When you upgrade to macOS Catalina, you get more of everything you love about Mac. Experience dedicated apps for music, TV, and podcasts. Smart new features in the apps you use every day. Best of all, upgrading is free and easy.

Releases

About each version of macOS

The best Mac OS version is the one that your Mac is eligible to upgrade to. In 2021 it is macOS Monterey. However, for users that need to run 32-bit apps on Mac, the best macOS is Mojave. Also, older Macs would benefit if upgraded at least to macOS Sierra for which Apple still releases security patches.

How to run Catalina on an older Mac

1. Download the latest version of the Catalina patch here.
2. Open the Catalina Patcher app.
3. Click Continue.
4. Choose Download a Copy.
5. The download (of Catalina) will start – since it’s almost 8GB it is likely to take a while.
6. Plug in a flash drive.

Mac OS X Lion This was Apple’s attempt to get people interested in their products in 2010.

macOS 10.15 Catalina was released on October 7, 2019. Updates included enhanced voice control, and bundled apps for music, video, and podcasts that together replace the functions of iTunes, and the ability to use an iPad as an external monitor. Catalina officially dropped support for 32-bit applications.

Here is the list of macOS names and version numbers in chronological order: Kodiak Mac OS X 10.0 Cheetah Mac OS X 10.0 Puma Mac OS X 10.1 Jaguar Mac OS X 10.2 Panther Mac OS X 10.3 Tiger Mac OS X 10.4 Leopard Mac OS X 10.5 Snow Leopard Mac OS X 10.6 Lion Mac OS X 10.7 Mountain Lion OS X 10.8 Mavericks OS X 10.9…

Limited availability of Applications: This is one of the most significant drawbacks of macOS.