Download Article
Download Article
This article was written by Scott St Gelais and by wikiHow staff writer, Jack Lloyd. Scott St Gelais is an IT Consultant and the Owner of Geeks in Phoenix, Arizona. With over two decades of experience, Scott specializes in computer service and repair, development, computer graphics, and website authoring. Scott received his Technical Associates Degree from High Tech Institute and completed the IT Support Professional Certificate by Google. Geeks in Phoenix is a member of the Microsoft Partner Network and an Intel Technology Provider Gold Partner.
The wikiHow Tech Team also followed the article's instructions and verified that they work.
This article has been viewed 475,436 times.
Did you know you can manually change the font size on your computer? This can be done for app text or even websites in a web browser. You'll just need to adjust your settings or use a keyboard shortcut. Here's how to change the font size on a Windows or Mac computer.
Changing the Text Size on Windows
To increase or decrease the text size in Windows, click the Start menu and select Settings. On Windows 10, click System → Display → Change the size of text drop-down menu. On Windows 11, click Accessibility → Text size → use the slider to adjust the size.
Steps
-
Click Start . The menu will open.
- This method will work on Windows 10 and Windows 11.
-
Advertisement
-
Click System. It's a screen-shaped icon in the upper-left side of the Settings window.
- On Windows 11, click Accessibility.
-
Click Display. This tab is in the left panel. You may already be on this tab.
- On Windows 11, click Text size.
-
Click the "Change the size of text, apps, and other items" drop-down box. You'll find it near the middle of the Settings window. A drop-down menu will open.
- On Windows 11, use the slider next to Text size to increase or decrease the size of your text.
-
Select a size. You can select: 100%, 125%, 150%, and 175%.
- You should see the changes immediately. Some text won't be changed until you restart certain apps or your computer.
- If you want to make everything bigger, including apps and images, choose an option from the drop-down menu under Make everything bigger.
- On Windows 11, click Display and select an option from the Scale drop-down menu.
-
Use Magnifier (optional). Magnifier is a feature which allows you to zoom in to view items on your screen without having to change other settings:
- Press the Windows key and Plus (+) to open Magnifier.
- Click - to zoom out to a maximum of 100%.
- Click + to zoom in to a maximum of 1600%.
- Place the cursor in one of the screen's corners to pan across the screen.
- Press the Windows key + Esc to exit Magnifier.
-
1Click the Apple menu. This is in the top-left corner of the screen.
- This method works for Mac Ventura and newer. If you're using Monterey or older, skip to the last step to learn how to use Mac's "Zoom" feature.
-
2Click System Settings. You can find this in the menu.
-
3Click Accessibility. This is in the left panel. You may need to scroll down to find this option.
-
4Click Display. You can find this on the right side.
-
5Click Text size. This is underneath the Text header.
-
6Drag the slider. To increase the text size, drag the slider towards the right. To decrease the text size, drag the slider towards the left.[1]
- To set the text size for a listed app, click the pop-up menu next to the app and select a size.
-
7Make icons and text bigger (optional). To make everything bigger on the screen, including icons and text, do the following:
- Click the Apple menu.
- Click System Settings.
- Click Displays.
- Select a lower resolution.
-
8Use Mac's "Zoom" feature (optional). Your Mac has an accessibility feature which allows you to zoom in without changing your system settings. You'll just need to enable it first.[2] Do the following:
- Click the Apple menu.
- Click System Settings or System Preferences.
- Click Accessibility.
- Click Zoom.
- Check the Use keyboard shortcuts to zoom box.
- To zoom in, press Option + Command + Equal (=).
- To zoom out, press Option + Command + Minus (-).
- To swap between zoom in/out, press Option + Command + 8.
-
1Open a website in a web browser. You can increase or decrease the text in most web browsers using a keyboard shortcut.
- This method can also work in certain programs, such as Microsoft Word and Pages.
-
2Press Ctrl++ (Windows) or ⌘ Cmd++ (Mac). This will increase the font on the page or program.
-
3Press Ctrl+- (Windows) or ⌘ Cmd+- (Mac). This will decrease the font on the page or program.
- You can also use the scroll wheel on your mouse. While pressing Ctrl or Cmd, scroll up to increase the size, or scroll down to decrease the size.
Community Q&A
-
QuestionHow do you increase the Gmail font size?
Community AnswerClick the button on the right of the blue "send" button. Then click the button that looks like two letter Ts, and you can click on the font. -
QuestionHow do I enlarge the size of the letters on my computer?
Community AnswerGo to control panel, and choose "Ease of Access" on Windows 7. In Windows 8.1 and 10, open your charms panel and type "Ease of Access" into the search box. There will be a number of ways to modify your computer display there. An easy trick is to hold down the CTRL key, and roll your mouse wheel.
Video
Tips
-
Using your computer's Magnifier or Zoom feature is a quick way to enlarge an on-screen item without having to reset the settings for any of your computer's features.Thanks
References
About This Article
1. Click the Start menu and select Settings.
2. Click System.
3. Click Display.
4. Click the drop-down menu for "Change the size of text…"
5. Select a size.
Is this article up to date?
