Sep 06, 2019 Older apps ('32 bit') will no longer work if you update your Mac to Catalina (the 2019 operating system). Before you update your computer, here's how to see which apps.
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, such as Metal graphics acceleration.
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.
Apple's transition to 64-bit technology is now complete. Starting with macOS Catalina, 32-bit apps are no longer compatible with macOS. If you have a 32-bit app, please check with the app developer for a 64-bit version.
Opening 32-bit apps
When you attempt to open a 32-bit app, you will see an alert that the app needs to be updated to work with this version of macOS, or that the app is not optimized for your Mac and needs to be updated.
macOS Catalina
macOS Mojave and macOS High Sierra
If you haven't upgraded to macOS Catalina, you can still open and use the app, but you should check with the app developer for a 64-bit version that also works with the latest macOS.
How to find 32-bit apps on your Mac
System Information can find 32-bit apps that are installed on your Mac:
- Choose Apple menu > About This Mac, then click the System Report button.
- Select Legacy Software in the sidebar. All legacy software is 32-bit.
- If you don't see Legacy Software in the sidebar, select Applications in the sidebar, then check the list of apps on the right. The column labeled ”64-Bit (Intel)” shows ”No” for apps that are 32-bit.
When upgrading to macOS Catalina, the installer shows a list of recently used apps that are 32-bit. You can review this list before choosing whether to cancel or continue the installation:
macOS Catalina also shows a prohibitory symbol over the icon of each 32-bit app in the Finder, letting you know that the app will not open.
How to contact the app developer
The developer (or vendor) is the person or company that made the app. The easiest way to find contact information for an app's developer is to search the web for their name or the name of their app. Learn more about contacting third-party vendors.
To find the name of the developer:
- Select the app in the Finder.
- Choose File > Get Info from the menu bar.
- Look for copyright information in the Info window. For example, Apple is the developer of this app:
Up until now, your Mac supported all the versions of any apps on your machine. You could run an app whether it was 32-bit or 64-bit without any issues on your machine. However, that changes with the macOS 10.15 version.
Onceyou update your Mac to this latest version of the macOS, you’ll nolonger be able to run any apps that use a 32-bit architecture. macOSis ceasing support for all the 32-bit apps and is now moving towardsthe 64-bit-only app environment.
What that means to end-users like you and me is that we need to get our apps upgraded to the 64-bit versions or we’ll lose access to the apps in the latest macOS update. Of course, we understand that not many of you are tech savvy and you may not know whether an app is a 32-bit or 64-bit.
Therefore, we’ve put together this guide that tells you how to find 32-bit apps on your Mac and offers you advice on what you can do with these apps. At the end of the guide, you’ll know how you can run your apps even in the latest macOS update on your Mac.
Use System Report To Find a List Of 32-Bit Apps On Mac
System Report is a super cool utility on your Mac that lets you find out lots of information about the hardware and software elements on your machine. Although its main purpose is not to help you find apps on your Mac, it does help you find all the 32-bit apps sitting on your machine.
Here’show to get to the list of all the 32-bit apps installed on your Mac:
- Click on the Apple logo at the top-left corner of your screen and select About This Mac. On the following screen, click on the button that says System Report beneath your Mac details.
- By default, you’ll be in the Hardware tab in the report utility. Expand the apps list by clicking on Software followed by Applications in the left sidebar.
- You’ll see a list of all the apps installed on your Mac. Scroll right and take a look at the 64-Bit (Intel) column. If it says No for an app, it means the app you’re looking at is a 32-bit app.
![Remove Remove](/uploads/1/2/6/3/126346703/168733377.png)
Thisway you can easily find out whether an app is 32-bit or 64-bit.
Use Activity Monitor To Find 32-bit Apps On Mac
Another way to find 32-bit apps on your Mac is to use the Activity Monitor tool. The tool does let you find out if an app is 32-bit but the app must be running while you try to find this information. You won’t find any information if the app isn’t running on your Mac.
- Launch the app in question on your Mac but don’t do anything with it. Open Activity Monitor from the Launchpad.
- Right-click on any of the column names (CPU Time, Threads, etc) and select Kind. It’ll add a new column to the right of existing columns.
- The newly added Kind column will tell you whether the app currently running on your Mac is 32-bit or 64-bit.
Bothof the methods described above should help you easily find all the32-bit apps available on your Mac.
What To Do With The 32-Bit Apps?
If you’ve found that some of your apps still use 32-bit architecture, you may want to upgrade them to the 64-bit versions as soon as possible. If you don’t do it, these apps won’t run on macOS 10.15 and later.
Mostdevelopers are aware of this change that Apple has made to macOS andthey may have already released the 64-bit versions of their apps.There are a few ways to check if your existing apps have 64-bitversions available for your Mac.
Update The Apps From The Mac App Store
If your 32-bit apps were downloaded from the Mac App Store, it’s likely the developer has pushed a 64-bit upgrade to the store. In that case, all you need to do is update the app as you would normally and it’ll then be compatible with the newer versions of macOS.
- To upgrade your apps, launch the Mac App Store on your Mac.
- Click on the Updates option at the top to access the update panel.
- If an update is available for your apps, you’ll find an Update button next to them.
- Click on the button and the apps will be upgraded to their newer versions.
Get The Latest Version From The Official Website
Itmay be that the 32-bit app you use on your Mac came from a website onthe Internet. In that case, you may want to check out the officialwebsite for the app to see if a 64-bit update is available.
Simplyhead over to the app website and look for a newer version of the app.If it’s available, download and install it on your machine. Yourexisting app will be updated to the latest version.
Update The App From Within The App
Find And Remove 32 Bit Apps On Mac Free
Manyof the apps allow you to get updates from within the app menus. Thisis true for apps like iTunes, Chrome, AppCleaner, among others.
Inmost apps, you can get new updates by clicking on the app name at thetop and selecting Check for updates or a similar option. Ifyou find an update is available, select it to install it on yourmachine.
Conclusion
Apple Support App 32 Bit
If you haven’t already done so, go ahead and get all of your 32-bit apps upgraded to the 64-bit versions if you still want these apps to run in the latest macOS versions. Not doing so will make your apps dysfunctional.