Mac Dock keeps moving to the other monitor? How to keep it on one screen

Applies to macOS 14, 15, 26 and 27Reviewed 2 November 2026Tested on macOS 27.2 and Tahoe 26.6.22 min read

Short answer

This isn't a bug. With more than one display, macOS moves the Dock to whichever screen you push the pointer against at the Dock's edge. With the Dock at the bottom, if your pointer rests at the bottom of the second screen for a moment, perhaps while reaching for a scroll bar or a tab, the Dock jumps there.

Fix 1: Move the Dock to the left or right side

This is the simplest fix. When the Dock sits on the left or right, it can only appear on the outer edge of your whole display arrangement. That's one place, so it stops jumping.

Open System Settings › Desktop & Dock.
Set Dock position on screen to Left or Right.

Dock settings in Desktop & Dock — macOS 27.2: Dock position on screen and the other Dock settings.

Pick the side whose outer edge belongs to the screen you want the Dock on. For example, if your laptop is on the left of your monitor, choosing Left keeps the Dock on the laptop.

Fix 2: Turn off separate Spaces for each display

When displays don't have separate Spaces, the Dock and menu bar stay on your main display.

Open System Settings › Desktop & Dock and scroll to Mission Control.
Turn off Displays have separate Spaces.
Log out and back in for the change to take effect.

The trade-off: your other screens lose their own menu bar, and a full-screen app turns the other displays blank. If you use full-screen apps a lot, Fix 1 is the better choice.

Fix 3: Choose the right main display

If the Dock keeps returning to the wrong screen after you log in or wake the Mac, that screen is probably set as your main display.

Open System Settings › Displays.
Select the screen you want as your main one and set Use as to Main display. Or click Arrange… and drag the white menu bar strip onto that screen.

Move the Dock to another screen on purpose

To send the Dock to a different screen, move the pointer to the bottom edge of that screen (or the side, if your Dock is on a side) and keep pushing for a moment. The Dock slides over. This only works while Displays have separate Spaces is on.

Still jumping?

Autohide makes it worse. With Automatically hide and show the Dock on, every brush against the bottom edge counts. Turning autohide off reduces accidental jumps.
Displays stacked vertically. If one screen sits above the other, the bottom edge of the top screen isn't an outer edge, so arrange them side by side or put the Dock on a side.
Restart the Dock. If it gets stuck on the wrong screen, run this in Terminal. It only restarts the Dock and keeps your settings.

killall Dock

Other apps that can help

You don’t need any of these for the steps above. They go further in different ways, so pick what fits how you work.

App	What it does	Price
uBar	Replaces the Dock with a Windows-style taskbar	Paid
DockDoor	Window previews when you hover Dock icons	Free, open source
BetterDisplay	Manage displays, resolutions and the main display	Free, Pro paid
Hammerspoon	Script windows, Spaces and hot corners with Lua	Free, open source
Mission Boost Made by us	Close, minimize and quit windows inside Mission Control, plus side-by-side layouts from there	€9 once, free trial

Sources and further reading

Use multiple displays and arrange them · Apple Support
Work in multiple Spaces on Mac · Apple Support