How To Run 32 Bit App On Mac

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Apple began transitioning to 64-bit hardware and software technology for Mac over a decade ago, and all modern Macs now include powerful 64-bit processors that can run advanced 64-bit apps. These apps can access dramatically more memory, enable faster system performance, and take advantage of technologies that define today's Mac experience.

Apple has been working with developers to transition their apps, and in 2018 Apple informed them that macOS Mojave would be the last version of macOS to run 32-bit apps. Starting with macOS Catalina, 32-bit apps are no longer compatible with macOS.

How To Run 32-bit Apps On Macos 10.15 Catalina

If you get an alert about a 32-bit app

The simple fact is that you shouldn’t be having this problem in the first place. Windows has an emulator which—if working correctly—provides the necessary environment for both 64 and 32-bit applications to run normally. This emulator (WOW64) segregates 32-bit applications from 64-bit ones to prevent file and/or registry collisions. Apple says the OS will run on computers from as far back as 2012, but that, of course, means you may have tons of 32-bit software lying around that you use from time to time without realizing it.

You will see one of these alerts when attempting to open a 32-bit app:

How To Run 32 Bit Program On 64 Bit Machine

[app name] needs to be updated.
The developer of this app needs to update it to work with this version of macOS. Contact the developer for more information.

How To Run 32 Bit App On Mac

[app name] is not optimized for your Mac and needs to be updated.
This app will not work with future versions of macOS and needs to be updated to improve compatibility. Contact the developer for more information.

How To Run 32-bit Apps On Mac Os Catalina

When installing macOS, you may see a list of recently used apps that are 32-bit. You can review this list before deciding to continue installation. You may also see a prohibitory symbol over the icon of each 32-bit app in the Finder, letting you know that the app will not open.

For all 32-bit apps, please contact the developer of the app to learn whether an updated version of their software is available or planned.

Don’t say you weren’t warned! Apple has been saying for some time that the days of 32-bit apps in macOS are numbered, as we mentioned in “The Problem With Abandoned Apps” (17 July 2017) and “macOS 10.13.4 Warns Users about 32-Bit Apps” (13 April 2018). Now Apple, in its 2018 State of the Union presentation, has confirmed that macOS 10.14 Mojave will be the last to support 32-bit apps. Read “macOS 10.13.4 Warns Users about 32-Bit Apps” to learn how to identify 32-bit apps on your Mac. If you still depend on some 32-bit apps, you’ll probably be fine for the 15 months until macOS 10.15 is likely to ship, but it’s never too early to start looking for updates or thinking about alternatives.