Enable macOS Console logging

Use macOS Console to follow BetterDisplay's diagnostic messages in the system log. This article is about Apple's Console app in Applications > Utilities, separate from BetterDisplay's built-in Show Console window. The same BetterDisplay logging is also visible in the built-in app console, which is the simplest way to check logs.

The simplest option: the built-in app console

Choose App Menu > Tools > Show Console and enable Logging. Reproduce the behavior you want to investigate, then select and copy the relevant output. You do not need to launch BetterDisplay from Terminal or configure macOS Console filters for this method.

The App console tutorial explains how to collect a focused diagnostic report. The illustrated Console interface reference covers the Logging switch, retained output and clearing. The app keeps a bounded in-memory log buffer, so copy important details before older entries are trimmed.

Follow messages in macOS Console

macOS Console is useful when you want to inspect BetterDisplay's messages alongside other system activity.

  1. Open Applications > Utilities > Console and select your Mac in the sidebar.
  2. Enable Action > Include Info Messages so BetterDisplay's informational messages are visible.
  3. Add separate search filters for Process with the value BetterDisplay and Message Type with the value info. After entering each value, choose the corresponding search property; a plain text search is different from a Process filter.
  4. For the focused filter used in the original logging instructions, add Category with the value missing. If this hides the messages you expect, remove that filter and keep the Process and Message Type filters.
  5. Click Start to begin collecting live messages and enable Now to follow incoming messages. Reproduce the behavior in BetterDisplay and inspect the new entries.

These filters belong to macOS Console. The Logging switch in BetterDisplay only changes what its own console displays; you do not need to enable it to view messages in macOS Console. Apple's Console search guide explains how to select and combine search properties.

Launch BetterDisplay with Terminal log output

For diagnostic output in Terminal, quit the running BetterDisplay app first, then launch its executable with an absolute path:

/Applications/BetterDisplay.app/Contents/MacOS/BetterDisplay -v

Adjust the path if you installed the app elsewhere. This starts BetterDisplay and writes logs to standard output (stdout) in that Terminal session.

To keep diagnostic logging separate from command results, send logs to standard error (stderr) instead:

/Applications/BetterDisplay.app/Contents/MacOS/BetterDisplay -v2e

These are launch options for the app executable. Enter them in Terminal, rather than at the built-in app console's command prompt. See CLI examples for integration commands and the Integration overview for executable and companion-tool access.

Additional information

This section explains licensing and platform requirements.

Features requiring Pro license

Viewing diagnostic logs through any of these methods does not require Pro.

Platform compatibility

All features described on this page are available on both Apple silicon and Intel Macs.