To boot a Mac in Safe Mode, you restart (or shut down and power on) the Mac while using a special startup method: on Intel Macs you hold the Shift key at startup, and on Apple silicon Macs you use the power button plus Shift from the startup options screen. Safe Mode loads only essential system components, runs basic disk checks, and can help diagnose crashes, freezes, or strange performance issues.

What Safe Mode Does

  • Loads only core macOS extensions, disabling most third‑party add‑ons and login items so you can see if they are causing problems.
  • Performs a basic startup disk check and may automatically repair some directory issues during boot.
  • Disables some visual effects, fonts, and hardware acceleration, so the system may look different or feel slower while troubleshooting.

Apple Silicon Macs (M1, M2, M3)

For newer Macs with Apple silicon chips (like M1/M2/M3 MacBook Air/Pro, Mac mini, iMac), the Safe Mode process uses the power button and startup options. Use this when dealing with kernel panics, repeated crashes, or issues after installing new software.

Steps:

  1. Shut down the Mac completely from the Apple menu → Shut Down and wait until the screen is fully black.
  1. Press and hold the power button until you see “Loading startup options” on screen.
  1. When startup options appear, click your startup disk (for example “Macintosh HD”) once to select it.
  1. Now press and hold Shift , then click “Continue in Safe Mode” while still holding Shift, and only then release Shift.
  1. Log in; you may have to log in twice, and once logged in you’ll see “Safe Boot” in the menu bar or on the login screen.

Intel Macs (older MacBook, iMac, mini, Pro)

Intel‑based Macs still use the classic Shift‑at‑startup method. This is common on pre‑M1 devices and works similarly across macOS versions like Catalina, Big Sur, Monterey, and later.

Steps:

  1. Shut down or restart your Mac.
  1. Right after you press the power button (or as soon as the Mac restarts), immediately press and hold Shift.
  1. Keep holding Shift until you see the login screen, then release it.
  1. Log in; “Safe Boot” should appear in the top‑right corner of the login screen or on the desktop.

How to Confirm You’re in Safe Mode

  • Look for the “Safe Boot” text on the login screen or in the menu bar, depending on macOS version.
  • Go to About This Mac → System Report → under Software, “Boot Mode” will show “Safe” instead of Normal.

What to Do While in Safe Mode

  • Try to reproduce the issue (crashes, freezes, glitches) with only essential components running to see if the problem still occurs.
  • Remove or disable recently installed apps, login items, and system extensions, especially anything that runs at startup.

How to Exit Safe Mode

  • Simply restart your Mac normally without holding any keys during startup.
  • When it boots back, “Safe Boot” disappears and Boot Mode should show as Normal in the system report.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.