How To Get the Search Bar Back on Mac

Have you hidden or removed the search bar or search engine toolbar on your Mac but cannot get it to show up again? Don’t panic; you can solve this issue without breaking a sweat.  

To make things easier for you, we have written a comprehensive step-by-step guide on how to get the search bar back on Mac with instructions. We will also discuss moving or hiding the macOS search bar.

Getting the Search Bar Back on Mac

If you don’t know how to get the search bar back on Mac, our following 4 step-by-step methods will help you accomplish this task easily.

Method #1: Using Toolbar

You can enable the search bar using the toolbar on your Mac in the following way.

1. Open Safari.
2. Place the cursor on the toolbar.
3. Right-click “Customize Toolbar…”
   
4. Click the “+” button under “…or drag the default set into the toolbar”.
5. Go to the “View” drop-down menu.
6. Click “Show the Toolbar”.

The search bar will be on your browser, and you’re done!

Method #2: Unhiding Toolbar

If the toolbar with the search functionality is hidden on Safari, you can activate it with these steps.

1. Launch Safari.
2. Click “View” in the menu bar.
3. Select “Show Toolbar”.
   

Method #3: Using Spotlight

Another way to bring the search bar back on your Mac is by using Spotlight or magnifying glass icon with these steps.

1. Click the Spotlight icon in the upper right corner of the Mac screen.
2. Press and hold the Command, “⌘”, or “cmd” key.
3. Press the space key.

The search bar will now appear, and you can type your desired query.

Method #4: Using Full Screen

It is possible to see the search bar again in Full-Screen mode on your Mac.

1. Open Safari.
2. Click “View”.
3. Select the first option, which is “Always Show Toolbar in Full Screen”.

You can now see the search bar while using Full-Screen mode on your Mac!

Moving the Search Bar on Mac

If you don’t like the default placement of the search bar after enabling it back on your Mac, you can change it in the following way.

1. Hover over the Spotlight search bar using the cursor. 
2. Click and hold for a few seconds.
3. Drag the search bar to the desired place on the browser where it is convenient to access.

Hiding the Search Bar on Mac

Try the following methods if you want to hide the search bar again after getting it back on your Mac.

Method #1: Customizing Toolbar

You can hide the search bar by customizing the Safari Toolbar on Mac by following these simple steps.

1. Open Safari.
2. Right-click the search bar.
3. Click “Customize Toolbar”.
   
4. Drag the search bar out of the Safari window.
5. Click “Done” to save changes, and the search bar will disappear on your Mac.

Method #2: Using Finder

It is possible to hide the search bar by using Finder in the following way.

1. Click Finder.
2. Click “File”.
3. Select “New Finder Window” from the drop-down menu.
4. Right-click the search bar.
5. Click “Customize Toolbar”.
6. Drag the search bar out of the Finder window and click “Done” to delete/hide the search bar.

Method #3: Using Full Screen

You can hide the search bar in Full-Screen mode with these quick steps.

1. Press “Ctrl-⌘-F” to enter full screen.
2. Right-click the address bar.
3. Click “Hide Toolbar”.

The above method will temporarily hide the search bar, and it will be back when you enter the Full-Screen mode next time.

Summary

In this guide, we have discussed how to get the search bar back on your Mac. We have also discussed moving and hiding the search bar on purpose.

Hopefully, your question has been answered, and you can now access the search bar and browse the web quickly on Mac.

Frequently Asked Questions