How to remove black horizontal lines appearing on the screen of MacBook Pro

It's possible that your MacBook Pro is experiencing a hardware issue with the display or the graphics card. The black lines on the screen could be caused by a variety of factors, such as a loose connection or a malfunctioning component.

To troubleshoot the issue, you can try a few steps:

1. Reset the PRAM and SMC. This can help resolve some display issues. Here's how to do it:

- Shut down your MacBook Pro.

- Hold down the Command + Option + P + R keys together.

- Turn on your MacBook Pro and keep holding the keys until you hear the startup sound twice.

- Release the keys and let your MacBook Pro start up normally.

2. Boot your MacBook Pro in safe mode. This will load only the basic system files and drivers, which can help determine if the issue is software-related. Here's how to do it:

- Shut down your MacBook Pro.

- Press the power button to turn on your MacBook Pro.

- Immediately hold down the Shift key.

- Release the Shift key when you see the Apple logo.

3. Connect your MacBook Pro to an external display. This can help determine if the issue is with the display or the graphics card. If the external display works fine, then the problem is likely with the MacBook Pro's display. If the external display also shows the black lines, then the issue may be with the graphics card.

If none of these steps resolve the issue, it's recommended to take your MacBook Pro to an authorized Apple service provider or Apple store for further diagnosis and repair.

Hi all, I know I'm a little late to the game on this, but I wanted to provide some hopefully "helpful" input on this.

I experienced this issue in February of 2025: 2019 16" A2141 with i9/64GB RAM/8GB GPU/2TB SSD.

A lot of the research I did concluded (in the majority) that the display itself (and the internal electronics behind the retina display) was faulty. So I took the plunge, and bought a mint condition A2141 16" laptop from a business that sells off-lease laptops for $520 to do the repair/swap myself. Why not just move over to the new one? Because the "spare for parts" Macbook was an i7 with 16GB RAM and 512GB SSD.

I was hesitant, but followed a great YouTube video on how to replace the screen (Look up this title in YouTube by TekDep: "Cracked Screen? No Problem! MacBook Pro 16" A2141 LCD Assembly Replacement How to Guide"). I setup both laptops in front of me, and performed the exact same step on each unit one at a time. The result? I have a perfectly good working display on my high end Macbook Pro, and I have a perfectly working "spare for parts" Macbook that will work fine if I connect to an external display. Just for fun, I took my defective display and installed it on the "spare for parts" device, and it displayed the same behaviour; horizontal lines across the screen, and if I lower the screen angle to a 45 degree angle, lines disappear.

I'm very confident that this is an engineering oversight, where some quality in the parts was compromised to achieve the thinness of the amazing Retina display.

I've attached before and after pics from the repair, good luck all.

[Edited by Moderator]

i have '16 macbook pro and it just developed horizontal lines also. took to repair shop. they thought it was cable from base to screen, replaced that, didn't fix it. now they say it needs a screen replacement for $700 total. not worth doing imo.

one detail on it, if i tilt the screen toward the keyboard, at about 45 degrees the lines go away, but it's not usable like that of course.

I had a similar issue. Here's what happened:

1. My Macbook Air 15 inch (M2, 2023) model suddenly developed black lines on the screen (I did not do anything to it). It was completely autonomous.
2. I did a software upgrade and PRAM/SMC reset, which did not work. I then took a screenshot and AirDropped that photo to my iPhone. I could see lines on the screenshot on my Macbook but could not see those lines on my iPhone. Hence, it was pretty obvious that there was something wrong with the display.
3. I went to the Apple store for further diagnosis. Fortunately, I was under the 1 year warranty period and they sent my laptop for repair.
4. They replaced 3 parts: "lid angle sensor", "display, midnight", and "bottom case, midnight".
5. They returned my laptop in a few days.

It works well now.

I had the same issue - black lines and when bending it over to 45 degrees, it dissapears.

Apple authorized service said that it is a problem with the display cable, but it cannot be fixed alone, whole display should be fixed which is 700 euros.

Not going to do it just going to buy a new laptop, not apple, since this is already the second big issue with this computer, first one cost 850 euros.

Black horizontal lines on the screen can be caused by various factors, such as a faulty display cable, a damaged LCD panel, or a malfunctioning graphics card. Some possible solutions are:

Resetting the System Management Controller (SMC) and the NVRAM.

Updating the macOS to the latest version.

Booting into safe mode and running Disk Utility.

Connecting to an external monitor and checking if the lines persist.

While I can write more solutions here but it’s better if you check out a professional guide with proper steps dedicated to this issue. You can check out this guide on 10 Working Solutions to fix lines on Macbook Screen. 

This guide covers a detailed solution to fix the issue of black horizontal lines on your MacBook screen. I hope this helps you resolve your problem.

My wife’s 2021 m1 13 inch MacBook Pro just got this. It appeared out of nowhere. She’s taken really good care of the laptop never dropped etc.

She took it in and they said the display has gone bad 600+ tax. Even the tech admitted he could find no damage. This laptop is only 3 years old.

This is obviously is a defect and apple needs to come out and admit so. Never had a screen start to fail so quickly on any Mac before. Heck never had a screen fail like this until now period.

Disappointing Apple will not take responsibility for a QC issue or hardware defect.

.

