Set up your Mac
The first time your MacBook Pro starts up, Setup Assistant walks you through the simple steps needed to start using your new Mac. If you want to transfer your data from another computer, see Transfer your data to your new MacBook Pro for details.
![Mac screen with Setup Assistant showing the Welcome screen.](https://help.apple.com/assets/5C8086F909462298767E66E1/5C8086FB09462298767E66F1/en_US/39345a736c7cbe80d2db99c186292b04.png)
Be sure to connect to Wi-Fi, turn on Bluetooth® wireless technology, get an Apple ID, then sign in to iCloud. Activate Siri during setup, if you want. You can also set up Touch ID and Apple Pay.
You can do these steps quickly and easily with Setup Assistant—but if you want to do them later, here’s how:
Choose light or dark appearance. If you want to change the choice you made when you set up your Mac, click the System Preferences icon in the Dock, or choose Apple menu
> System Preferences. Click General, then select Light or Dark for your appearance. You can also set other appearance preferences here.
Connect to Wi-Fi. Click the Wi-Fi status icon in the menu bar, then choose a Wi-Fi network and enter the password, if necessary.
Turn Wi-Fi on or off. Click the Wi-Fi status icon in the menu bar, then choose Turn Wi-Fi On or Turn Wi-Fi Off.
Turn Bluetooth on or off. Click the Bluetooth icon in the menu bar, then choose Turn Bluetooth On or Turn Bluetooth Off.
Tip: If you don’t see the Wi-Fi status icon or Bluetooth icon
in the menu bar, you can add them. For Wi-Fi, choose Apple menu
> System Preferences, then click Network. Click Wi-Fi in the list on the left, then select “Show Wi-Fi status in menu bar.” For Bluetooth, choose Apple menu
> System Preferences, click Bluetooth, then select “Show Bluetooth in menu bar.”
Set up “Hey Siri.” On your MacBook Pro, you can simply say “Hey Siri” to get responses to your requests. To enable this feature in the Siri pane of System Preferences, click “Listen for ‘Hey Siri’,” then speak several Siri commands when prompted.
Get an Apple ID. Your Apple ID is the account you use for everything you do with Apple—including using the App Store, the iTunes Store, iCloud, Messages, and more. Your Apple ID consists of an email address and a password. You need only one Apple ID to use any Apple service, on any device—whether it’s your computer, iOS device, or Apple Watch. It’s best to have your own Apple ID and not share it—create separate Apple IDs for each family member.
If you don’t already have an Apple ID, you can create one (it’s free). Go to the Apple ID account website.
Important: If you forget your Apple ID password, you don’t need to create a new Apple ID. Just click the Forgot link in the login window to retrieve your password.
Set up iCloud on your MacBook Pro. With iCloud, you can store all of your content—documents, movies, music, photos, and more—in the cloud, and access it anywhere you go.
To set up iCloud, choose Apple menu > System Preferences, then click iCloud. In the window that appears, enter your Apple ID and password. Then select the features you want to use. To find out more, see Access your iCloud content on your Mac.
Important: Be sure to use the same Apple ID for iCloud on all your devices.
Set up Siri. You can enable Siri on your MacBook Pro when prompted during setup. To learn how to turn on Siri later and for information about using Siri on your Mac, see Siri on your Mac.
Set up Touch ID. You can add a fingerprint to Touch ID during setup. To set up Touch ID later or to add additional fingerprints, click the System Preferences icon in the Dock, or choose Apple menu
> System Preferences. Then click Touch ID. To add a fingerprint, click
and follow the onscreen instructions.
![The Touch ID preferences window with options for adding a fingerprint and using Touch ID to unlock your Mac, use Apple Pay, and buy from the iTunes Store, App Store, and Apple Books.](https://help.apple.com/assets/5C8086F909462298767E66E1/5C8086FB09462298767E66F1/en_US/41b7fd6f06001db3378d3c7b23af0a70.png)
You can also set options for how you want to use Touch ID on your MacBook Pro: to unlock your Mac instead of entering your password, to use Apple Pay (see Use Apple Pay on your Mac), or to purchase items on the iTunes Store, App Store, and Apple Books.
Tip: If two or more users use the same MacBook Pro, each user can add a fingerprint to Touch ID to quickly unlock, authenticate, and log in to the MacBook Pro. You can add up to three fingerprints per user account, and a total of five fingerprints for all your MacBook Pro user accounts.
See the Apple Support article Use Touch ID on MacBook Pro.
Set up Apple Pay. If you have a MacBook Pro with the Touch Bar, you can set up Apple Pay for one user account on your MacBook Pro during setup. Other users can still pay with Apple Pay, but they must complete the purchase using their iPhone or Apple Watch that’s been set up for Apple Pay (see Use Apple Pay on your Mac for more details). Follow the onscreen prompts to add and verify your card. If you already use a card for iTunes purchases, you might be prompted to verify this card first.
To set up Apple Pay or add additional cards later, click the System Preferences icon in the Dock, or choose Apple menu
> System Preferences. Then click Wallet & Apple Pay and follow the onscreen prompts to set up Apple Pay.
Note: The card issuer determines whether your card is eligible to use with Apple Pay, and may ask you to provide additional information to complete the verification process. Many credit and debit cards can be used with Apple Pay. For information about Apple Pay availability and current credit card issuers, see the Apple Support article Apple Pay participating banks.