Menu
So, you’ve decided to download an older version of Mac OS X. There are many reasons that could point you to this radical decision. To begin with, some of your apps may not be working properly (or simply crash) on newer operating systems. Also, you may have noticed your Mac’s performance went down right after the last update. Finally, if you want to run a parallel copy of Mac OS X on a virtual machine, you too will need a working installation file of an older Mac OS X. Further down we’ll explain where to get one and what problems you may face down the road.
On September 29, 2015, Apple announced that OS X® El Capitan, the latest major release of the world’s most advanced desktop operating system, will be available on Wednesday, September 30 as a free update for Mac® users. El Capitan builds on the groundbreaking features and beautiful design of OS X Yosemite, refining the Mac experience with updates to window management, built-in apps,.
A list of all Mac OS X versions
![Capitan Capitan](/uploads/1/2/5/7/125738342/608609278.png)
We’ll be repeatedly referring to these Apple OS versions below, so it’s good to know the basic macOS timeline.
Cheetah 10.0 | Puma 10.1 | Jaguar 10.2 |
Panther 10.3 | Tiger 10.4 | Leopard 10.5 |
Snow Leopard 10.6 | Lion 10.7 | Mountain Lion 10.8 |
Mavericks 10.9 | Yosemite 10.10 | El Capitan 10.11 |
Sierra 10.12 | High Sierra 10.13 | Mojave 10.14 |
STEP 1. Prepare your Mac for installation
Given your Mac isn’t new and is filled with data, you will probably need enough free space on your Mac. This includes not just space for the OS itself but also space for other applications and your user data. One more argument is that the free space on your disk translates into virtual memory so your apps have “fuel” to operate on. The chart below tells you how much free space is needed.
Note, that it is recommended that you install OS on a clean drive. Next, you will need enough disk space available, for example, to create Recovery Partition. Here are some ideas to free up space on your drive:
- Uninstall large unused apps
- Empty Trash Bin and Downloads
- Locate the biggest files on your computer:
Go to Finder > All My Files > Arrange by size
Then you can move your space hoggers onto an external drive or a cloud storage.
If you aren’t comfortable with cleaning the Mac manually, there are some nice automatic “room cleaners”. Our favorite is CleanMyMac as it’s most simple to use of all. It deletes system junk, old broken apps, and the rest of hidden junk on your drive.
Then you can move your space hoggers onto an external drive or a cloud storage.
If you aren’t comfortable with cleaning the Mac manually, there are some nice automatic “room cleaners”. Our favorite is CleanMyMac as it’s most simple to use of all. It deletes system junk, old broken apps, and the rest of hidden junk on your drive.
Download CleanMyMac for OS 10.4 - 10.8 (free version)
Download CleanMyMac for OS 10.9 (free version)
Download CleanMyMac for OS 10.10 - 10.14 (free version)
STEP 2. Get a copy of Mac OS X download
Normally, it is assumed that updating OS is a one-way road. That’s why going back to a past Apple OS version is problematic. The main challenge is to download the OS installation file itself, because your Mac may already be running a newer version. If you succeed in downloading the OS installation, your next step is to create a bootable USB or DVD and then reinstall the OS on your computer.
How to download older Mac OS X versions via the App Store
If you once had purchased an old version of Mac OS X from the App Store, open it and go to the Purchased tab. There you’ll find all the installers you can download. However, it doesn’t always work that way. The purchased section lists only those operating systems that you had downloaded in the past. But here is the path to check it:
- Click the App Store icon.
- Click Purchases in the top menu.
- Scroll down to find the preferred OS X version.
- Click Download.
This method allows you to download Mavericks and Yosemite by logging with your Apple ID — only if you previously downloaded them from the Mac App Store.
Without App Store: Download Mac OS version as Apple Developer
If you are signed with an Apple Developer account, you can get access to products that are no longer listed on the App Store. If you desperately need a lower OS X version build, consider creating a new Developer account among other options. The membership cost is $99/year and provides a bunch of perks unavailable to ordinary users.
Nevertheless, keep in mind that if you visit developer.apple.com/downloads, you can only find 10.3-10.6 OS X operating systems there. Newer versions are not available because starting Mac OS X Snow Leopard 10.7, the App Store has become the only source of updating Apple OS versions.
Purchase an older version of Mac operating system
You can purchase a boxed or email version of past Mac OS X directly from Apple. Both will cost you around $20. For the reason of being rather antiquated, Snow Leopard and earlier Apple versions can only be installed from DVD.
Buy a boxed edition of Snow Leopard 10.6
Get an email copy of Lion 10.7
Get an email copy of Mountain Lion 10.8
Get an email copy of Lion 10.7
Get an email copy of Mountain Lion 10.8
The email edition comes with a special download code you can use for the Mac App Store. Note, that to install the Lion or Mountain Lion, your Mac needs to be running Snow Leopard so you can install the newer OS on top of it.
