How to Fullscreen a Game: Tips & Tricks for Windows 10/11 & macOS

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Easy-to-follow steps for turning a Windows or Mac game into full-screen mode

Co-authored by Darlene Antonelli, MA Reviewed by Stan Kats

Last Updated: September 5, 2023 Fact Checked

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Entering Full-Screen in Windows

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Entering Full-Screen on a Mac

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Troubleshooting

Do the games you open on your computer not open in full-screen mode? While a keyboard shortcut can be the easiest solution, you may need to take a few more steps to figure out how to get your game to fill the screen.

Things You Should Know

First try pressing "Alt + Enter," then use the in-game menu to enter full-screen.
On a Mac, use the green button in the top left corner of the window or try a shortcut like "Command + Control + F" or "Fn + F."
If your game won't fill the screen, try some troubleshooting steps.
Change the Display Scale of your display since percentages greater than 100% may prevent your games from playing in Full-Screen Mode.

Section 1 of 3:

Entering Full-Screen in Windows

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Press Alt + ↵ Enter . Pressing those keys together should maximize your game window to fill the screen. ^{[1]
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- Alternatively, press Esc to minimize the game.
For games that don't recognize the keyboard shortcut, you need to navigate through the in-game menu for a "Display/Graphics" option. From there, you'll see "Display Mode" options listing Windowed or Full-Screen. Select Full-Screen.

Section 2 of 3:

Entering Full-Screen on a Mac

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It's in the top left corner of all Mac windowed screens and will cause the window to fill the screen. ^{[2]
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Try a keyboard shortcut. Unfortunately, the keyboard shortcut for entering full screen mode on Mac is not standardized across all apps. However, a few common options that may work include control + command + F , Fn + F , and command + return .
- If none of those work, you can also open the View menu at the top of the screen and select Enter Full Screen . You will usually see the keyboard shortcut for the app you're using listed next to that option.

Section 3 of 3:

Troubleshooting

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Change the Display Scale. To do this, press Win + I then click System > Display . Click the drop-down menu under "Scale/Scale and layout" and select "100%."
- For Mac, go to System Settings > Display . ^{[3]
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While this setting sounds like it should help you, it could be bugged and prevent you from opening your game in full-screen mode. To turn this off for PC, right-click on your game's icon and select Properties > Compatibility > Disable fullscreen optimizations > Apply > OK .
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Switch your main screen. If you're using dual monitors, this may help! If you're not using dual monitors, skip this step.
- Right-click a blank spot on your desktop and select Display settings > Identify and switch the main display from the current monitor to another one.
- You can also use this fix for Macs. To switch your display, go to System Settings > Display .
To do this, right-click the game's shortcut on your desktop and select Properties > Compatibility > Run this program in compatibility mode for and select an older version of Windows. Finally, select Apply > Ok .
Sometimes, apps with overlays can prevent your game from opening in full-screen. This includes programs with overlays like Discord , Steam, and GeForce Experience .
Last, but not least, you can try a few other things to see if you can get your game into Full-Screen Mode. Update your graphics drivers using Device Manager or right-click and select Run game as administrator .