macOS: How to Show Full Website Address in Safari

Starting around OS X Yosemite, Apple has chosen to have Safari hide the full website address by default. Instead, it only shows a basic name domain. Here’s how to show the full website address.

Full Website Address

For example, if I was reading an article on The Mac Observer, the address bar would show www.macobserver.com. I would have to click on the address bar in order to see the full URL, like www.macobserver.com/tips/quick-tip/article-name. Showing a shortened, or “smart” URL bar is clearly a design choice by Apple, and not a usability choice.

Showing the full website address in Safari preferences.

1. You can go into Safari preferences by pressing Command (⌘) + Comma, or File > Preferences.


2. Then, click on the Advanced tab at the far right.


3. The first menu item you’ll see is the Smart Search Field. Check or uncheck the box to turn the feature on or off. Checking the box will show the full URL.

This lets you quickly see which part of a website you’re in. It makes for quicker navigation around the web.

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