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On Windows and, if I'm not mistaken, on Linux, it's possible to zoom in and out in Google Chrome using the mouse wheel. However, this doesn't seem to be working on Mac OS X.

Does anybody know if this feature can be enabled? Or is there any alternative solution (plugin, script, etc.)?

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8 Answers 8

Reset to default
19

You can pinch to zoom, which will simulate Command ⌘+ and Command ⌘-

You can also try the extension, which was mentioned by in Danijel's answer.

Otherwise, you can hold down Control ^ and the screen will zoom in and out. It ends up looking like this though (which I don't think you want):

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3
  • The extension mentioned does not work on recent Macs.
    – Aidan
    Commented Feb 20, 2015 at 10:48
  • Hold down control in some OS should work only if the option Use scroll gesture with modifier keys to zoom is flagged
    – JeanValjean
    Commented Oct 3, 2016 at 11:16
  • 3
    Pinch is a good alternative solution, but it doesn't work on a mouse with an actual physical scroll wheel. :(
    – Jon Freed
    Commented Apr 2, 2019 at 13:57
9

Using this extension from taharactrl I was able to zoom with ctrl+mouse wheel on all websites.

OSX El Capitan + Chrome 47

Note : after installing the extension, for it to work on existing opened tabs you have to reload them.

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4
  • I can confirm this works under OSX El Capitan & Chrome 54 (Nov 2016).
    – Hotschke
    Commented Nov 21, 2016 at 16:46
  • doesn't work on macOs Mojave
    – Patlatus
    Commented Aug 12, 2019 at 12:35
  • Confirm it works on Big Sur (but only on new tabs after installing it)
    – Benny Bottema
    Commented Dec 3, 2021 at 15:04
  • Sorry.. but yet another feature i see as pretty basic, missing from macos..
    – Clomez
    Commented Nov 16, 2022 at 10:09
8

In yosemite, you can activate it at the system level. For example:

Preferences > Accessibility > Zoom > Use scroll gesture with keys to zoom

Select ^ control

Then use control and the mouse scroll to zoom.

(Alternatively, tough that's not what's asked, in chrome, you can pinch to zoom by default)

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2
  • 32
    The problem with this approach is that it actually zooms the screen. It does not simply change the font size and spacing. (use em's people)
    – DRaehal
    Commented May 27, 2016 at 17:40
  • @DRaehal have you figured out a solution to this problem?
    – Anonymous
    Commented Aug 6, 2022 at 23:11
3

Use Command and the + button to zoom in!

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1
  • 11
    True, but the question was about how to do it with the mouse scroll wheel, presumably so you don't have to take your hand off the mouse.
    – Jon Freed
    Commented Apr 2, 2019 at 13:52
2

There's a Google Chrome extension you can use to do this.
Note: This no longer works!

Hold down Control as you scroll and it will zoom in/out.
Note: Use this instead!

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5
  • 21
    that does not work for me, i always used ctrl+mousewheel also on windows but on mac its not working for me
    – Blub
    Commented Sep 6, 2014 at 19:03
  • 3
    -1 On OS X Yosemite: Tried extension. It said to hold right mouse button and scroll to zoom - that worked on 1 page but inconsistently, and not at all on 9 other pages I tried (including this one). Also, <kbd>Control</kbd> scroll and <kbd>command</kbd> scroll don't work by default - that's what the question is.
    – Stan Kurdziel
    Commented Feb 5, 2015 at 19:22
  • 1
    Indeed the extension does not work on OS X Mavericks either.
    – Aidan
    Commented Feb 20, 2015 at 10:49
  • Does not work in Chrome 69 on MacOS 10.13
    – Nate
    Commented Sep 17, 2018 at 19:41
  • Still not working with Chrome 123 + Sonoma 14.4
    – rmsys
    Commented Apr 4 at 18:09
1

For Macs, you can use BetterTouchTool (free trial for 45 days, then paid). You can assign the action ⌘ + Scroll Up to emit the keyboard shortcut ⌘ + +, and similar for scrolling down.

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0

Solution for Google Chrome:

  • Zoom out: Cmd+-
  • Zoom in: Cmd+¨ (Actually does not work when the cursor is actively blinking in a text field)
  • Reset zoom: Cmd + =
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0
0

There is no + button for MacBooks! Only possible to write + if you hold down shift and 3 together. It's impossible to zoom out currently without using a proper USB/BT keyboard. And every site or forum I found so far suggested the cmd + or cmd - option which is not working. Only the cmd - because there is a dedicated - button. But nothing for +

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4
  • If there's no + on your keyboard, how are you using it in your answer? When Cmd + is mentioned, what is actually implied is Cmd =. You do not need to shift +. This of course is very dependant on which country keyboard you are using. As it stands your answer does not really satisfy the requirements of an answer to the standard we expect here. Please see if you can improve it. Also please have a read of apple.stackexchange.com/help/how-to-answer
    – Andy Griffiths
    Commented Oct 27, 2022 at 10:44
  • I explained it clearly. In order for me to write the plus character, I need to press and hold SHIFT and the "3" key at once. Keyboard layout is Hungarian QWERTZ. This is just the first thing that bugs my mind since I moved to macOS. No dedicated "delete" button, no dedicated "save as" feature, just to mention a few. I'm not sure what Apple developers are thinking before they remove basic features that every normal(non-Apple) device has...
    – strugglingwithmacOS
    Commented Oct 27, 2022 at 19:32
  • Now it's clear that your issues are to do with the specific keyboard, it sounds like you may want to open a question of your own to help address that. I'm sure that there are other Hungarian macOS users here who'd be happy to help. As it stands though, your answer is not relevant to the original question, which is asking re. mouse zooming in Chrome. As to your other points, these have long been part of the design and would stray very much into 'why does Apple do this?' territory, and questions re. Apple's design choices are off-topic here.
    – Andy Griffiths
    Commented Oct 27, 2022 at 21:45
  • Well, since I had no way of commenting, this was the only way to ask for clarification from others. I don't feel like starting a whole new thread on a question that was already asked... On other forums this is greatly discouraged. Seems like it's encouraged here instead. Strange.
    – strugglingwithmacOS
    Commented Oct 28, 2022 at 17:22

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