A Mac shows the battery of your Beats only while they are turned on and connected to that Mac. The common causes of a missing level are Beats that are connected to your iPhone, Beats that are turned off, and earbuds in a closed case. Click Control Center, click Sound, and choose your Beats. The level then shows under Bluetooth.
The quick fix
- Turn the headphones on. For earbuds, open the case and take a bud out.
- Hold the Beats close to your Mac.
- Click the Control Center icon in the menu bar.
- Click Sound, then choose your Beats from the list.
- Click the Control Center icon again, then click Bluetooth. The battery level is next to the name of your Beats.
The causes
| What you see | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| The Beats are in the list with no level | They are connected to your iPhone or another device | Choose them under Sound in Control Center |
| The Beats are in the list and not connected | They are turned off, or in their closed case | Turn them on, or open the case |
| The buds show a level, and the case does not | The case reports only through the buds | Put a bud in the case and open the lid |
| The Beats play on this Mac and no level shows | The Mac has not received the level yet | Keep the Bluetooth settings open for a minute |
| The Beats are not in the list | They are not paired with this Mac | Pair them in the Bluetooth settings |
| The level never appears | The pairing is damaged | Forget the Beats and pair them again |
The Beats are connected to another device
Beats with an Apple chip move between your Apple devices, like AirPods. The Bluetooth list on the Mac keeps their name while they play from your iPhone. A name with no level means that they are not connected to this Mac.
Choose them under Sound in Control Center. macOS cannot show the level of Beats that stay connected to another device.
The Beats are off or in their case
Headphones have a power button. Earbuds turn off in their case when the lid is closed. A Mac cannot read them in that state.
The case of Beats earbuds has no connection of its own. It reports through the buds, so the Mac shows the case only while a bud is in it with the lid open, or just after you take the buds out. AirPods follow the same rule. See AirPods battery not showing on a Mac.
The Beats play on this Mac, and no level shows
Try these in order.
- Wait a minute. Open System Settings, click Bluetooth, and keep the window open. The level can arrive some time after the Beats connect.
- Turn the Beats off and on.
- Turn Bluetooth off and on with the switch at the top of the Bluetooth settings.
- Restart the Mac.
- Forget the Beats and pair them again. In the Bluetooth settings, click the info button next to your Beats, then click Forget This Device. Put the Beats in pairing mode and connect them again.
Some Bluetooth headphones do not report a level to macOS in a form that it shows. If the level never appears after step 5, see Bluetooth battery level not showing on a Mac.
Check the battery on the Beats
Some Beats headphones have Fuel Gauge lights, for example Solo3 Wireless and Studio3 Wireless. Press the power button, and the five lights show the charge. Five lights mean a full charge. One light means a low charge.
Earbuds have a light on the case. It tells you that the case has charge, and not a number.
What macOS cannot show
- Beats that are connected to another device.
- Beats that are off or in their closed case. The Mac drops the level when they disconnect.
- Anything in the menu bar itself. You have to open a menu.
BatteryBud is a battery monitor for Mac. It shows your Beats with your other devices, with the left bud, the right bud and the case each on its own, and you can pin them to the menu bar with their percentage. When the Beats disconnect, BatteryBud keeps the last level and shows when it last saw them. It also keeps a history, and it can alert you when the level drops below a number you pick.
For all the places a Mac shows the level, see how to check Beats battery on a Mac.