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Apple CEO Tim Cook says the company just had “its best launch week ever” for customers picking up a Mac for the first time, as the MacBook Neo, M5 MacBook Air, and M5 Pro/Max MacBook Pros went on sale. It sounds as though people are switching to the Mac in significant numbers, with the $599 MacBook Neo likely to be having the most impact.
If you’re one of those responsible for Apple’s record-breaking launch week for first-time customers, you might be wondering where to get started with macOS—and how it differs (or doesn’t differ) from the Windows OS you’re already used to. Windows is the operating system I grew up with, right from the early days of Windows 95, but as a tech journalist I’ve had to write plenty of articles on macOS. I use both operating systems pretty much every day, so here’s my guide to familiarizing yourself with Apple’s desktop operating system if you’ve only ever used Microsoft’s.
Perhaps the biggest interface change that you need to adapt to in the beginning is the menu bar. If you’ve only ever known Windows, you’ll be used to having a taskbar down at the bottom, and app menus nearer top, attached to the programs they’re with.
macOS has a menu bar that combines these various elements together. It takes the app shortcuts, time and date display, and notifications pop-ups from the bottom-right corner in Windows, and puts them in the top-right corner. This same top bar also includes the menus for whatever app is currently active.
So, whether you’re using Google Chrome, Adobe Photoshop, or Spotify, the menus aren’t attached to the program windows—they’re right at the top of the screen. It can take some getting used to, but the name of the currently active program is always shown in the top-left corner, and to the left of that is the Apple menu—which I’ll get into next.
There’s no Start button and no Start menu on macOS—instead, different parts of the Start menu are spread out in other places. For example, if you’re looking for the OS settings or for shutdown and user account options, these are in the Apple menu: That’s the Apple logo that always sits right up in the top-left corner of the screen.
Go here to find About This Mac (info about the computer you’re using); the options for Sleep, Restart, and Shut Down; and controls for locking the Mac or logging out. Also of use here is Force Quit, which can close misbehaving apps for you.
The Apple menu also gives you access to the macOS App Store, and any app updates that might be pending there. The Recent Items submenu, meanwhile, fulfills some of the uses of the Windows Start menu, giving you convenient access to recently launched apps and recently opened files.
You can get at your apps through Spotlight.
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How the macOS app experience differs from Windows
As on Windows, you can install apps on macOS through the official App Store, or by downloading them through your web browser. There are multiple ways to find and launch apps, which can be a bit confusing at first: The method I tend to use the most is launching Spotlight (via Cmd+Space or the magnifying glass on the menu bar), then typing out the name of a program.
Then there’s the Dock at the bottom of the screen, which is largely equivalent to the Windows Taskbar. You can switch between apps and launch recent apps from here, as well pin app shortcuts permanently (right-click on an app icon and choose Options > Keep in Dock). Open the Apple menu and select System Settings > Desktop & Dock to set the Dock position and behavior.
To find all the apps installed on macOS, you can launch Spotlight (as above), then click the App Store icon to the right of the search box. You can also launch the Finder app and choose Go > Applications from the menus (or select the Applications link in the left-hand navigation pane, if it’s visible).
The Mac’s “Finder” is your new “File Explorer”
Finder is the place to manage everything saved locally on your system, and while it can feel different from File Explorer to start with, it doesn’t take long to get used to. Like any other app, you can launch it from Spotlight or the Dock.
By default, there’s a navigation pane on the left that lets you jump to key areas on your system, including the desktop and your Downloads folder (as well as the Applications folder). As normal, the main menus are up at the top, but drop-down menus for controlling the layout of Finder can be found across the top of the current window.
A lot of Finder operations work the same as they do in File Explorer—so drag a file from one window to another to move it between folders, for example. One neat feature in Finder that you don’t get on Windows is Quick Look, which lets you press Space to quickly preview a selected file, without opening it up.
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How to control the settings on your new Mac
There are lots of ways to customize on macOS, and you can get started by opening the Apple menu and choosing System Settings. From here you can manage everything from software updates and Siri access, to wifi connections and battery life (if you’re using a MacBook and not a desktop Mac).
Head to Wallpaper to set your desktop background (you’ll see dynamic backdrops that change over time are supported), Notifications to control how often you’re distracted by app alerts, and Menu Bar to change the elements and shortcuts that appear right at the top of the screen. If you’re wondering about how to tweak something in macOS, you’ll usually find it here.
Options for individual programs are typically handled by clicking on the name of the program on the menu bar (like Chrome or Spotify), then choosing Settings from the menu that appears.
System Settings on macOS.
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Keyboard shortcuts take some getting used to on macOS
Keyboard shortcuts are a crucial part of getting around both Windows and macOS as efficiently as possible, but you’re going to have to retrain your muscle memory when you switch to Apple computers. If you use both Windows and macOS together, like me, you may need to take a second to remember which keys to hit when.
In a lot of cases, you can replace Ctrl on Windows with Cmd (Command) on macOS: Use Cmd+C to copy (instead of Ctrl+C), Cmd+V to paste (instead of Ctrl+V), and Cmd+W to close down browser tabs (instead of Cmd+W), for example.
Sometimes the combination is a little different. If you’re used to using Alt+Tab to cycle around your open apps in Windows, you need to use Cmd+Tab for this on macOS—though you can install a utility to replicate Alt+Tab if you miss it. There are utilities available that can help you learn all the relevant shortcuts you need.
The Apple ecosystem integration is seamless
If you already have an iPhone or iPad to go along with your new Mac, then there are a lot of cool features to explore. As long as your mobile devices and your Mac are using the same Apple Account and signed into the same wifi network, they’ll work together.
There’s a universal clipboard, so you can copy an image on macOS and paste it on iOS. You can also mirror your iPhone screen on the macOS desktop, control an iPad with your Mac’s keyboard and mouse, use your iPhone as a webcam, and even use an iPad as a second screen for your Mac.
If you’re on the Android side of the fence, your phone won’t play quite as nicely with macOS—though Apple Music and Apple TV are available on the Google Play Store. The best ways I’ve found of using Android, macOS, and Windows together involve tools that are cross-platform, including Dropbox, just about everything Google makes, and web apps.
