How can I show seconds on macOS BigSur's menu bar clock?

Question

I work in an environment where seconds are critical.

Is there a way to display the time with seconds in the menu bar on macOS Big Sur? More specifically, I am referring to the Date and Time at top right in the menu bar which users can click on to open the Notification Centre.

The instructions I find on the Internet seem to pertain to older macOS versions, and are no longer applicable.

Answer 1

The display of seconds in the menu bar can be enabled in System Preferences. The specific panel is different depending on the macOS version but you can find it by entering „Seconds“ (in whatever language your Mac is set to) in the search field at top right of the System Preferences window.

Answer 2

On macOS older than Big Sur, the System preferences can be configured to show seconds on the menu bar clock:

Apple has changed up the menu bar on Big Sur specifically and people have opinions about that for certain. There is no seconds display that’s easily enabled on 11.3 and below.

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Answer 3

On BigSur, you go to System Preferences > Dock & Menu Bar > Clock and check "Display the time with seconds"