Operating system upgrades bring increases in efficiency, new features, stronger security, and updates to included software utilities. The following page shows you how to upgrade your Apple Macintosh desktop or laptop computer to Catalina (10.15), the current version of macOS.
OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion (Zinfandel) - 25 July 2012. OS X 10.10: Yosemite (Syrah) - 16 October 2014 OS X 10.11: El Capitan (Gala) - 30 September 2015. (as an update to Snow Leopard) versions. To upgrade to El Capitan you must have Snow Leopard 10.6.8 or Lion installed. Download El Capitan from the App Store. Sign in using your Apple ID. El Capitan is free. The file is quite large, over 5 GBs, so allow some time to download. It would be preferable to use Ethernet because it is nearly four times faster than wireless. Macs that can be. Jun 11, 2021 Open that app from your Applications folder to begin installing the operating system. MacOS Sierra 10.12 can upgrade El Capitan, Yosemite, Mavericks, Mountain Lion, or Lion; OS X El Capitan 10.11 can upgrade Yosemite, Mavericks, Mountain Lion, Lion, or Snow Leopard; OS X Yosemite 10.10 can upgrade Mavericks, Mountain Lion, Lion, or Snow Leopard. Before you take steps to update your present Mac OS X to El Capitan 10.11.6/10.11.2, check whether your Mac computer is available to download and install the new El Capitan. Check the below list and see whether your device or OS X can get the new update. Jul 16, 2021 The OS X 10.11 El Capitan upgrade is available only at the Mac App Store, which means if you have versions Snow Leopard 10.6.7, Mavericks, Yosemite, Lion, and Mountain Lion, the Mac App Store already exists on your computer.
- Check compatibility.
Check compatibility
Before installing Catalina, verify your Mac is eligible for the upgrade.
Verify the model of your Mac
The following Mac models can be upgraded to macOS Catalina.
- Mac Pro - All models produced from mid-2013 and later.
- MacBook Pro - All models produced from mid-2012 and later.
- iMac - All models produced from late 2012 and later.
- MacBook - All models produced from late-2015 and later.
- MacBook Air - All models produced from late-2012 and later.
- Mac mini - All models from mid-2012 or later.
If your Mac is not on this list, you cannot upgrade to Catalina. However, you can still try to upgrade to El Capitan.
Back up your data
Although not required, we strongly recommend you back up your Mac before proceeding with an upgrade. If anything goes wrong, you can restore your Mac to its previous state.
Check your OS version
The following versions of OS X and macOS can be upgraded to macOS Catalina.
OS name | Version | Release date |
---|---|---|
OS X Lion* | 10.7 | July 20, 2011 |
OS X Mountain Lion* | 10.8 | July 25, 2012 |
OS X Mavericks | 10.9 | October 22, 2013 |
OS X Yosemite | 10.10 | October 16, 2014 |
OS X El Capitan | 10.11 | June 8, 2015 |
macOS Sierra | 10.12 | June 13, 2016 |
macOS High Sierra | 10.13 | June 5, 2017 |
macOS Mojave | 10.14 | June 4, 2018 |
* If your Mac is running OS X Lion or Mountain Lion, you must upgrade to El Capitan before you can upgrade to Catalina.
If your Mac is running Mavericks or newer, you can proceed to upgrade to Catalina.
Upgrade to El Capitan, if necessary
If your Mac is running OS X Lion or Mountain Lion, follow these steps to upgrade to El Capitan.
- Download the El Capitan installer from Apple. The file size is 5.8 GB, so the download may take a while, depending on the speed of your Internet connection.
- Double-click the downloaded archive, InstallMacOSX.dmg, to view its contents.
- In the archive, double-click InstallMacOSX.pkg.
- Follow the on-screen instructions to perform a compatibility check, and prepare for installation.
- When this process is complete, an installer application named Install OS X El Capitan is placed in your Applications folder. Double-click it to begin installation.
- During installation, your Mac may restart, or display a blank screen short time. Do not close the lid or power off your Mac until installation is complete.
Upgrade to Catalina
After you've gone through the preparation steps, you need to download and install the latest version of macOS. The following steps show you how.
- In the menu bar, click the Apple icon to open the Apple menu.
- In the Apple menu, select App Store.
- In the App Store, on the left side of the window, select Updates.
- In the Updates window, locate the line that says Catalina.
- On the far right side, select Update.
- Catalina is downloaded and installed.
- During installation, your Mac may restart, or display a blank screen for a short time. Do not close the lid or power off your Mac until installation is complete.
Mac Os El Capitan 10.13
Additional information
- See our update definition for further information and related links.
Which macOS version is installed?
From the Apple menu in the corner of your screen, choose About This Mac. You should see the macOS name, such as macOS Big Sur, followed by its version number. If you need to know the build number as well, click the version number to see it.
Update Mac Os Mountain Lion To El Capitan Upgrade
Which macOS version is the latest?
As updates that change the macOS version number become available, this article is updated to show the latest version of that macOS. To get a later version, install the latest Apple software updates.
macOS | Latest version |
---|---|
macOS Big Sur | 11.6 |
macOS Catalina | 10.15.7 |
macOS Mojave | 10.14.6 |
macOS High Sierra | 10.13.6 |
macOS Sierra | 10.12.6 |
OS X El Capitan | 10.11.6 |
OS X Yosemite | 10.10.5 |
OS X Mavericks | 10.9.5 |
OS X Mountain Lion | 10.8.5 |
OS X Lion | 10.7.5 |
Mac OS X Snow Leopard | 10.6.8 |
Mac OS X Leopard | 10.5.8 |
Mac OS X Tiger | 10.4.11 |
Mac OS X Panther | 10.3.9 |
Mac OS X Jaguar | 10.2.8 |
Mac OS X Puma | 10.1.5 |
Mac OS X Cheetah | 10.0.4 |