# El Trackpad — Touchpad for Mac

> iPhone/iPad app that functions as a Mac trackpad with gesture support. (iPhone/iPad app by Hugo Lispector.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/el-trackpad/id1531822775 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Hugo Lispector](https://appshunter.io/developer/1371052580)
- Category: Utilities, Productivity
- Price: Free with in-app purchases
- Rating: 3.70/5 from 39 App Store ratings · 62 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 4+
- Requires: iOS 10.0 · 15 MB
- Languages: American English
- Released: 2020-10-02
- Data updated: 2026-08-01
- Monetization: free with in-app purchases
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/el-trackpad/id1531822775/reviews.md

## What is El Trackpad?

Transform your iPhone or iPad into a fully featured Mac trackpad with gestures support.

This app was written by a single person and was featured by 9to5Mac, Redmond Pie, AppAdvice, MacMagazine and more.

REVIEWS
“I’ve tried many similar apps before, but none of them worked as well as El Trackpad. Besides not having any notable lag, the app lets the user perform the same gestures as you can do on Apple’s Magic Trackpad.”
— 9to5Mac

“What makes El Trackpad so impressive here is the fact that it appears to be lag-free and works identically to an actual Apple Magic Trackpad, which is super awesome.”
— Redmond Pie

“If you’ve ever used a Magic Trackpad or the built-in version on any MacBook model, you’ll be right at home with the app.”
— AppAdvice

“This app transforms the iPhone/iPad into a complete trackpad for Macs, with multi-touch support and everything.”
— MacMagazine

DESCRIPTION
Move the mouse cursor with the slide of a finger and smoothly navigate through your content with inertial scrolling. Pinch to zoom, rotate with your fingers and much more. Control your Mac in real-time with no lag.

El Trackpad works like magic and has the features and touch gestures that you expect from a touchpad for a Mac computer.

GET STARTED
- Download and Install El trackpad on your iOS/iPadOS device and on your Mac.
- Enable accessibility features on the Mac app when prompted. This is required to control the mouse cursor.
- Connect the devices via USB cable.

SUPPORTED GESTURES
- Tap to click: Tap with one finger to click
- Secondary click: Tap with two fingers to right click
- Smart zoom: Double-tap with two fingers to zoom in and out
- Scroll: Slide two fingers to scroll
- Zoom: Pinch with two fingers to zoom
- Rotate: Move two fingers around each other to rotate
- Three-finger drag: Use three fingers to drag items on the screen
- Look up: Tap with three fingers to look up a word
- Show desktop: Spread your thumb and four fingers to show the desktop
- Launchpad: Pinch with your whole hand to show Launchpad
- Mission Control: Swipe up with four fingers to open mission control
- App Exposé: Swipe down with four fingers to open App Exposé
- Swipe between desktops: Swipe left or right with four fingers to move between full-screen apps or desktops

ADDITIONAL INFO
El Trackpad can be downloaded for free and offers a 7-day free trial with full functionality. After that, gestures with 2 fingers or more will no longer be recognized. At any time, you may unlock the app forever with a one-time in-app purchase.

## Key features

- Transform iPhone/iPad into Mac trackpad
- Full gesture support
- Lag-free control
- Inertial scrolling
- Multi-touch support
- USB connection

## Pricing and in-app purchases

Base price: Free.

**One-time purchases**

| Purchase | Price | Type |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Unlock Full App | $3.99 | one-time |
| 7-day Trial | Free | one-time |


## What do users think of El Trackpad?

Overall sentiment: mixed

**Pros**

- 🚀 No lag with cabled connection
- 👍 Works well on older devices
- 💡 Great idea for trackpad functionality
- ✨ Smooth and fluid experience
- 💰 Good value compared to hardware trackpad
- ✅ Works as expected for basic trackpad functions
- 💯 Excellent app for iPad/phone control
- 🌟 Intuitive and increases productivity

**Cons**

- 🔌 Requires wired connection
- 🐛 Gestures sometimes don't register
- 🐛 Two-finger tap for right-click fails in some apps
- 🐛 Scrolling suspends and needs mouse click to fix
- 🐛 Mouse movement can be reversed on multi-monitor setups
- 🐛 Pinch-to-zoom out is imprecise
- 🐛 Double two-finger tap registers as zoom or right-click
- 🐛 App no longer opens on Mac (M1 MacBook Pro)
- 🐛 App is non-functional on M3 MacBook Pro with Sequoia OS
- 🐛 Swiping on iPad can exit the app
- 🐛 3-finger gestures mapped to 4 fingers
- 🐛 Does not recognize long press or 3D press as click
- 🐛 Transaction error when starting trial
- 🐛 Device not supported error via USB
- 🐛 System zoom disabled, cannot switch desktops with 3-finger swipe
- 🐛 Glitchy and crashes constantly
- 🐛 Mouse behavior does not replicate Magic Trackpad functionality

