What to do before you sell, give away, or trade in your Mac

If you've upgraded to macOS Monterey on a Mac with Apple silicon or a Mac with the Apple T2 Security Chip, follow the steps to erase all content and settings instead of the steps in this article. 

For any other Mac or macOS, follow the steps below.

Use an external storage device to back up your files, or use Migration Assistant to move your files to your new Mac. 

If using macOS Catalina or later, you can skip this step.

Open iTunes. From the menu bar at the top of the screen or iTunes window, choose Account > Authorizations > Deauthorize This Computer. Then enter your Apple ID and password and click Deauthorize. Learn more about deauthorizing.

If using macOS Catalina or later, choose Apple menu  > System Preferences, then click Apple ID. Select Overview in the sidebar, then click Sign Out.

If using an earlier version of macOS, choose Apple menu  > System Preferences, click iCloud, then click Sign Out.

You will be asked whether to keep a copy of your iCloud data on this Mac. You can keep a copy, because you're erasing your Mac later. Your iCloud data remains in iCloud and on any other devices that are signed in to iCloud with your Apple ID.

Open the Messages app, then choose Messages > Preferences from the menu bar. Click iMessage, then click Sign Out.

If using a Mac with Apple silicon, you can skip this step.

Shut down your Mac, then turn it on and immediately press and hold these four keys together: Option, Command, P, and R. Release the keys after about 20 seconds. This clears user settings from memory and restores certain security features that might have been altered. Learn more about resetting NVRAM.

If your Mac is paired with a Bluetooth keyboard, mouse, trackpad, or other device that you plan to keep, you can unpair it. This optional step prevents accidental input when the Mac and device have separate owners but remain in Bluetooth range. If you do this on a Mac that doesn't have a built-in keyboard or trackpad, you will need to plug in a USB keyboard and mouse to complete the remaining steps.

To unpair a Bluetooth device, choose Apple menu  > System Preferences, then click Bluetooth. Move your pointer over the device that you want to unpair, then click the remove (x) button next to the device name.

Follow the steps to erase your Mac and reinstall macOS. After macOS installation is complete, your Mac restarts to a setup assistant. To leave the Mac in an out-of-box state, press Command-Q to shut down instead of continuing setup.