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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.jpg

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."

Article Link: Apple Says macOS 27 Won't Be Compatible With These Macs
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2026/06/03/macos-27-wont-run-on-these-macs/
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That's weird because I thought my 2018 MacBook Pro could run macOS 26, but I am surprised all of these newer Macs are excluded from macOS 27.
 
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.
 
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"Beyond this timeframe, we will keep a subset of Rosetta functionality aimed at supporting older unmaintained gaming titles, that rely on Intel-based frameworks."
WTF. We'll support the gamers but not those that spent thousands of dollars a shot when buying a 7,1????
 
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stiligFox said:
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.
Click to expand...
Very unlikely, snow leopard also completely changed The way storage was calculated.
In leopard and before it was 1 GB = 1024 MB.
Snow Leopard changed this to 1 GB = 1000 MB.
 
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Moukee said:
I sure hope M Macs get at least 10 years of full software support.
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Longer than they do now would be good. Given the brand new Neo is in the same CPU, GPU, RAM and storage class as the 2020 M1 there is some hope for that. Yes, there will be new "features" that are not supported on the old hardware which is fair, but as long as I can get the MBA online securely that is what I need. Current Firefox runs just fine on a 2012 Mini if that Mini is running Linux. The 2009 is a bit slow. The 2006 is Really slow. (Yes, it's 32 bit and 2 GB and a hard drive. Go figure.)
 
stiligFox said:
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.
Click to expand...
probably not. Could be apples and oranges but catalina didnt get much faster dropping 32 bit code from Mojave - in fact it went the other way. Any efficiency gains will probably be eaten by the bigger bloat of the new AI features .
 
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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.
 
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My Intel Mac is finally cooked. Serves me right...I intentionally bought it because I didnt know if the apple silicon thing would be a quick transition or a good idea. Very dumb....
 
zilchfox said:
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.
Click to expand...
Could you elaborate on the night and day difference? Because apart from battery life, everything seems very much the same to me.
 
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Here I am just waiting for them to drop all x86 support so macOS can finally become more lean. Has to be bunch of old x86 code in there lurking
 
stiligFox said:
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.
Click to expand...
I think I remember a few apps having their sizes cut by half during the transition since some apps switched from being Universal binaries to purely Intel. I imagine the same will happen in a few years as companies drop older operating systems from their support.
 
So we have one more year for Intel-based apps to run on macOS with Apple Silicon? I think the only app I use that's not AS-native now is Intuit's TurboTax. Have a feeling they'll transition to web-based instead of transitioning to Apple Silicon.
 
Your “OMG it’s lightning fast” M1 Mac you purchased a few years ago will likely be slow as molasses on MacOS 27 - with nothing to show for it.
Isn’t progress great?
 
I started a thread on this two weeks ago, so this news comes as no surprise especially since Apple telegraphed this at the Tahoe release. My iMac Pro with Sequoia still feels current.

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

That's somewhat comforting. It's too bad there's no 27-inch iMac successor on the horizon or Mac Pro for that matter. I'm mindful of the fact that the iMac Pro is a power hog in relation to later Intel iMacs and especially Apple Silicon. My next desktop Mac will probably be a mini or a gently used M1 or M3 iMac.
 
the time frame is sensible from a depreciation point of view, your system is supported until its value reaches scrap I can live with that
 
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