How to Customize Control Center and the Menu Bar on Mac

You want quicker access to settings like Wi-Fi, Focus, or screen mirroring — either by tidying up Control Center or by pinning the ones you use most to the menu bar.

Why: Control Center holds your common controls in one panel, and the menu bar shows the ones you reach for constantly. Both are fully customizable, so you can add what you use, remove what you don’t, and keep the menu bar from getting cluttered.

Fix 1: Open and expand Control Center

1. Click the Control Center icon in the menu bar (top-right of the screen).
2. Click a control — or its arrow — to expand it. For example, click Focus to see your Focus list and switch one on or off, or click Screen Mirroring to pick a display.

This is also the fastest way to reach Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Sound, Display brightness, and Now Playing without opening System Settings.

Fix 2: Add, remove, or rearrange controls

1. Click the Control Center icon, then click Edit Controls at the bottom.
2. Drag controls from the Controls Gallery into Control Center to add them, drag them off to remove them, or drag within the panel to reorder.
3. To pin a control you use a lot, Control-click it and choose Add to Menu Bar (or Copy to Menu Bar).

You can add extras like Accessibility Shortcuts, Battery, and Fast User Switching this way.

Fix 3: Add or remove menu bar items in System Settings

For finer control — including system items like Clock, Siri, Spotlight, and Weather — use the dedicated pane.

1. Open Apple menu > System Settings, then click Menu Bar in the sidebar (scroll down if needed).
2. Select an item to show it in the menu bar, or deselect it to hide it.
3. For some items, click the pop-up menu beside them and choose Always Show or Show When Active (the icon only appears while the item is in use).

You can also drag items straight onto the menu bar from Control Center while editing, as in Fix 2.

FAQ

What’s the difference between Control Center and the menu bar? Control Center is a panel of controls you open from one icon; the menu bar shows individual icons all the time. Put rarely used controls in Control Center and frequently used ones in the menu bar.

Can I remove the clock or battery from the menu bar? Yes. Open System Settings > Menu Bar (or Control Center) and turn off or change how those items appear.

How do I get an icon out of the menu bar quickly? Hold Command and drag the icon off the menu bar, or deselect it in System Settings > Menu Bar.

Sources: Apple Support — Use Control Center on Mac · Apple Support — Customize the menu bar on Mac