoiceOver reads. Something else has to write, and a keyboard is not the only choice. YapToText is built to work alongside VoiceOver: it announces every state through it, Listening, Transcribing, Cleaning up, errors, and completion or cancel, even when no app window is focused, and its panel and menu bar controls carry labels. One key starts and stops a dictation, Right Command by default.

That is how it is built. The VoiceOver test pass has not been run, so I do not call it tested with VoiceOver. The VoiceOver dictation guide goes through a full dictation by ear, including how to hear the text before and after it lands.

Download YapToText on the Mac App StoreThis app is completely free. You don't have to make an account. There are no subscriptions, no difficult downloads, and nothing is locked. Made for Apple silicon Macs. Source on GitHub.

VoiceOver commands on a button

VoiceOver's commands are keyboard chords, and chords are hard for some hands. InputConfig can put any of them on one button of a controller, a mouse, a MIDI pad or a switch, as an ordinary Keyboard Key row. Command-F5 on a button turns VoiceOver on and off from wherever your hand rests. Its Smart Preset Maker has a VoiceOver Navigation workflow, and each row can speak a phrase when it fires, which helps anyone who cannot see the controller. InputConfig's page on dictation, Zoom and Speak Selection covers it.

The short version

  • On or off. Command-F5, or Command with Touch ID three times.
  • By accident. Escape at the welcome dialog, or Command-F5.
  • Pause. Control.
  • Learn it. Space bar at the welcome dialog starts the tutorial.
  • Write. Dictation that speaks its state through VoiceOver.

If a step here does not match your Mac, open an issue on GitHub. Every one gets read.

Download YapToText on the Mac App StoreThis app is completely free. You don't have to make an account. There are no subscriptions, no difficult downloads, and nothing is locked. Made for Apple silicon Macs. Source on GitHub.

About the author. Ryleigh Newman is a developer whose hands make typing difficult and who dictates every day with YapToText, the app this site describes. Facts about other apps come from their own sites, with the date they were read. More about the project.

Sources

Questions

How do I turn off VoiceOver on a Mac?

Press Command-F5. With Touch ID, hold Command and press Touch ID three times quickly. Or turn it off in System Settings, Accessibility, VoiceOver.

Why is my Mac talking to me?

VoiceOver, the built-in screen reader, is on. Command-F5 turns it off. It is easy to switch on by accident with that shortcut or with Touch ID.

What is the VoiceOver shortcut on a Mac?

Command-F5 turns it on or off. VoiceOver's own commands use the VO modifier, which is Control and Option together, or Caps Lock.

How do I pause VoiceOver without turning it off?

Press the Control key to pause its speech, and press it again to resume.

Can I dictate with VoiceOver on?

Yes. Apple's Dictation works, and YapToText announces each stage of a dictation through VoiceOver. Its VoiceOver test pass has not been run.