**Commonly reported bugs**

- App no longer opens on Mac (M1 MacBook Pro)
- App is non-functional on M3 MacBook Pro with Sequoia OS
- Swiping with two fingers activates 'desktop view' on Sequoia OS
- Tap with two fingers for right click refuses to register in certain applications
- Rarely some gestures will not register
- Scrolling functionality suspends and requires mouse click to fix
- Mouse movement is suddenly reversed on a monitor
- Pinch to zoom out is only good/precise for zooming in
- Double two finger tap sometimes registers as a zoom and often responds with a right click
- Swipes pickup on iPad and swipe you out of the app
- 3 fingers gestures like switching desktops became 4 fingers
- Does not recognize long press or 3d press as click
- El Trackpad overrides USB and nothing else works after sleep period
- Transaction error when starting trial
- Device not supported error when plugging in via USB
- iPadOS 15 no longer allows disabling multitasking gestures
- System zoom is disabled, cannot switch desktops with 3-finger swipe
- Mission control gesture does not work for some laptops
- App is extremely glitchy and frequently crashes
- Mouse behavior in the app does not replicate Magic Trackpad functionality
- App only works with USB cable connection
- Inconsistent trial messaging and immediate charging
- Cannot drag click for artwork

**Most requested features**

- Add Bluetooth connectivity
- Add Wi-Fi connectivity
- Allow landscape orientation
- Support 3-finger swiping for browser back/forward
- Support 4-finger gestures for screen switching
- Add gesture for toggling between windows
- Implement drag-and-drop functionality
- Add pressure sensitivity for drawing/art
- Make the app usable without a cable
- Add option to rotate the virtual trackpad
- Add keyboard support
- Add option to run app upside down for cable management
- Support iPhone as trackpad for iPad
- Add more settings options
- Add 3D Touch support
- Add support for 4-finger gestures
- Add 2-finger gesture for Notification Center
- Add 2-finger parallel swipe for page navigation
- Add FaceID authentication integration
- Make it compatible with Windows

## Recent user reviews (10 of 62)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/el-trackpad/id1531822775/reviews.md

### 2/5 — The app no longer opens on Mac

*2026-06-29*

I’ve owned this app since 2022 and it worked great for a long time. However, for months notes I cannot get the app to load on my MacBook M1 so i can use it when connecting the iPad with App. There’s no documentation and even after deleting and reinstalling and fixing permissions, it still is no working.

### 2/5 — Great App, Minor Errors

*2024-12-05, version 1.0.8*

Update: No longer working as of 2024-10. M3 MacBook Pro running Sequoia OS makes the app pretty much non-functional. Swiping with two fingers to scroll up or down with even a little bit of side deviation always activates the brand new “desktop view” now implemented in the new OS.

Looking for an app that could fully utilize my iPad’s screen as a trackpad. The trial idea was great and I used it for a week and was hooked.

Pros:
- Absolutely no lag at all due to cabled connection
- Gestures work well for not having pressure sensing capability like the normal Mac trackpad, assuming it works nearly the same as Apple’s Magic Trackpad as I’ve seen online
- 7 Day Trial really lets you experience the full app

Cons:
- In certain applications (for example, IntelliJ IDE), tap with two fingers for right click refuses to register (the same on the built in Mac trackpad works)
- Very rarely some gestures will not register, probably due to finger detection on the iPad side

### 3/5 — Please make the app BLUETOOTH

*2024-11-05, version 1.0.8*

Lets make this app Bluetooth and let Mr. Jobs rest in peace.

### 5/5 — Works VERY well, even on older devices

*2024-09-28*

I have an ‘old’ iPad Air 1 and this trackpad app works perfectly.
Also, dev responded to a question within hours. 
Much good and high recommend!

