How to Fix Customize Automatic Sleep Time of Your Mac

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Customizing the automatic sleep time on your Mac is a straightforward process that allows you to tailor your computer's energy-saving settings to your needs. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you adjust these settings effectively.

Changing Sleep Time Settings

To adjust the sleep time settings on your Mac, follow these steps:

For Mac Laptops (macOS Big Sur and Later)

  1. Open System Preferences:
    • Click the Apple icon in the upper-left corner of your screen and select System Preferences.
  2. Select Battery:
    • Choose the Battery preference pane.
  3. Adjust Sleep Time:
    • In the Battery tab, use the Turn display off after slider to set how long your MacBook should wait before putting the display to sleep. You can choose between one minute and three hours, or select Never to prevent the display from sleeping.
  4. Additional Settings:
    • Below the slider, you can set additional sleep-related settings such as Slightly dim the display when on battery power and Enable Power Nap while on battery power.

For Mac Desktops (iMac, Mac mini, Mac Pro)

  1. Open System Preferences:
    • Click the Apple icon in the upper-left corner of your screen and select System Preferences.
  2. Select Energy Saver:
    • Choose the Energy Saver preference pane.
  3. Adjust Sleep Time:
    • Drag the slider next to Turn display off after to change the sleep time. You can choose between one minute and three hours.

For macOS Ventura and Later

  1. Open System Settings:
    • Click the Apple icon in the upper-left corner of your screen and select System Settings.
  2. Select Lock Screen or Battery:
    • For laptops, select Battery from the sidebar. For desktops, select Energy Saver.
  3. Adjust Sleep Time:
    • Click the pop-up menu next to Turn display off on battery when inactive or Turn display off on power adapter when inactive and choose your preferred time.

Additional Sleep and Wake Settings

Preventing Automatic Sleep

  • On Battery:
    • In the Battery settings, you can check the box next to Prevent computer from sleeping automatically when the display is off to prevent your MacBook from sleeping when the lid is closed.
  • On Power Adapter:
    • In the Power Adapter tab, check the box next to Prevent automatic sleeping on power adapter when the display is off to prevent your Mac from sleeping when it is plugged in and the display is off.

Enabling Power Nap

  • On Battery and Power Adapter:
    • Enable Power Nap to allow your Mac to wake from sleep to perform tasks such as checking for new emails. This can be set separately for when your Mac is on battery and when it is plugged into a power adapter.

Wake for Network Access

  • On Battery and Power Adapter:
    • In the Battery or Energy Saver settings, you can enable Wake for network access to allow your Mac to wake up when your Wi-Fi turns on or when an app requests access to the internet.

Scheduling Sleep and Wake Times

For macOS Monterey and Earlier

  1. Open System Preferences:
    • Click the Apple icon in the upper-left corner of your screen and select System Preferences.
  2. Select Energy Saver or Battery:
    • Choose the Energy Saver preference pane for desktops or Battery for laptops.
  3. Click Schedule:
    • Click the Schedule button at the bottom right of the window.
  4. Set Sleep and Wake Times:
    • Check the box marked Sleep to set a time for your Mac to go to sleep. You can also set a wake time by checking the box marked Start up or wake. Choose the specific days and times from the drop-down menus.

For macOS Ventura and Later

Since the Schedule tab is no longer available in macOS Ventura, you can use the Terminal to schedule sleep and wake times:

  1. Open Terminal:
    • Go to Applications > Utilities and open Terminal.
  2. Enter Command:
    • Type the following command to put your Mac to sleep after a set amount of time: 
      sudo shutdown -s +minutes

      Replace minutes with the number of minutes you want to set the timer for. For example, to put your Mac to sleep after 10 minutes:

      sudo shutdown -s +10

      You will need to enter an administrator’s password to confirm the command.

Using Terminal for Custom Sleep Settings

If you prefer to use Terminal for more precise control over your Mac's sleep settings, you can do so as follows:

  1. Open Terminal:
    • Go to Applications > Utilities and open Terminal.
  2. Set Computer Sleep Time:
    • Type the following command to set the computer sleep time: 
      sudo systemsetup -setcomputersleep minutes

      Replace minutes with the number of minutes you want to set the timer for. For example, to extend the time before your Mac sleeps to 60 minutes:

      sudo systemsetup -setcomputersleep 60

      You will need to enter an administrator’s password to confirm the command.

By following these steps, you can customize your Mac's sleep settings to better suit your needs and preferences.

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