This is basically damage to the cable connecting the display. The cable gets wear and tear easily by opening and closing of the display lid due to the design flaw. Sadly the cable alone cannot be replaced and will have to change the whole display. For some models apple have addressed the issue, but lot of other models have the same issue which apple did nothing about

Hi,

I just ran into the same issue and found at least a temporary solution that works for me for now. After reading some of the answers here, I tried to tilt the screen towards the keyboard, and indeed, the lines disappeared after a certain degree. I tilted the whole macbook up, so that the tilted screen was in the "normal Position" (as if not tilted). Then I slowly put the screen back in its normal Position. The lines didn't reappear.

When I afterwards closed the macbook quickly and reopen it again, the lines were there again. But after that, my "trick" worked again. I had some pinkish/ rainbowy artefacts at the top of my screen, they disappeared as well after I slowly opened the second time. What I have left now, is a pinkish glow at the edges of the screen, but I'm not sure if they were there before and I just didn't notice. Maybe the screen is just old. After all my Macbook Pro is from 2016.

So I'm thinking, it must be some kind of connectivity issue. Especially, since I used a laptop Stand for some while (few months) now, where the laptop is standing a little bit vertical. Maybe that caused something inside the laptop to loosen up. But thats just guessing... All I can say is that I'm happy for now that the tilting trick worked for me. Good luck to you!

I repaired my MacBook Pro with a new screen for 1 KUSD. It was not the screen cable but the tiniest of tiny "point of impact" at the bottom of the screen as the nice guy at the repair shop called it. He explained that the fit between the screen and the body of the newer Macs is so tight and the new screens are so sensitive that a grain of sand can cause the damage when you close the screen against the body. He had noticed a clear increase of screen damages in recent years. My old Macs were certainly not that sensitive. Now I have to basically use a piece of clean cloth to wipe any potential dust away before closing the screen. Well, at least the service was quick - one hour from leaving the Mac to pickup.

black horizontal stripes appeared on the MacBook pro 16-inch screen, an authorized service center reported that the entire screen needs to be changed, the screen cable does not change separately, I gave $ 4000 for a laptop and now I will give $ 700 for repairs, this problem is massive where your engineers look, it's time to turn on the brains and do your job efficiently!

all the described methods did not help to remove the stripes from the screen

Greetings kukiii,

If you are having issues with your Mac display, these are the best steps to take:

"If the display is black or dim: Try adjusting your display’s brightness.

If images are too large or too small: Try adjusting your display’s resolution.

If the colors don’t look right: Try using the display profile designed for your display. For example, if you’re using a Thunderbolt display, choose Apple menu  > System Settings, then click Displays in the sidebar. (You may need to scroll down.) Click the pop-up menu next to “Color profile” on the right, then choose Thunderbolt Display. If that doesn’t work, try calibrating the display.

If your display is blurry: Make sure your Mac has detected that display. Choose Apple menu > System Settings, then click Displays.

To see the Detect Displays button, press the Option key. Then click the button to detect the display.

If the display is flickering: Make sure your Mac and display are connected to one another with good quality cables and adapters. You may also be experiencing interference from a nearby power line, a fluorescent light, a radio, a microwave oven, another computer, or another electrical device. Try relocating nearby electrical devices, or moving your Mac and display.

If you see bright or dark spots on a flat-panel or Mac laptop screen: Your display may have pixel anomalies. If you suspect your Apple display contains a high number of anomalies, contact Apple or an Apple Authorized Service Provider for service. Repairs performed by untrained individuals or using non-genuine Apple parts may affect the safety and functionality of the device. 

If none of these solutions work: If you have an Apple display and can’t correct the problem, contact Apple or an Apple Authorized Service Provider for service. Repairs performed by untrained individuals or using non-genuine Apple parts may affect the safety and functionality of the device." If your Mac display doesn’t look right

If the issue continues, contact Apple Support directly. They will be in the best position to help: Get Support

We hope this helps!

Sincerely.

tilting the screen and slowly reopening while tilting the whole macbook fixed some of it for me (maybe just temporarily). Thanks for the tip!

Het ihrushi,

I do have Mac M1 2021, I am also facing the problem. I really don't think that the issue is with the display. It's possibly the GPU, because the I am noticing similar pattern, it's very light on external monitor.

I gave it to service center, they said display needs to be changed, billed be around 650$. I denied. Mostly the service center are third party here, they lack the skills.

Even if the display is changed that will temporarily fix the issue but the issue will comeback.

Could share a screenshot of the screen, please

I am experiencing this same issue. I took my Macbook to Apple two weeks ago and was immediately quoted nearly $700 to repair the screen. I took it back 8 days ago while I was visiting Apple for my iPad which is also giving me issues. They quoted me a $355 trade-in value and said the lines are not a factor and do not affect the trade-in value. I left it with them overnight, they ran a diagnostic and said it would be $598 + tax to repair. Today I went to Apple to trade it in and now they tell me I won't get anything for it. A supervisor came over and told me whoever looked at it before filling out the trade-in questions was wrong because $355 is the max and it has no trade-in value. The supervisor didn't have anything to say other than telling me she didn't know why they quoted me anything more than $0. I have a 2019 so the Applecare I purchased with the laptop has run out. If you take it to Apple without AppleCare, the only solution they offer is to pay $600+ to fix it and you only get a 1 year warranty on the fix. Or of course, you can buy a brand new laptop and pay more than double what it costs to fix it while getting nothing for your laptop because it has horizontal lines on it.