Dock keeps disappearing after macOS Tahoe 26.0 update

msjunk wrote:

Not helpful, there is a reason the dock is there as a part of the UI. This is a bug with the hide and show option that needs to be fixed not ignored or endured.

I understand that many (maybe most) people rely on the Dock, and if it’s not working as designed, that is, by definition, a bug.

Maybe temporarily Command-Option-D helps. This is the default shortcut to toggle Dock visibility.

If it’s hidden then pressing this keyboard shortcut is supposed to unhide it (and conversely).

It is also possible that there is some corruption in the plist file, in which case deleting it would fix things. Now this is inconvenient because it restores Dock to the default, so then you’d have to set it all the way you want, but it is a possibility. But you can store the existing plist aside just in case this doesn’t fix the issue.

I guess that bug could move the Dock to some hidden display.

There is an app, DockLock Lite, in the Mac App Store. You can configure it to make the Dock stay on the selected screen.

If the Dock jumps to the wrong screen, it returns it back to the selected one.

That would make a temporary solution for you.

Does this help?

This behavior has been reported by others, as well. Possible solution here:

Dock disappears randomly on macOS Tahoe 2… - Apple Community

Bugs can be reported to Apple here:

Feedback - macOS - Apple

adrianed wrote:

Since I upgraded to Tahoe 26.0 my dock keeps disappearing. When I go to settings it is not set to "Automatically hide and show" and when I toggle that on then back off it reappears but why do I have to keep doing that?

[Re-Titled by Moderator]

Original Title: Dock keeps disappearing

The current stable release of Tahoe including bug fixes, security updates is macOS 26.0.1 - I would start there

Keep your Mac up to date - Apple Support

Keep your Mac up to date - Apple Support

Not a fix, but if the Dock is not visible try pressing Command-Option-D to bring it back.

Still an issue on macOS 26.0.1 . It was not an issue on macOS 18.x series or previous, only after updating to macOS 26.0 and beyond including macOS26.0.1

I know that this is probably not what you want to hear, but here goes: take this as an opportunity to grow out of the dependency on the Dock. After all, if it is autohiding, you can still reach for it whenever you want; and this way it is not always wasting screen space...

Luis Sequeira1 wrote:

I know that this is probably not what you want to hear, but here goes: take this as an opportunity to grow out of the dependency on the Dock. After all, if it is autohiding, you can still reach for it whenever you want; and this way it is not always wasting screen space...

Personally, I need to know when I get emails and messages. Notifications are an option, but I may miss them or have Do Not Disturb on to suppress them at times. A badge on a Dock icon is an easy, unobtrusive way to be aware you have unread messages.

For some people like me, habits created over a decade aren’t easy to change.

Not helpful, there is a reason the dock is there as a part of the UI. This is a bug with the hide and show option that needs to be fixed not ignored or endured.

disappearing dock after downloading Tahoe 26...Apple should fix it...they caused it..I hesitate to do temporary fixes as I am not computer savvy