How to Select Multiple Files on Mac? 5 Methods

| Updated on June 10, 2026

While doing your daily tasks or casually using your Mac, have you ever wanted to select multiple files in the system but were unaware of the keys that can do this action and were cluelessly pressing right-click on a Mac? Well, you are not alone here; it happens with many users, which is why we have listed five easy ways on this page that will help you learn how to select multiple files on Mac. 

How to Select Multiple Files on Mac? 5 Easy Ways

To select multiple files on your MacBook, you have a couple of options, but to make your experience convenient, we have mentioned five systematic methods that work on every iOS generation and can be applied to any folder. Let’s uncover them one by one.  

1. Select Multiple Files With the Command Key

Now the first method, which we are going to use, includes the role of the command key, and it will help you to select orderless files in just a few clicks: 

  • Tap on the file you want to select.
    Select the file
  • Press and hold the Command key on your laptop. 
    Press Command Key
  • Then select all your desired files one by one.
    Select the files you want

2. Select a Range With the Shift Key

Now learning this selection method with the shift key is also very crucial yet feels very easy like copy and paste on Mac, as it involves the combination of your cursor and button. Let’s see how it’s done!

  • Select the file from the top range.
    Select the file from the top range
  • Press the “Shiftkey and select the bottom range of your file. 
    Press the shift key along with selecting the bottom range

3. Select Multiple Ranges

The multiple range selection is a combination method that can be done using the right pattern of Command, Shift, and cursor, and it will help you to select all the scattered files in your folders precisely. 

  • Click on the top range of your files.
    Click on the top range of your file
  • Press the Shift key along with dragging the cursor to the bottom half.
    press shift select the bottom range
  • For picking the second range, press Command and select the top lineup.
    pick the second range by pressing the Command option and select the top lineup
  • After that, click on the bottom half while pressing the Shift key.
    click on the bottom half shift key

Well, selecting all on Mac is a very beneficial feature, as it can reduce the time of your manual selection significantly. Hence, users look for more and more stuff like this to minimize their effort. So if you are one of them, then make sure to subscribe to the GetAssist YouTube channel and press the bell icon for the latest updates.

4. Dragging Rectangle for Selection in Icon View

Next up, we have one of the easiest ways to select all on Mac: drag a rectangle when you view files in icon view, and to do it, things are very simple.

  • Open the files in the Icon view.
    Open the files in Icon Views
  • Drag your cursor by pointing to any file from left to right and select your files.
    Drag your cursor from left to right

5. Select All With Command+A

Lastly, the most used method to select multiple files on Mac is the shortcut consisting of Command+A, and this is how it looks: 

  • Press Command+A on your keyboard.
    Selecting all files using Command A

Conclusion 

Learning how to select multiple files on Mac is very necessary to improve your overall productivity on your system and streamline your MacBook utilities by dropping files to your desired accessibility. The shortest way to select all the files, texts, and photos on a Mac is Command + A, although you can use other methods as per your requirements. 

It also helps to categorize your desktop and scatter all the files into their respective folders and brings a clean Apple ecosystem visualization. For insightful blogs and troubleshooting solutions, follow GetAssist.

FAQ

What’s the easiest way to select multiple files on Mac?

The easiest way to select multiple files on a Mac is Command+A, and it works on icons, files, texts, and everywhere.

What does Ctrl+Shift+T do on Mac?

Ctrl+Shift+T on Mac helps you to reopen the closed tabs in the exact order during emergency shutdowns or error crashes.

How do I select all files in a folder on a Mac?

Doing this is perhaps easy; all you need to do is click near the first item, press and hold the trackpad or mouse button, then drag over all of the items.

Sources


Janvi Panthri

Senior Writer, Editor


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