How do I get started with Radar Mouse?
Radar Mouse lets you choose a vertical scroll direction for each detected mouse or trackpad. It also provides a shortcut to macOS’s built-in trackpad setting on a Mac with a built-in trackpad and a connected mouse.
In this article
Before you start
Radar Mouse requires macOS 26 or later. Have the mouse or trackpad you want to configure connected to your Mac. The controls list detected devices that are connected now; a disconnected device does not have a row you can edit.
Scroll-direction control needs Accessibility permission. The separate Disable trackpad shortcut uses a macOS setting and does not depend on the scrolling permission.
Find and open the controls
- Open Radar Mouse from wherever you keep the installed app.
- Look for its pointer-and-click icon in the menu bar. Radar Mouse has no Dock icon or regular main window.
- Click the menu bar icon normally to open the controls.
- Find your device by name. The internal trackpad is labeled Built-in Trackpad. Other names come from the connected hardware. Mouse rows appear before trackpad rows; devices of the same kind are ordered by name.
- After granting access, use Scroll direction under each device to choose Natural or Reverse.
Click the icon again, click in another app, or press Escape while the panel has focus to close it. Closing the panel leaves Radar Mouse running and keeps its scroll choices in effect.
Right-click the same icon, or hold Control while clicking it, to open the app menu. That menu contains Launch at Login and Quit Radar Mouse. A secondary click closes an open control panel before showing the menu.
If the panel says Connect a mouse or trackpad to set its scroll direction., Radar Mouse has not detected a pointing device. See missing devices.
Why Accessibility access is needed
Radar Mouse needs to read and change scroll events so one device can scroll in the opposite direction from another. Its scroll control listens for scrolling; it does not record scroll activity or send it to a service. Your direction preferences are saved locally.
The current app does not ask for a separate Input Monitoring permission for this feature. See permissions and local settings.
Grant access
- Click Grant Access… in the welcome window or the menu bar panel.
- In the macOS alert, choose Open System Settings.
- Go to Privacy & Security → Accessibility if the pane is not already open.
- Turn on permission for Radar Mouse. Complete any authentication macOS requests.
- Return to Radar Mouse. Allow a few seconds for the app to notice the change.
If Radar Mouse is absent from the list, use the add button in the Accessibility pane and select your installed app. These permission controls are described in Apple’s Accessibility guide.
The scroll controls should become available. Before you customize anything, a device identified as a mouse starts on Reverse and one identified as a trackpad starts on Natural. These choices are relative to macOS’s incoming scrolling: Natural leaves it unchanged; Reverse flips its vertical direction. See setting scroll directions.
What the welcome and permission messages mean
The welcome window appears when Radar Mouse starts without recognized Accessibility access. It is not limited to the first time you install the app. If you close it, Radar Mouse keeps running and the panel still offers Grant Access…. It appears again on a later launch if access is still missing.
Before you click the button, the welcome window says macOS will ask for Accessibility access. After you click, it says Waiting for permission… choose “Open System Settings,” then turn on Radar Mouse. That message means you still need to finish the macOS permission steps.
When the app recognizes access, the welcome window shows You're all set! and closes shortly afterward. The panel’s Grant Accessibility access to control scroll direction banner disappears. These changes confirm that the app recognizes permission; check actual vertical scrolling to confirm the direction you want.
If the banner stays visible or the controls remain dimmed, follow scroll-control troubleshooting.