### 4/5 — Great, but…

*2024-04-04*

Certainly better than paying $$$ for a Mac trackpad, but there are times when particularly after a sleep period, when El Trackpad overrides the USB and nothing else works, such as wired mouse

### 3/5 — Doesn’t work well:-(

*2024-01-08, version 1.0.8*

Part of the app works, but only partially. Sometimes a functionality simply suspends - e.g. scrolling - and is only fixed again when you click somewhere with the real-life-mouse. Or if you have more than just one monitor, then it occasionally happens that on a monitor the mouse movement is suddenly reversed, so if you swipe to the left, the cursor moves to the right, which means that you cannot even reach this monitor with the mouse cursor. Only with a restart of the app is the problem solved. 
At 3.99 for this one single feature, I definitely expect this feature to work. (Latest MacBook, latest MacOS)

### 3/5 — It would be nice if I could use my IPhone as a trackpad for Ipad

*2023-09-08*

This app would be useful if they update it where I can use the IPhone as a trackpad to my IPad Air and Stage Manager for the most portable mobile office

### 2/5 — Doesn’t work for me

*2023-02-27, version 1.0.8*

Really nice idea but it doesn’t work for me I checked with iPhone and iPads…

### 2/5 — Swipes pickup on iPad an swipe you out of the app

*2022-12-22, version 1.0.8*

A good idea. I hope they can make it work. But it’s not there yet. I paid anyway because I want to support the work.

### 2/5 — Needs more settings options and gestures support

*2022-11-27, version 1.0.8*

Generally the app is working well but 3 things makes it unusable for me.
Cannot rotate the virtual trackpad, I would prefer to use my phone in wide screen mode.
3 fingers gestures like switching desktops became 4 fingers
Does not recognize long press or 3d press as click.

## Frequently asked questions about El Trackpad

### What does El Trackpad do?

El Trackpad transforms your iPhone or iPad into a fully functional trackpad for your Mac computer. It allows you to control the mouse cursor, navigate content, and perform various gestures just like you would on an Apple Magic Trackpad.

### What are the key features of El Trackpad?

Key features include controlling the mouse cursor with finger slides, inertial scrolling, pinch-to-zoom, rotation gestures, and multi-finger gestures like two-finger tap for secondary click, three-finger drag, and four-finger swipes for Mission Control and desktop switching.

### How much does El Trackpad cost?

The app offers a 7-day free trial with full functionality. After the trial, gestures with two or more fingers will be restricted. You can unlock the app permanently with a one-time in-app purchase.

### What devices is El Trackpad compatible with?

The app is designed to work with iPhone and iPad devices running iOS/iPadOS and requires a Mac computer. Both the iOS/iPadOS device and the Mac need to have the respective application installed.

### How do I set up El Trackpad?

To set up El Trackpad, download and install it on both your iOS/iPadOS device and your Mac. Enable accessibility features on the Mac app when prompted, as this is necessary for cursor control. Finally, connect the devices via a USB cable.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 1.0.8 — 2021-05-14

- Fixed direction of swipe between desktops gesture when natural scroll direction is turned off.
- Fixed a bug that could cause the app to present an incorrect error message when an in-app purchase failed.

### 1.0.7 — 2021-01-03

Minor performance improvements and bug fixes.

### 1.0.6 — 2020-12-13

- Added App Privacy Details: El Trackpad does not collect user data.
- Minor changes on the settings screen.

### 1.0.5 — 2020-12-06

Minor performance improvements and bug fixes.

### 1.0.4 — 2020-10-09

Minor changes on the settings screen.

## Apps similar to El Trackpad

| App | Rating | Price | Category |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Remote: Mouse & Keyboard](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/remote-mouse-and-keyboard/id629019487) | 4.5 (14,032) | Free | Utilities |
| [Mobile Mouse Remote (Lite)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mobile-mouse-remote-lite/id356395556) | 3.9 (68) | Free | Utilities |
| [Remote Trackpad: Virtual Tool](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/remote-trackpad-virtual-tool/id1572422325) | 3.7 (38) | Free | Utilities |
| [Computer Mouse: Remote Control](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/computer-mouse-remote-control/id1561913205) | 3.8 (188) | Free | Utilities |
| [Remote Mouse](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/remote-mouse/id385894596) | 4.6 (18,447) | Free | Utilities |
| [Remote Mouse Pro](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/remote-mouse-pro/id380450781) | 4.7 (4,711) | $14.99 | Utilities |

## More apps by Hugo Lispector

- [Aster](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/aster/id1385736929)
- [Rami The App](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/rami-the-app/id1445325055)
- [splool](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/splool/id1461707564)
- [Swift as the Wind](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/swift-as-the-wind/id1462967019)
- [Zip Zap](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/zip-zap/id1463904567)
- [Aeronaut](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/aeronaut/id1520819995)

All apps by Hugo Lispector: https://appshunter.io/developer/1371052580

## Related topics

[el trackpad](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/el-trackpad) · [trackpad](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/trackpad) · [onetouch reveal](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/onetouch-reveal) · [trackpad for mac](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/trackpad-for-mac) · [mac trackpad](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/mac-trackpad) · [touchpad](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/touchpad)

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-01.*