How to Stop Your MacBook From Sleeping When the Lid Is Closed

MacBooks equipped with Apple's own silicon chip are quite powerful. Aside from harnessing that power while on the go, you can also connect them to a monitor at your desk for a desktop-like experience.

One disadvantage of using a Mac with an external monitor is that it goes to sleep when the lid is closed. As a result, you must always keep the lid open or connect your Mac to a charger. Both of these scenarios are undesirable.

If you have this problem on a regular basis, don't worry because there is a simple solution! Here's how to stop your MacBook from sleeping when the lid is closed.

WHY SHOULD YOU KEEP YOUR MAC SLEEPING?

When the Mac is connected to an external monitor, one of the most common use cases for keeping it awake even with the lid closed is to keep it awake. Keeping the MacBook lid open at all times in such a situation can be distracting because you will be looking at two screens. It can also quickly drain the battery.

The second reason for keeping your Mac awake with the lid closed is to download large files. If you're downloading a file that will take several hours to download, it's a good idea to close the lid while keeping it awake so that the download can proceed smoothly.

You can also use this as a simple trick to prevent your Mac from sleeping while it is idle. You don't want your MacBook to go to sleep while you're giving a presentation!

AMPHETAMINE INSTALLATION AND SETUP

Unfortunately, no built-in app or feature on macOS prevents the Mac from sleeping. Amphetamine is a third-party app that can help you achieve this.

It is available for free from the App Store and contains no advertisements. It's small, unobtrusive, and does what it's supposed to do.

Step 1: Download Amphetamine from the App Store on your Mac. Once done, tap on ‘Open.’

Step 2: You will now see a circular icon on your Mac’s menu bar that looks like a pill. Click on it.

Step 3: Hover your mouse over ‘Quick Preferences’ and uncheck the box next to ‘Allow system sleep when display is closed’.

Step 4: This will result in a pop-up requesting that you install the Amphetamine Enhancer. This is a fail-safe app that prevents your Mac from sleeping when the lid is closed. Select 'Get Amphetamine Enhancer.'

Step 5: A browser window will open with some Amphetamine FAQs. Scroll all the way down to the bottom of the page to find the Github link to download Amphetamine Enhancer.

Step 6: To run the downloaded.dmg file, double-click it. The Finder window will now appear. Drag the 'Amphetamine Enhancer.app' icon into the 'Applications' icon to open it. Close the Finder window once you're finished.

Step 7: Open the ‘Applications’ folder on Finder and double-click on Amphetamine Enhancer to run the installer.

Step 8: Click on ‘Open’ when prompted.

Step 9: In the installer window, select ‘Closed-Display Mode Fail-Safe’ in the left column and click on ‘Install.’ Close the installer once done.

Amphetamine is now set up on your MacBook. This is a one-time process.

HOW TO KEEP YOUR MACBOOK AWARENESS WHILE THE LID IS CLOSED

Now that Amphetamine is up and running on your Mac, here's how to keep it from sleeping with the lid closed.

Step 1: Click on the pill-shaped icon on the menu bar to open Amphetamine.

Step 2: Click on ‘Indefinitely’ to start a new session. Your Mac will now stay awake even with the lid closed for an indefinite period until you end the session manually.

Step 3: To end a session, tap on the pill icon again and select ‘End current session’.

Step 4: You can also set the app to run for a specific amount of time. This will keep your Mac awake for the specified amount of time. Instead of 'Indefinitely,' select the appropriate 'Minutes' or 'Hours' option from the menu.

If you chose 'Indefinitely,' make sure to end your session once you've finished using your MacBook. Otherwise, your Mac will not sleep and will completely drain the battery.

HOW TO GET AN AMPHETAMINE SESSION STARTED AT STARTUP

If you want your MacBook to stay awake rather than sleep every time you turn it on, you can set it to start a session each time you log in. Here's how to go about it.

Step 1: Click on the pill-shaped icon on the menu bar to open Amphetamine.

Step 2: Select the ‘Preferences’ option.

Step 3: Check the boxes next to ‘Launch Amphetamine at login,’ ‘Start session when Amphetamine launches,’ and ‘Start session after waking up from sleep.’

Step 4: Close the window, and you’re good to go.

Amphetamine will launch and begin a session every time you turn on your MacBook.

KEEP YOUR MAC AWARENESS

This is how to stop your MacBook from sleeping even when the lid is closed. You can easily connect it to a monitor and download large files in the background overnight. Please share your use case for keeping the MacBook awake in the comments section below.