Before the release of Mac OS X in 2001, users modified system settings using control panels.

The original control panels in the earliest versions of the classic Mac OS were all combined into one small Desk Accessory.

Susan Kare designed the interface for the original control panel, and tried to make it as user-friendly as possible.

System Preferences originally included a customizable toolbar into which frequently-used preference pane icons could be dragged, but this was removed in Mac OS X v10.4 and replaced with a static toolbar that featured back and forward navigation buttons and a search field.

In OS X Yosemite, the user interface was redesigned to be in standard with other system applications, being less detailed and more minimalist than in prior versions.

Preference Panes are the macOS replacement for control panels in the classic Mac OS.

With Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger, the toolbar was removed in favor of a plain Show All button and back/forward history arrows.