How to get macOS El Capitan download
If you are wondering if you can run El Capitan on an older Mac, rejoice as it’s possible too. But before your Mac can run El Capitan it has to be updated to OS X 10.6.8. So, here are main steps you should take:
1. Install Snow Leopard from install DVD.
2. Update to 10.6.8 using Software Update.
3. Download El Capitan here.
2. Update to 10.6.8 using Software Update.
3. Download El Capitan here.
“I can’t download an old version of Mac OS X”
If you have a newer Mac, there is no physical option to install Mac OS versions older than your current Mac model. For instance, if your MacBook was released in 2014, don’t expect it to run any OS released prior of that time, because older Apple OS versions simply do not include hardware drivers for your Mac.
But as it often happens, workarounds are possible. There is still a chance to download the installation file if you have an access to a Mac (or virtual machine) running that operating system. For example, to get an installer for Lion, you may ask a friend who has Lion-operated Mac or, once again, set up a virtual machine running Lion. Then you will need to prepare an external drive to download the installation file using OS X Utilities.
After you’ve completed the download, the installer should launch automatically, but you can click Cancel and copy the file you need. Below is the detailed instruction how to do it.
STEP 3. Install older OS X onto an external drive
The following method allows you to download Mac OS X Lion, Mountain Lion, and Mavericks.
- Start your Mac holding down Command + R.
- Prepare a clean external drive (at least 10 GB of storage).
- Within OS X Utilities, choose Reinstall OS X.
- Select external drive as a source.
- Enter your Apple ID.
Now the OS should start downloading automatically onto the external drive. After the download is complete, your Mac will prompt you to do a restart, but at this point, you should completely shut it down. Now that the installation file is “captured” onto your external drive, you can reinstall the OS, this time running the file on your Mac.
- Boot your Mac from your standard drive.
- Connect the external drive.
- Go to external drive > OS X Install Data.
Locate InstallESD.dmg disk image file — this is the file you need to reinstall Lion OS X. The same steps are valid for Mountain Lion and Mavericks.
How to downgrade a Mac running later macOS versions
If your Mac runs macOS Sierra 10.12 or macOS High Sierra 10.13, it is possible to revert it to the previous system if you are not satisfied with the experience. You can do it either with Time Machine or by creating a bootable USB or external drive.
Instruction to downgrade from macOS Sierra
Instruction to downgrade from macOS Sierra
Instruction to downgrade from macOS High Sierra
Instruction to downgrade from macOS Mojave
Before you do it, the best advice is to back your Mac up so your most important files stay intact. In addition to that, it makes sense to clean up your Mac from old system junk files and application leftovers. The easiest way to do it is to run CleanMyMac X on your machine (download it for free here).
Visit your local Apple Store to download older OS X version
If none of the options to get older OS X worked, pay a visit to nearest local Apple Store. They should have image installations going back to OS Leopard and earlier. You can also ask their assistance to create a bootable USB drive with the installation file. So here you are. We hope this article has helped you to download an old version of Mac OS X. Below are a few more links you may find interesting.
These might also interest you:
Apple OS X El Capitan beta was first released to developers in July 2015 and was released to the millions of Apple consumers worldwide September of 2015, following several beta releases. This version of the Apple Mac OS X marks a significant milestone in Apple Mac OS history for many reasons. It was the 12th major release of the Mac OS X line, since the introduction of the new brand in 2002 by Apple from its previous product line of Mac OS.
Download El Capitan OS X is also significant since it’s the last version of Apple Mac OS X releases as its successor Sierra was released in the year 2016 under the brand macOS. El Capitan is a rock formation found in Yosemite National Park, which gives out the meaning that the new release is a solid version of its predecessor, Yosemite. The naming convention to use important landmarks of Northern California started with the Apple release of Mavericks.
At the time of release, El Capitan was promoted as a significant release by Apple similar to how they promoted Mavericks and Yosemite upgrades which were the predecessors of El Capitan.
Brief Guide For Download El Capitan
In this article, we’ll also discuss few things that you should do before you upgrade your OS to the new Download El Capitan version in order to make sure your computer is all ready for the new upgrade including whether your Mac is compatible both in terms of hardware and software. There we will discuss the minimum system requirements and supported Mac devices released in the past.
