How to Fix macOS Search Not Working： Troubleshooting Guide

Hey there! So ya got trouble with that Mac search thing, eh? Seems like sometimes, ya type a word in, hit the button, and nothin’ comes up. Or maybe it just sits there, spinnin’ like it’s got all day. Well, don’t you worry now, ol’ gal here’s gonna show ya a few tricks to get that search workin’ like it should.

How to Fix macOS Search Not Working： Troubleshooting Guide

1. First Things First: Quit Finder and Start It Again

Now, this here Finder thing is like the ol’ trusty cupboard you got in the kitchen – keeps all the stuff sorted out nice and neat. But sometimes, it gets a bit stuck, like when the drawer jams. So, what ya gotta do is give it a little push to reset it, see?

Go up to that Apple logo in the top corner, give it a click. Then look for somethin’ that says “Force Quit Finder”. That’s right! Once you click that, Finder’s gonna close, but don’t worry, it’ll open back up again like new. Then try that search again, see if it found its way.

2. Rebuild That Spotlight Index

Now, Spotlight’s like the ol’ searchin’ flashlight. If it’s not workin’ right, ya gotta reset where it’s lookin’, kinda like tellin’ it where ya keep the good china. Go to your Apple menu, pick System Preferences, and then find Spotlight.

Once you’re in Spotlight, go to the Privacy tab.
Drag over any folders or drives you wanna re-index.

Then, after a little bit, take ’em back out of that list, and it’ll start searchin’ again all proper-like. Give it a moment, though; it needs some time to get back on track.

3. Check Activity Monitor for Hogs

Alright, sometimes the problem ain’t just the search itself. It could be other things runnin’ on that Mac, hoggin’ up all the space like a freeloadin’ guest. Open Activity Monitor – that’s kinda like a list of all the folks hangin’ around on your computer.

Look at the CPU and Memory tabs to see if anything’s takin’ up too much space or actin’ up.
If ya see somethin’ that’s suckin’ up the juice, go ahead and give it the boot!

Sometimes, after ya kick out the hogs, your Spotlight search starts runnin’ smoother than a buttered pan.

4. Update macOS

If it’s been a while since you gave your Mac a good ol’ update, it might be time. Those updates fix bugs and keep things runnin’ like they should. Go up to the Apple menu, click on System Preferences, then pick Software Update. Just follow the steps from there, and let it do its thing.

5. Last Ditch Effort: Reset All Spotlight Settings

If all else fails, well, we’re goin’ nuclear! Sometimes, ya just gotta start fresh. Open up your Terminal (don’t worry, it’s nothin’ scary). Then type this here command:

sudo mdutil -E /

Once ya hit Enter, it’ll ask ya for the password ya use to log into your Mac. Type it in (even if ya can’t see it on screen, it’s there!). This is just gonna reset the whole Spotlight thing. Let it do its thing, and after a bit, try searchin’ again.

Conclusion

So, there ya go. Try each of these tricks one by one, and with a little luck, that Spotlight search’ll be back workin’ like it was brand new. Just remember, it’s like findin’ that ol’ recipe book ya put away years ago – sometimes ya just gotta do a little diggin’ to get things back in order.