How to turn on the develop menu in Safari on Mac: steps for macOS 27

The Develop menu is a set of developer tools built into desktop Safari. It holds Web Inspector, the JavaScript console, page source, responsive design mode, and a few other items. Apple describes it as the place to check that a site works across standards-based browsers. You may need it for one task only, so this page covers the steps and what each part does.

The change takes about a minute. You make it in Safari's own Settings window, not in System Settings on your Mac. The steps use the wording in Apple's current Safari help. Older guides use different names, and a later section explains them.

Where the Develop menu appears in the menu bar

Once the box is ticked, the Develop menu joins the menu bar at the top of the screen. It sits between Bookmarks and Window, according to How-To Geek's walkthrough. Say you are checking a contact form on a client's site. Open the page, click Develop, and choose Enter Responsive Design Mode to see the form at other widths.

What the Advanced checkbox turns on in Safari Settings

The checkbox does more than add one menu. Apple's description of the Advanced settings says it shows the Develop menu and also shows Developer and Feature Flags settings in Safari Settings. So one tick gives you three things: the menu, the Developer pane, and the Feature Flags pane.

The Developer pane holds newer switches. WebKit's notes for Safari 27.0 point to a remote automation option there, labeled Allow remote automation and external agents. WebKit uses that switch for the Safari MCP server, which connects outside tools to Safari. If you do not run such a tool, leave that option alone.

What is inside the Develop menu

An older Apple guide lists the items below. Your menu may show a different set in newer Safari, so compare it with what you see on your screen.

• Show Web Inspector, for the HTML, CSS, and scripts behind a page
• Show JavaScript Console, for errors and log messages from scripts
• Show Page Source, for the raw code the browser received
• Enter Responsive Design Mode, to test narrow and wide layouts
• Empty Caches, to clear cached files for the current page
• Disable JavaScript, to see a page without its scripts
• Allow Remote Automation, for test tools that drive Safari
• Get Safari Technology Preview, to open Apple's test build of Safari

Use Show Web Inspector to check a page

Open the page you want to check first. Then choose Develop > Show Web Inspector. The inspector panel opens beside the page. Use the Elements view to read the page structure and the Console view to read errors. Those views are where most first checks start.

You can skip the menu. Right-click any element on the page and choose Inspect Element. WebKit's guide lists that route as the other way in, and it works on the same element.

Shortcut keys for these items can change between Safari versions. The shortcuts for Web Inspector and the console appear only in retired Apple material and a 2021 how-to. Read the key from the menu itself before you rely on it.

Older Safari versions use Preferences and different wording

Apple's current Advanced settings page says choose Safari > Settings. It never uses the word Preferences. The older Apple guide still says Preferences and Show Develop menu in menu bar. The setting is the same. Only the names changed.

If you run an older Safari, follow the older wording. If your guide says Preferences but your menu says Settings, trust your screen. The names in your own menus are the ones to match, not the names in an article.

Safari Develop menu missing after an update

Start with the Advanced tab. The Develop menu appears only when Show features for web developers is ticked, so check that first. Tick it, then look at the menu bar again.

If the Developer pane is also missing, WebKit's Safari 27.0 notes give the same fix. Open Advanced and enable Show features for web developers. That one box controls the menu and both extra panes, so you do not need a second setting.

Turn on Web Inspector on iPhone and iPad

The Develop menu exists only in desktop Safari. On an iPhone or iPad, you turn on Web Inspector instead. Open Settings, tap Safari, tap Advanced, and turn on Web Inspector.

Once it is on, a connected iPhone or iPad appears as a submenu in the Mac's Develop menu. Connect the device to the Mac, then open Develop and look for the device name. That is how you inspect a page on the phone from the Mac.

Who needs the Develop menu on a Mac

Apple ties the Develop menu to checking sites across browsers. That makes it a web developer's tool first. If you read news, answer email, or shop in Safari, you probably never need it. Leaving the box clear costs you nothing.

Say you run a small shop site. A new banner looks fine in Safari but breaks in Chrome. Turning on the Develop menu lets you open the inspector and find the broken element in Safari. You still need Chrome's own tools to test there.

Safari is not the most used desktop browser. StatCounter's October 2026 table puts Chrome at 66.98% of worldwide desktop use, with Safari at 7.83%. That gap is one reason to test in more than one browser.

macOS 27 Golden Gate and Apple silicon Macs

macOS 27 Golden Gate arrived on September 14, 2026, according to MacRumors. It runs only on Macs with Apple silicon chips. Intel Macs cannot install it, so they stay on an earlier macOS with an earlier Safari.

Check your version before you follow a guide. The wording has changed across releases, and a guide written for one release may not match your screen. Match the menu names you see, not the names in the article you are reading.

Common mistakes with the Develop menu

• Opening System Settings instead of Safari > Settings. The Advanced tab lives in Safari's own Settings window.
• Ticking the box, then looking for the menu in Chrome or Firefox. Only Safari gets it.
• Following a Preferences guide in a current release and searching for a button that moved.
• Copying a shortcut from an old list without checking the menu first.
• Turning on remote automation without knowing what it allows outside tools to do.

How to hide the Develop menu again

Open Safari > Settings > Advanced and clear Show features for web developers. The Develop menu leaves the menu bar. The Developer and Feature Flags panes should disappear too, because Apple ties them to the same box.

Next steps after the Develop menu is on

Open the page you want to test and choose Develop > Enter Responsive Design Mode. Drag the window edge to see how the layout reflows at each width. Then open Show Web Inspector to read any errors the page logs.

Keep a note of the exact menu names you use. A later Safari update may move a setting, and a written path saves time when it does.