Learn all the ways to launch the Terminal app on macOS if you’d like to interact with your Mac using a command-line interface.
Terminal is a built-in tool in macOS that provides a command line interface. Primarily designed for power users and developers, Terminal may intimidate novice users who aren’t comfortable with typing cryptic commands. Don’t worry, you’ll find linked articles at the bottom of this post to help you with that. Meanwhile, here are all the ways you can open Terminal on your Mac.
1. Spotlight Search
One of the easiest ways to open Terminal on a Mac is Spotlight Search. Click the Spotlight icon in the menu bar or press the Command + Space keys, type “Terminal” (the app should appear in the Top Hit section), and press Enter to open the app.
2. Finder
Click the desktop to make the Finder active, then click the Go > Utilities menu and double-click the Terminal app in the Utilities folder.
3. Applications folder
Click the Finder icon in the Dock to open a new Finder window, select Applications in the sidebar, and hit the arrow to expand the Utilities folder, then double-click Terminal to launch it.
If you keep the Applications folder shortcut in the Dock for instant access as I do, click it there, then select Other or Utilities and choose Terminal.
4. Launchpad
Open Launchpad by clicking its Dock icon or pinching with four or five fingers on the trackpad. Then, locate the Other folder and open Terminal from there. By default, Launchpad includes an Other folder which contains Terminal.
If you’ve removed this folder, type “Terminal” into the search box at the top of Launchpad and launch it from there.
5. Siri
Click the Siri button in the menu bar or open the Siri app from the Applications folder, then ask the assistant to “Open Terminal.”
6. Dock shortcut
If you’re going to use Terminal frequently, do yourself a favor and create a Dock shortcut. First, launch Terminal. Then, right-click or Control-click its Dock icon and choose Options > Keep in Dock.
Terminal is a terrific tool. Once you get the hang of it and learn some useful commands, it won’t be so intimidating anymore. Have you tried Terminal yet? If not, are you interested in learning more about what you can do with Terminal?
Terminal commands and tips: