Not every Mac user will use the Handoff feature or want to keep it enabled, particularly if you share a Mac with a single login with other devices in the same household, then you may find Handoff to be unnecessary or unwanted as the little Handoff app resume icon appears in the Dock.

Modern versions of Mac OS default to having Handoff enabled as part of the iCloud and Continuity suite, but if you’re not interested in using Handoff or don’t want it on for some other reason, then you will find it’s very easy to disable Handoff on the Mac. When you disable Handoff on Mac OS, you will no longer see any Handoff icons showing up in the far left side of the Dock when other iCloud devices have app sessions to resume or send to the Mac. Additionally, turning off Handoff on the Mac will lose a few other Continuity features too, but if you’re not using them then you likely won’t miss that.

How to Disable Handoff on a Mac

Go to the  Apple menu and choose “System Preferences” and then go to the “General” preference panel Near the bottom of the General preferences in Mac OS, look for “Allow Handoff between this Mac and other iCloud devices” and uncheck the box to disable Handoff

That’s it, there is no need to disable Handoff on other iOS devices or Macs if you simply don’t want them sharing Handoff app sessions with that particular Mac, though if you want to stop the feature completely then you’d want to repeat the disable process on other devices too.

While Handoff is excellent in that it lets users transfer and resume sessions within applications between one Mac and other Macs or iOS devices connected through iCloud, if you don’t use it then you might just want to disable the feature. It’s also really easy to turn back on again, so if you change your mind you can simply reverse the setting and use Handoff as you normally would.

Keep in mind that by disabling Handoff you will also lose access to Universal Clipboard between a Mac and iOS device and obviously the ability to resume Handoff sessions in iOS as well.

If you’re simply disabling Handoff because you aren’t sure how to use it with your Mac and another Mac, iPhone, or iPad, you might want to take the time to learn how to enable and use Handoff on a Mac and iOS, you will find that it’s a great feature that can get a lot of usage, making transitions between working on an iPhone and iPad devices and a Mac much more seamless.