Apple Says macOS 27 Won't Be Compatible With These Macs - MacRumors
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Apple Says macOS 27 Won't Be Compatible With These Macs

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During WWDC 2025, Apple revealed that macOS 26 Tahoe would be the final major macOS version for Intel-based Macs.

macOS 27 on MacBook Pro
macOS 27 will be compatible with Apple silicon Macs only, meaning that you will need a Mac with an M-series chip or a MacBook Neo with an A18 Pro chip in order to install the software update. Apple will unveil macOS 27 during its WWDC 2026 keynote this Monday, June 8, and the update should be widely released in September.

Intel-based Macs that can run macOS Tahoe but will not be compatible with macOS 27:

  • 13-inch MacBook Pro (2020, Four Thunderbolt 3 Ports)
  • 16-inch MacBook Pro (2019)
  • 27-inch iMac (2020)
  • Mac Pro (2019)

Apple said Intel-based Macs will continue to receive security updates for three years.

macOS 27's exact compatibility with Apple silicon Macs remains to be seen, but presumably the update will support all Macs with an M1 chip or newer.

macOS 27 will still be able to run Intel apps, as it will be the final major macOS release to include Apple's full Rosetta translation layer.

"Rosetta was designed to make the transition to Apple silicon easier, and we plan to make it available for the next two major macOS releases – through macOS 27 – as a general-purpose tool for Intel apps to help developers complete the migration of their apps," said Apple. "Beyond this timeframe, we will keep a subset of Rosetta functionality aimed at supporting older unmaintained gaming titles, that rely on Intel-based frameworks."

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Top Rated Comments

Moukee Avatar
Moukee
15 weeks ago
I sure hope M Macs get at least 10 years of full software support.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sniffies Avatar
sniffies
15 weeks ago
Ugh, really annoyed that my PowerBook isn't compatible.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
stiligFox Avatar
stiligFox
15 weeks ago
I wonder how much more efficient macOS will be once they drop the x86 code like when they dropped the PPC code in... wasn't it Snow Leopard? IIRC there was a significant drop in install size for the OS. I wonder if macOS 27 will see a similar reduction.
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
M
Marbles1
15 weeks ago
I bought my Intel MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2020, Four Thunderbolt 3 ports, 16GB) back in June of 2020, so that's 6 years of full support so far and Apple will provide security updates for a further 3 years. Almost a decade of support. I'm more than happy with that.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
zilchfox Avatar
zilchfox
15 weeks ago
RIP Hackintosh, too.

That said, if you’re still running an Intel model, unless you have a very specific use-case for it (such as Boot Camp), it is *so* much better on the Apple Silicon side of things. You will notice a night and day difference between Intel and Apple Silicon.

As for dropping update support for Intel, that means they don’t have to waste time developing compatibility for it anymore which could make future iterations way more stable as they zero-in on Apple Silicon support only.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
A
applicious84
15 weeks ago
A good number of people spent a lot of money on those MacBook Pros from 2020, often using them for work. Six years might seem a lot, but many Lenovo laptops from 2018 are still getting the latest Windows updates and will for a while to come. This is within an ecosystem where thousands of different models of computers have to work with an OS

MacOS is easily better, less buggy and more efficient, but considering how much more controlled the hardware is and the premium markups, the current bugginess and restrictiveness of MacOS is tough to swallow.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
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