Your Mac will be transformed in just a few hours as Apple gears up to launch macOS 26 Tahoe today, bringing the most significant visual overhaul in years alongside powerful new capabilities.
This feature-packed free upgrade brings a striking new appearance to your Mac as part of Apple's hotly anticipated Liquid Glass redesign, which introduces translucent design elements throughout the new operating system. But the introduction of what Apple has referred to as its "broadest software design update ever", isn't the only new addition in macOS 26, you'll also discover staples from iPhone appearing on your desktop for the first time, a new dedicated Games hub, overhauled Spotlight search, and much more.
Want to switch to the new upgrade? You'll want to mark your calendar for 6pm BST tonight (September 15).
Apple typically releases new software updates around 10am PST from its headquarters in Cupertino, California, which equates to 6pm in the UK. The US company has not confirmed a specific release time for macOS 26 Tahoe, but previous macOS rollouts were timed around 6pm BST, so that's what we're expecting this time around.
However, this is only the second year a macOS update will be released at the same time as an iOS update.
Until recently, new iterations of macOS were launched as early as March to as late as October. With so many shared interactions between devices, it makes sense for Apple to launch all of its software at the same time, so you're not stuck waiting for a new feature to land on one of your devices when it's already visible everywhere else.
Like the new iOS 26 update, the MacOS 26 software update will feature a brand new Liquid Glass interface
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To update your Mac, follow these steps:
- Click the Apple menu in the top-left corner
- Select System Settings (or System Preferences on older Macs)
- Click General > Software Update
- If an update is available, click Update Now or Upgrade Now
- Follow the on-screen instructions and let your Mac restart
However, some Mac owners won't be able to take advantage of macOS 26. These are Mac laptops and desktop PCs that have been confirmed will be compatible with the incoming update:
- MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2019)
- Mac Pro (2019 and later)
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2020, Four Thunderbolt, 3 ports)
- MacBook Pro with Apple silicon (2020 and later)
- MacBook Air with Apple silicon (2020 and later)
- iMac (2020 and later)
- Mac mini (2020 and later)
- Mac Studio (2022 and later)
You'll discover entirely new applications, enhanced productivity tools, a new dedicated Games hub, and more in the new MacOS 26 update
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The update brings three entirely new applications to your Mac:
- Phone for making calls directly from your computer
- Journal for personal reflections
- Dedicated Games hub
Booting up your Mac after updating to macOS 26, you'll discover three brand-new applications. First up, the Phone app brings the same experience found on your iPhone to the Mac.
You can scroll through recent incoming and outgoing calls, listen to voicemails, and make or receive cellular or FaceTime calls from your Mac when your iPhone is nearby. New features like Call Screening, Hold Assist, and Live Translation for real-time conversations in different languages are all present and correct.
While Mac owners have been able to make and receive calls from their computers since late 2014, they'd need to take action from the notification of an incoming call, or use Siri to kickstart a new one.
For anyone who has used an iPhone before but is worried about the switch to macOS, the familiarity of the Phone app is sure to be a reassuring sight.
The new macOS 26 update offers real-time updates with deeper iPhone integration that can be accessed in your Mac's menu bar, and introduces translucent design elements throughout the system
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Speaking of consistency between Mac and iPhone, Apple's Journal app provides a dedicated space for personal reflection and mindfulness, letting you document thoughts and experiences in a private diary. You'll find it integrates seamlessly with other Apple services for a comprehensive journaling experience.
The Games app replaces the traditional App Store approach for gaming, creating a centralised hub where you can discover new titles, track what friends are playing, and access the latest gaming updates. This dedicated gaming platform signals Apple's renewed focus on Mac gaming experiences.
You'll gain new repair capabilities with the Repair Assistant feature, exclusively available for Macs equipped with Apple Silicon processors. This tool enables you to perform hardware repairs yourself or through independent repair shops, ensuring components are properly calibrated and fully functional.
The feature mirrors functionality previously introduced for iPhones and iPads, allowing you to verify that replacement parts are correctly installed and recognised by your system.
You'll find this particularly useful for complex components like the Lid Angle sensor on newer MacBooks, which requires precise calibration to prevent screen-related issues.
Unfortunately, if you're using an older Intel-based Mac, you won't have access to Repair Assistant. The feature represents a significant shift towards user-empowered maintenance, potentially saving considerable repair costs whilst ensuring your Mac continues operating at peak performance.
Live Activities, a staple from the iPhone lockscreen, are coming to the menu bar at the top of your Mac — offering instant access to real-time information from inside your favourite iPhone apps
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You'll also benefit from deeper iPhone integration. For instance, there's a new Live Activities feature, which displays dynamic, glanceable updates from iPhone apps in your Mac's menu bar. You can use this to track deliveries and other real-time events.
MacOS 26 is a significant update, too. Prepare for the software upgrade to take up 14.55GB of SDD space, most of which will be used for performance improvements and enhanced Apple Intelligence capabilities.
You'll immediately notice the revolutionary visual transformation when you open your Mac. The new Liquid Glass theme creates a sophisticated appearance with translucent elements that subtly reflect and refract content beneath them.
Your app icons will now feature more rounded corners, creating visual harmony across the system. You can personalise these icons with four distinct styles: Default, Dark, Clear, or Tinted modes, allowing you to match your aesthetic preferences.
The transparent menu bar seamlessly blends with your wallpaper, though you can restore an opaque background if you prefer better visibility. You'll find folders can be customised with unique colours or emojis, making file organisation more intuitive.
These design changes extend to notifications and system alerts, which now feature the same polished, glass-like appearance. The overall effect creates a modern, cohesive visual experience that feels both elegant and functional.
Spotlight has been revamped in macOS 26 with new capabilities, so you can compose and send text messages, search for documents stored in cloud backups, and more with a written command
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You'll gain unprecedented control over your Mac's Control Centre with this update. The revamped interface allows you to add, rearrange, and resize system toggles, including Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and the new Vehicle Motion Cues feature, designed to reduce motion sickness.
You can create custom control pages for frequently used settings, accessible through the Control Centre or Settings app. Third-party developers can now integrate their apps directly into Control Centre, addressing the long-standing issue of menu bar clutter on MacBooks with notches.
You'll be able to pin specific controls to your menu bar for instant access. The system now supports grouping and organising controls to match your workflow, with options to create dedicated control sets for different tasks.
These enhancements make managing your Mac's settings more efficient and personalised than ever before.
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You'll find Spotlight search dramatically enhanced with natural language processing capabilities. For instance, simply type queries in everyday language, and Spotlight will understand what you're looking for across your entire system.
The search results now appear in organised tabs for applications, files, actions, and clipboard history, making navigation more efficient. You'll appreciate the new clipboard history feature, which retrieves items you've copied within the past eight hours directly from Spotlight.
Performance improvements deliver noticeably faster results, whilst new filtering options enable more precise searches. You can execute actions directly within Spotlight, such as sending messages or launching shortcuts, without opening separate applications.
The system automatically assigns quick keys to frequent actions, allowing you to trigger commands with simple keyboard combinations. These enhancements transform Spotlight into a comprehensive productivity hub rather than just a search tool.
If you're looking to take advantage of all these new features, don't forget to mark your calendars for tonight (September 15).