Screen flickering issue on MacBook Air M1

I have MacBook Air it has started to flicker a lot lately. It’s on and off sometimes it work just fine but then it start flickering again. Does anyone know how to fix this.

I’m having the same issue on my early 2020 MacBook Air. It’s flickering and turning blue. I wonder why and if it has to do with the release of the new MacBook Air.

There can be multiple reasons for screen flickering issue on your Mac. Some common reasons for the issue is in-display resolution, inappropriate working of Energy Saver, etc.

However, if your Macbook screen is flickering, there are few things you can try to troubleshoot the issue:

1. Check for software updates: Ensure that your Macbook's software is up-to-date. You can check for software updates by clicking on the Apple menu in the upper left corner of the screen and selecting "Software Update."

2. Restart your Macbook: Sometimes a simple restart can resolve display issues. Try restarting your Macbook to see if the flickering stops.

3. Check for loose connections: Make sure that the cables connecting your Macbook to any external displays or accessories are securely plugged in. If your Macbook is connected to an external display, try unplugging and replugging the display to see if that resolves the issue.

4. Adjust display settings: Try adjusting the display settings on your Macbook. You can do this by going to System Preferences > Displays and experimenting with different resolutions and refresh rates.

5. Reset the SMC: If the above steps do not resolve the issue, you can try resetting the System Management Controller (SMC) on your Macbook. The process for resetting the SMC varies depending on the model of your Macbook, so you should consult Apple's support website for instructions.

6. Contact Apple Service Provider: They may recommend that you bring your Macbook in for repairs or offer other solutions to resolve the issue.

Hope it helps!

Hi Sohitharry,

It's normal for viewing angles to affect how a display looks.

This isn't likely to be something that would be affected by a replacement.

Go to Settings > Displays, and try turning True Tone off if that's on.

Use True Tone on your Mac

Also try to turn off Automatic brightness on this screen.

Change your Mac display’s brightness - Apple Support

See if that alleviates the display concern you're seeing.

Thanks for using the Apple Support Communities.

Hello, I used to have the same issue for a long time, but I've finally managed to fix it by doing the following:

1. Installed SwitchResX
2. Created a custom resolution, which is 3440x1440@95hz (originally, my monitor supports 100hz, 48-100hz (Variable), 60hz and 30hz only)
3. Once I created the custom resolution with 95hz refresh rate, I needed to reboot and now I have the option in the Display Settings from the dropdown -> Variable (100-48), 100, 95, 60, 30

For some reason, the 100hz option could not really make my monitor run on 100hz, but more like on 50hz.

TL;DR

So based on your monitor, try creating a custom resolution with SwitchResX, a few HZ (about 5) less than the maximum supported by your display.

Hope this helps.

Try turning on HDR (High Dynamic Range), setting Refresh rate to 60hz or changing color profile to Display P3 or Colour LCD. You can try setting them all together and if it works, start removing one by one and see which setting caused the issue.

You hero! This seems to have worked for me. I was convinced it wasn't a screen issue but a processing one. Neither a support chat nor Genius Bar could diagnose the issue, they could only recommend replacing the screen to see if that worked - what a ridiculous £400 gamble on a machine that's less than 5 years old!! THANK YOU!

Hey there, Could you share me the steps you did to make it work? i tried the one from Natureknight but i guess i haven't done it propley

I got the same issue on my M1

[Edited by Moderator]

I got mine flicker Yesterday. No physical damage, and never drop or what so ever. I was just watching Netflix then it suddenly flickers on the right side of the screen. I'm using Macbook Air M1 too.

I've exp this also. what I did was update my mac to the latest version to check if its due to unupdated OS. After doing that I noticed that it still the same. Lastly I forcely quit all the running programs and restarted it. Now its gone.

same issue, screen flickers and got lines

Screen flickering on my MacBook Air. Intermittent problem how to solve it ?

Another viable option I've just discovered is to use licensed version of BetterDisplay, then export the monitor's EDID, use AW EDID editor to edit the refresh rate from 100 to 97hz, and then exported the edited EDID bin file and loaded within BetterDisplay on startup.

Besides the two options (from this post and from my older post above) - I haven't managed to find ANY other solution to this issue.

But ye, happy to see my commend helped someone as I know the pain of flickering and not being able to fix it, I just didn't gave up and finally (after 2 years of using this monitor and Mx Macs) did it :D

Cheers

With a lot of research the problem of flickering MacBook Pro M1 and Thunderbolt Display is solved. I had to go into settings and delete start up add on apps. The only one that was active was Dropbox. When I cleared that everything worked as it should. More info on Apple help.

I have had this with an M1 Mac Mini. If you resize the window displayed on the screen, it sometimes helps. I have tried different screen resolutions and higher refresh rates also help. Oddly, in my case some web sites when left 'on' the screen seem to be worse (news services).