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How to keep natural scrolling on the trackpad but not the mouse on a Mac

By Aqib Javed · Updated Oct 9, 2026

macOS has a single Natural scrolling setting that the trackpad and the mouse share: the switch appears in both the Trackpad and Mouse settings, and changing one changes the other. To scroll naturally on the trackpad and the classic way on a mouse at the same time, you need a small app that flips only the mouse's scrolling, such as Scrollwise, which is free.

Why the trackpad and mouse share one setting

Open System Settings and you will find a Natural scrolling switch under Trackpad and another under Mouse. They look separate, but they are the same setting underneath. Turn it off for the mouse and the trackpad follows.

That suits people who only use one of the two. If you use a MacBook trackpad and a wheel mouse at a desk, one of them always scrolls the wrong way for you. The Terminal command people often suggest (defaults write -g com.apple.swipescrolldirection) changes the same shared setting, so it can't split them either.

Your options

  • Switch the setting by hand every time you change device. It works, but it's easy to forget, and you will scroll the wrong way first.
  • Use an app that reverses only the mouse wheel. Scrollwise does this per device, Magic Mouse included. Other free options people use are UnnaturalScrollWheels and Mos, and Karabiner-Elements has a Flip mouse vertical wheel option per device.

How to set it up with Scrollwise

  1. Download Scrollwise from its page, unzip it, and drag it into your Applications folder. It is free and notarized by Apple.
  2. Open it and allow Accessibility access when asked. macOS only lets approved apps adjust scroll events.
  3. Leave the macOS Natural scrolling switch as it is. Scrollwise works on top of it.
  4. Click the Scrollwise icon in the menu bar and pick Natural or Standard for the trackpad and for your mouse. Each device you have connected shows up separately.
  5. Scroll with the trackpad, then the mouse. The live readout at the top shows which device it saw and whether it flipped the scroll.

What about the Magic Mouse?

Apple's Magic Mouse has a touch surface instead of a wheel, so many scroll fixers treat it like a trackpad and leave it alone. Scrollwise recognises every Magic Mouse, the original and Magic Mouse 2, even renamed ones, and gives it its own natural or standard choice. The glide after you lift your finger keeps the direction you picked.

Questions

Can macOS set the scroll direction separately for the trackpad and the mouse?

No. The Trackpad and Mouse settings show the same Natural scrolling switch, so changing one changes both. Separate directions need a third-party app such as Scrollwise.

Does Scrollwise slow down scrolling or read what I type?

No. It only looks at scroll and touch events, never keystrokes, and its only network request is a check for new versions.

Which macOS versions does Scrollwise support?

macOS 14 Sonoma or later, on Apple silicon and Intel Macs.