Apple Seeds Sixth OS X 10.11 El Capitan Beta to Developers

Apple today released the sixth beta of OS X 10.11 El Capitan to developers for testing purposes, one week after releasing the fifth El Capitan beta and nearly two months after unveiling the new operating system at its 2015 Worldwide Developers Conference.

The update, which arrives as Build 15A244d, is available through the software update mechanism in the Mac App Store and through the Apple Developer Center.

os_x_el_capitan_roundup
While early betas introduced minor design changes and features, the last few betas have focused on under-the-hood performance improvements and bug fixes to optimize OS X El Capitan ahead of its public release.


OS X El Capitan builds on the features introduced with OS X Yosemite, focusing on improving performance and user experience. Behind-the-scenes improvements in El Capitan have made a number of apps and processes on the Mac much faster, and the introduction of Metal makes system-level graphics rendering 40 percent more efficient.

Along with a new systemwide font, El Capitan includes a revamped Mission Control feature, a new Split View feature for using two full-screen apps at once, deeper functionality for Spotlight, and several new features for Safari, including Pinned Sites for housing frequently visited websites and a universal mute button that quiets all tabs.

OS X 10.11 El Capitan is available to both registered developers and public beta testers. After testing is completed, Apple will release El Capitan to the public in the fall.

Related Forum: OS X El Capitan

Popular Stories

imac video apple feature

Apple Unveils First New Products of 2026

Monday January 26, 2026 1:55 pm PST by
Apple today introduced its first two physical products of 2026: a second-generation AirTag and the Black Unity Connection Braided Solo Loop for the Apple Watch. Read our coverage of each announcement to learn more:Apple Unveils New AirTag With Longer Range, Louder Speaker, and More Apple Introduces New Black Unity Apple Watch BandBoth the new AirTag and the Black Unity Connection Braided...
iPhone 5s

iPhone 5s Gets New Software Update 13 Years After Launch

Monday January 26, 2026 3:56 pm PST by
Alongside iOS 26.2.1, Apple today released an updated version of iOS 12 for devices that are still running that operating system update, eight years after the software was first released. iOS 12.5.8 is available for the iPhone 5s and the iPhone 6, meaning Apple is continuing to support these devices for 13 and 12 years after launch, respectively. The iPhone 5s came out in September 2013,...
Apple Creator Studio

Apple's Next Launch is Today

Tuesday January 27, 2026 2:39 pm PST by
Update: Apple Creator Studio is now available. Apple Creator Studio launches this Wednesday, January 28. The all-in-one subscription provides access to the Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro, Pixelmator Pro, Motion, Compressor, and MainStage apps, with U.S. pricing set at $12.99 per month or $129 per year. A subscription to Apple Creator Studio also unlocks "intelligent features" and "premium...
Apple Logo Black

Apple Just Made Its Second-Biggest Acquisition Ever After Beats

Thursday January 29, 2026 10:07 am PST by
Apple today confirmed to Reuters that it has acquired Q.ai, an Israeli startup that is working on artificial intelligence technology for audio. Apple paid close to $2 billion for Q.ai, according to sources cited by the Financial Times. That would make this Apple's second-biggest acquisition ever, after it paid $3 billion for the popular headphone and audio brand Beats in 2014. Q.ai has...
Second Generation AirTag Feature

Apple Unveils New AirTag With Longer Range, Louder Speaker, and More

Monday January 26, 2026 6:07 am PST by
Apple today introduced the second-generation AirTag, with key features including longer range for tracking items and a louder speaker. For those who are not familiar, the AirTag is a small accessory that you can attach to your backpack, keys, or other items. Then, you can track the location of those items in the Find My app on the iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, and iCloud.com. The new...

Top Rated Comments

mpfuchs Avatar
137 months ago
I'm liking this new found focus on OSX lately...
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bladerunner2000 Avatar
137 months ago
Two new El Capitan DPs since the last iOS beta...where's iOS 9 beta 5?
It's about time Apple started putting more focus into OS X.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
appleguy123 Avatar
137 months ago
I'm pretty sure that half of my internet consumption in the last month has been downloading OS X updates.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
WardC Avatar
137 months ago
Is this new, the iTunes button on the right side?

No, that came out in the 70s.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
n-evo Avatar
137 months ago
Finder no longer showing sidebar. WTF?

EDIT: Fixed. ****ing Apple changing **** that doesn't need to be changed.
Clearly you're no beta testing material.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MikhailT Avatar
137 months ago
I hope Safari is fixed. It's been crash prone for several betas now.
You might want to check for third party factors, it hasn't crashed a single time for me on both of my Macs running El Cap.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)