In macOS Monterey 12.1, which is available in a beta capacity right now, Apple introduced its new SharePlay feature to FaceTime. Previously only available on iPhone and iPad, SharePlay allows you to share your Mac's screen with other people on a FaceTime call, which opens up new possibilities for sharing experiences with friends, family, and co-workers.

shareplay macos
Thanks to SharePlay, you and others on the same FaceTime call as you can listen to music or watch TV movies and shows together. You can even share your screen or a specific app window on your Mac's desktop with the people you're chatting with to discuss a piece of work or provide remote tech support, or simply to enjoy looking at a photo album together.

The following steps guide you through the new SharePlay screen sharing feature in FaceTime on macOS Monterey 12.1:

  1. Launch FaceTime on your Mac.
  2. Click New FaceTime and add the contacts that you want to share your screen with, then click the FaceTime button. Alternately, select a recent contact to initiate a video call.
    shareplay

  3. When the call has connected, click the SharePlay button in the control overlay.
    SharePlay

  4. To share your entire screen or a specific window, click either Window or Screen in the FaceTime menu bar item dropdown. If you chose Window, click the window in question that you want to share.
    shareplay

  5. To stop sharing the window or screen, click Stop Sharing Window/Screen in the FaceTime menu bar item dropdown, where you can also change the window being shared.
    shareplay

  6. When sharing a window, you can also click the SharePlay button in the top-right corner of the window to reveal three options: Stop Sharing Window, Change Shared Window, and Share Entire Display.
    SharePlay

The introduction of SharePlay on Mac also means you can listen to music or watch movies and TV together over FaceTime, and everyone on the call will see the same synced playback and controls.

SharePlay
In addition to first-party Apple experiences like Apple TV and Apple Music, SharePlay is also compatible with third-party app experiences. Developers have already been building SharePlay experiences for iOS devices, and now they can build SharePlay features into Mac apps as well. For more on what you can do with ‌FaceTime‌ in iOS 15.1 and iPadOS 15.1, we have a dedicated guide that highlights all of the new features.

Note: The SharePlay feature in FaceTime requires macOS Monterey 12.1, which is only available to beta testers as of writing. Expect Monterey 12.1 to be released to all users in late fall 2021.

Related Forum: macOS Monterey

Top Rated Comments

Benjamin Nabulsi Avatar
36 months ago
? this will make my life easier when I help my mom..
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
indros Avatar
36 months ago
For folks curious about how to share screen without 15.1, you can share screen via Messages already via clicking on a message thread, clicking the "i" icon in the top right and selecting "share." I'd heard about the FaceTime thing and found this when looking it up.

https://support.apple.com/guide/messages/screen-sharing-icht11883/mac
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheYayAreaLiving ?️ Avatar
36 months ago
Hopefully tomorrow is the day for new beta to be released.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sirozha Avatar
36 months ago
Man, this is revolutionary! I can’t believe it’s now possible to share a screen while on a video call. I can only imagine the tech we are going to be able to have in 2010!
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheDailyApple Avatar
36 months ago
So… am I the only one who misread the title as “How to Share Your Scream on a FaceTime Call”?
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sirozha Avatar
36 months ago

Ok daddy? ?
You are again posting in these forums instead of finishing your med school. I will stop paying for it just like I promised before. Enough is enough.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)

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