How to use a mouse on your iPad

Our guide to help you connect and use a mouse on iPad

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

Apple’siPadhas long taken pride in being many things to many people. It’s a cinema screen, an ereader, and a work device, with plenty more utility depending on which apps you install.

For those of you who want a little more precision than your fingers allow on a touchscreen, who enjoy sitting back while using your iPad on a desk, or who require a pointer for accessibility reasons, iPadOS now supports mouse input.

While the capability was added to an earlier iteration of the system, it had been buried in the settings. The option is now ready for prime time – and it works brilliantly.

Here’s how to connect your mouse to your iPad; these steps will work for external trackpads, too.

What kind of mice connect to an iPad?

While you can connect non-Bluetooth mice to your iPad, doing so will require you to plug in the dongle. If you’re using a mouse with a USB-C dongle on the latest iPads, that’s not a huge issue (just note that you won’t be able to use the port for other things simultaneously).

But if your iPad has a lightning port, you’ll need to find an adapter to convert it. Because of this inconvenience, we’d recommend Bluetooth mice, if possible, which are relatively inexpensive and easy to come by.

What you need

How to connect a mouse to your iPad via dongle

If you have a mouse with a dongle, you can connect it to your iPad just by plugging it in.

Get the best Black Friday deals direct to your inbox, plus news, reviews, and more.

Sign up to be the first to know about unmissable Black Friday deals on top tech, plus get all your favorite TechRadar content.

As noted earlier, USB-A mice require a dongle for use with either a USB-C or Lightning port, depending on your iPad. USB-C mice will work on recent iPads without a dongle.

Once your dongle is plugged in, turn on your mouse and you should see the cursor appear on the screen.

How to connect a Bluetooth mouse to your iPad

It may sound obvious, but always check that your Bluetooth mouse has power. You’ll also need to put the mouse in pairing/discovery mode.

Each mouse manufacturer and model will have its own variation of this type of mode, so be sure to check your manual to find out how to activate pairing mode. For the purposes of this guide, we’ll be using theLogitech MX Master 3mouse.

Once you’ve done that, you’ll be ready to begin.

Troubleshooting and disconnecting your Bluetooth mouse

iPadOS may give a warning about your mouse affecting Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity. This often means you have too many Bluetooth devices connected. Simply tap the “i” icon next to a device you’re not using, and then hit “Forget” to remove the device.

Use this same method to remove the mouse from your iPad.

How to customize your iPad mouse

Now that your iPad mouse is connected, you’re able to tweak what each button does within the iPad’s menu.

Change scroll direction and tracking speed

If your scrolling or tracking doesn’t feel quite right, those can be tweaked in a separate menu.

How to customize your mouse cursor on iPadOS

It’s possible to customize how your mouse’s cursor appears, both by changing the size and the color.

Lloyd Coombes is a freelance tech and fitness writer for TechRadar. He’s an expert in all things Apple as well as Computer and Gaming tech, with previous works published on TopTenReviews, Space.com, and Live Science. You’ll find him regularly testing the latest MacBook or iPhone, but he spends most of his time writing about video games atDexerto.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 Plus review: a performance powerhouse for artists

Amazon is fixing the Kindle Colorsoft ‘yellow band’ issue – and we might know what went wrong

NYT Strands today — hints, answers and spangram for Sunday, November 10 (game #252)