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macOS 26 Tahoe System Requirements

Written by Robert Baker
macOS 26 Tahoe System Requirements

Unveiling macOS 26 Tahoe: A Fresh Look, Smarter Mac, and What You Need to Run It

Apple has officially pulled back the curtain on macOS 26 Tahoe, the latest iteration of its desktop operating system, at WWDC 2025. With a striking new design, enhanced continuity features, and a significantly smarter Spotlight, Tahoe aims to elevate the Mac experience to new heights. But before you dive into this exciting update, let's break down what's new and what hardware you'll need to enjoy it.

A Glimpse at the Future: New Features in macOS 26 Tahoe

macOS 26 Tahoe brings a host of innovations designed to make your Mac more capable, productive, and intelligent than ever before. Here are some of the standout features:

  • Liquid Glass Design: Prepare for a stunning visual overhaul! macOS Tahoe introduces a "Liquid Glass" design language, bringing a translucent, layered, and dynamic aesthetic to the entire system. The Dock, sidebars, and toolbars have been refined to emphasize your content, while the menu bar is now fully transparent, creating an expansive, airy feel. You'll also find new customization options for app icons, folder colors, and visual stamps to truly personalize your workflow.

  • Enhanced Continuity with the Phone App and Live Activities: The line between your iPhone and Mac blurs even further with Tahoe.
    • Phone App on Mac: For the first time, the iPhone's Phone app arrives on your Mac, allowing you to make and receive cellular calls directly from your computer. It includes familiar features like Recents, Favorites, and Voicemails, alongside new iOS 26 features like Call Screening (to filter unknown callers) and Hold Assist (which keeps your spot in line while on hold).
    • Live Activities in the Menu Bar: Live Activities from your nearby iPhone now appear in your Mac's menu bar, keeping you updated on real-time events like Uber rides, flight statuses, or sports scores. Clicking on a Live Activity opens it in iPhone Mirroring, allowing you to interact with the app without leaving your Mac.

  • Spotlight Reimagined: Spotlight, your central hub for finding anything on your Mac, receives its biggest update ever. Search results for files, folders, apps, messages, and more are now intelligently ranked and displayed together. New filtering options make it easier to narrow down searches. Crucially, Spotlight now allows you to take hundreds of actions directly, from sending emails to creating notes, without opening individual apps. It even learns from your routines to suggest personalized actions and introduces "quick keys" for even faster execution.

  • Apple Intelligence Integration: Many of the powerful Apple Intelligence features introduced in iOS 26 extend to macOS Tahoe, bringing a more robust and personalized Siri, and a smarter Shortcuts app. Developers can now integrate Apple Intelligence into their apps, opening up a world of possibilities for intelligent workflows and actions on your Mac. This includes features like Live Translation in Messages and FaceTime, and advanced image generation capabilities.

  • New Games App: Gamers rejoice! macOS Tahoe introduces a dedicated Games app, serving as a central hub for all your Mac gaming. It provides easy access to your game library, leaderboards, achievements, and even features an in-game overlay for quick access to system settings.

  • Messages Updates: Messages gets a fresh coat of paint with support for custom chat backgrounds, in-conversation polls, and improved screening tools to filter out unwanted senders.


System Requirements for macOS 26 Tahoe

While macOS 26 Tahoe brings exciting advancements, it also marks a significant shift in Apple's hardware support. macOS 26 Tahoe will be the last major version to support Intel-based Macs. If you have an Intel Mac, you'll still receive security updates for a couple of years, but future macOS versions (starting with macOS 27) will require Apple Silicon.


Here's a breakdown of the Macs compatible with macOS 26 Tahoe:

  • MacBook Air: M1 (2020) and later
  • MacBook Pro:
    • Intel (16-inch from 2019; 13-inch with four Thunderbolt 3 ports from 2020)
    • Apple Silicon (2020 and later)
  • iMac:
    • Intel (27-inch iMac from 2020)
    • Apple Silicon (2021 and later)
  • Mac mini: Apple Silicon (2020 and later)
  • Mac Pro:
    • Intel (2019)
    • Apple Silicon (2023 and later)
  • Mac Studio: All models (2022 and later)

Important Note: If you have an Intel Mac not on this list, it will not be compatible with macOS 26 Tahoe. This includes some 2018 and 2019 MacBook Pro models, 2019 iMac models, the 2017 iMac Pro, and the 2018 Mac mini. These machines will remain on macOS Sequoia (macOS 15) for their continued security updates.

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