Use F1–F12 as standard function keys on Mac

On a Mac, the top row of keys controls brightness, volume, and Mission Control by default — pressing F5 dims the keyboard backlight instead of sending a real F5. To flip that, turn on Use F1, F2, etc. keys as standard function keys in Keyboard settings. After that the top row sends F1–F12, and holding Fn gives you the brightness and volume controls when you want them.

Why the top row does two jobs

Every key in that row has two identities: a printed hardware control (a sun for brightness, a speaker for volume) and an underlying function key. Out of the box, macOS treats the hardware control as the default press and hides the function key behind Fn. That's fine until you use software that expects plain F-keys — spreadsheets, editors, remote sessions, games — where every F5 you mean to send instead nudges the volume.

Switching the default doesn't remove anything. It just swaps which identity is primary: F-keys become the plain press, and the media controls move to Fn + the key. Nothing is lost; the two behaviors trade places.

Turn on standard function keys

1. Open System Settings → Keyboard.
2. Click the Keyboard Shortcuts… button.
3. Select Function Keys in the sidebar of the window that opens.
4. Turn on Use F1, F2, etc. keys as standard function keys.

The change takes effect immediately and works the same way on macOS 13 Ventura, 14 Sonoma, and 15 Sequoia. Press F3 now and you send F3; hold Fn and press F3 to trigger Mission Control as before. Every other top-row key follows the same rule.

Remember: Fn does the opposite

This is the part people forget after switching. The Fn key (bottom-left, sometimes labelled with a globe) always inverts the current setting:

• With standard function keys on: F1 sends F1, and Fn+F1 lowers screen brightness.
• With standard function keys off (the default): F1 lowers brightness, and Fn+F1 sends F1.

So you never truly lose the media controls — they're one modifier away. If you only need real F-keys occasionally, you can skip changing the setting entirely and just hold Fn for a one-off F-key press.

Do it from Terminal

The same preference is a global default you can set from the command line:

# Make F1-F12 the standard, plain-press behavior
defaults write NSGlobalDomain com.apple.keyboard.fnState -bool true

To go back to media controls as the default, write false or delete the key:

# Undo: media keys as the default again
defaults write NSGlobalDomain com.apple.keyboard.fnState -bool false
# or remove the key entirely
defaults delete NSGlobalDomain com.apple.keyboard.fnState

The System Settings toggle applies right away; the Terminal route may need you to log out and back in (or restart) before the new default registers. On MacBook Pro models with a Touch Bar, the equivalent option lives in the same Keyboard settings, since those machines draw the F-key row on the Touch Bar itself.

Where to go next

If you also want to remap what individual keys do, see how function keys work on Mac for assigning apps and actions to the row once it sends real F-keys.