Change Screen Saver preferences on Mac
On your Mac, use the Screen Saver pane of Desktop & Screen Saver System Preferences to hide the desktop when you’re away from your Mac or if you need extra privacy. Learn how to use the screen saver.
To change these preferences, choose Apple menu 
Open the Screen Saver pane for me
Option | Description |
|---|---|
Show screen saver after | Click the pop-up menu, then choose how long your Mac can be inactive before the screen saver starts. If you don’t want to use a screen saver, deselect the checkbox. A warning symbol indicates if your display is set to turn off (as specified in Energy Saver preferences or Battery preferences) before the screen saver starts. |
List of screen savers | On the left, select a screen saver, such as Floating, Vintage Prints, or Flurry. The small preview on the right shows how it looks. The Album Artwork screen saver is most effective when your Music library contains artwork. |
Options for the selected screen saver | On the right, select options (they vary based on the screen saver you selected).
|
Use random screen saver | Let macOS choose which screen saver to use. |
Show with clock | Display the current time with the screen saver. |
Hot Corners | Start or stop the screen saver when you move the pointer to a screen corner. See Use hot corners. Click the pop-up menu for a corner, then choose Start Screen Saver or Disable Screen Saver. To use a modifier with the hot corner, press and hold the Command, Shift, Option, or Control key, or a combination of these keys, while viewing the pop-up menus. |
Tip: Want to see how a screen saver looks full screen? Select a screen saver from the list, move the pointer over it on the right, then click Preview. To stop the screen saver and return to the preference pane, just move the pointer.