How to Turn Off Live Text on Mac - MacRumors
Skip to Content

How to Turn Off Live Text on Mac

by

In macOS Monterey, Apple's Live Text feature can automatically recognize text when it appears in an image in Safari, Photos, Preview, Quick Look, and elsewhere, allowing you to copy or share it. If you find this text auto-detection a distraction, and you might prefer to turn it off. This article explains how.

live text macos monterey feature

How to Turn Off Live Text in macOS

  1. Launch System Preferences from your Mac's Dock, from the Applications folder, or from the Apple menu bar ( -> System Preferences...).
  2. Select the Language & Region preference option.
    sys-prefs

  3. In the General tab, uncheck the box next to Live Text: Select Text in Images.
    sys-prefs

After that's done, you'll no longer see the text recognition symbol or the Live Text contextual menu when interacting with images.

If you're wondering how to disable Live Text on iPhone and iPad, be sure to check our dedicated how-to article.

Tag: Live Text

Popular Stories

iPhone 18 Pro Deep Red Feature

iPhone 18 Pro Launching Next Month With These 12 New Features

Thursday August 6, 2026 7:03 am PDT by
It is now August, and that means the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are just a month away. The devices are expected to look similar to the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max, but there will still be many year-over-year changes, with rumored features including a smaller Dynamic Island, 5G via satellite, and more. Apple is expected to unveil the iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max, and a...
Read Full Article • 48 comments
AirPods Ultra Mock

'AirPods Ultra' to Launch as Soon as Next Month

Friday August 7, 2026 10:58 am PDT by
Apple has been planning to release AirPods with cameras as early as this year, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. If so, they could be unveiled as soon as September alongside the iPhone 18 Pro models and the long-rumored foldable iPhone. The earbuds are expected to have a design similar to the AirPods Pro 3, but with tiny cameras. Given the AirPods with cameras will likely be more...
Read Full Article
dopamine

iOS 26 Gets First Jailbreak Thanks to Dopamine

Friday August 7, 2026 1:56 pm PDT by
After 326 days, iOS 26 has received its first jailbreak, thanks to the developers behind the popular Dopamine jailbreak. Lars Fröder, better known as opa334, today released Dopamine 3.0, which adds support for a number of newer firmware versions, including iOS 26.0 and iOS 26.0.1 on devices with A12 or A13 chips. Another major addition in today's release is support for all devices running...
Read Full Article • 64 comments