Installation Methods For Download El Capitan
1. Download El Capitan Mac OS X from scratch while upgrading the current Mac OS version
The new Apple El Capitan supports two installations methods. As in the case of many other operating system installations, Apple El Capitan also provides an option to upgrade from your current OS version or the option to install the new download El Capitan Mac OS X from scratch. The default method which is the upgrade installation option will try to install OS X El Capitan to your Mac device while protecting your user data and app data. This is currently the most frequently used method of upgrading to the new version of Mac OS X and also the easiest too. If your Mac computer is in very good shape and running smoothly, it is recommended to install using this method.
2. Download El Capitan and install fresh the Mac OS without upgrading current Mac OS version
The second method of installations is the clean install method. It basically erases the entire content of your chosen drive and installs a fresh, smooth version of the new operating system which is download El Capitan Mac OS X in this case. This would mean no older versions of the Mac OS X, system applications and user data all will be wiped out with a clean install. This is an excellent choice to test an operating system on a separate disk drive or a partition in cases where you have had prevailing software issues on your computer which you have been unable to fix. Therefore when these issues become a major headache for you, your best option is to perform a clean install of the OS X – El Capitan. Although you may have to let go of your apps and their data, it becomes a smaller price to pay for when compared to running the system in its current state with a truckload of software issues.
The upgrade install option is pretty straightforward. Therefore in this article, we will only discuss the download El Capitan andclean installation of El Capitan Mac OS X.
Download El Capitan iso and dmg installer
Is Your Device Compatible With Download El Capitan?
The new Mac OS X is compatible with any Mac PC that was previously running Mac OS X versions 10.8 - Mountain Lion, 10.9 - Mavericks, 10.10 - Yosemite. The reason why Mac computers only with Mavericks upgrade or latest will work with download El Capitan is thanks to Apple not removing any Mac hardware from its Mac OS X support list since Mavericks was introduced. The minimum memory requirement to install El Capitan is 2GB and 8 GB of free internal storage.
The following Mac devices are considered to be fully compatible to run Mac OS X El Capitan, given that all the below-mentioned devices have a minimum of 2GB RAM.
- iMac (The year 2006 and above)
- Mac Book (The year 2008) and Mac Book Black/White (The year 2009 upwards)
- All Mac Book Retina Models
- 15 inch Mac Book Pro (The year 2007 or later
- 17 inch Mac Book Pro (The year 2007 or later)
- Mac Mini (The year 2007 or later)/li>
- 2008 Mac Book Air or later
- Mac Pro (The year 2008 or later)
- 13 inch Mac Book Pro (The year 2009 or later)
- Xserve (The year 2009)
In addition to those mentioned above, the iMac model released in Mid of 2007 & in early 2008 as well the Mac Mini model released in early 2009 with 2 GB RAM will be compatible to run download El Capitan OS X. These models were originally manufactured with 1 GB RAM inside the device, hence the hardware upgrade is required. Although the above set of Mac devices are compatible with the download El Capitan Upgrade, several features such as Handoff, Air Drop will be limited only to newer models.
Likewise, although the recommended hardware requirement is 2 GB RAM and 8 GB of free hard disk space for running El Capitan, speaking from experience it would run a lot smoothly on 4GB memory and if you have 20GB free internal storage space. Having more memory than 4GB will certainly improve the user experience as the computer will operate faster and smoothly. These finer details mainly depend highly on your current Mac OS X version and your current hardware.
Few Things To Do Before You Download El Capitan And Install OS X
The next thing you need to do is something very important. You must create a backup of your Mac and then test this backup. You are recommended to use cloning software applications such as Mac Backup Guru, Super Duper, Carbon Copy Cloner to clone a backup that is bootable. You can even use a Time Machine backup also to serve this purpose, but that’s a choice that you will have to make on your own. Your own experience in using Mac devices will help you realize that.
For a first timer, the benefit of using a clone backup is you get to easily boot your device with an exact copy of your existing drive in case something goes wrong. The difference in a time machine backup is that it keeps your most recent as well as older versions of documents. After backing up your drive you should also test the backup you have taken to ensure you’re safe in case something goes wrong. To test a bootable clone backup you can access System Preferences Startup Disk Pane to boot your device from the backup created and verify that the backup is successful. In order to test a time machine backup, you can restore files in different versions to ensure your document's data is recoverable if something bad happens while the upgrade is processing. Depending on your need you can either use one or both methods to back up your Mac before you upgrade your OS to a newer version, which is, of course, download El Capitan OS X in this case.
Once the backup has been created and tested fully, we can move forward with the clean installation for El Capitan OS X.
There are 2 types of clean install methods that you can follow.
First method: download El Capitan and Clean Install on Empty Volume
This is the easier of the two methods. You will be simply required to install the new OS X into an empty volume or a volume that contains data that you are okay with erasing. In this method, the main thing to note is you are not installing download El Capitan OS X on your current startup volume, which is what the next method is all about. You can easily install the new OS onto an empty volume while being booted up from the existing startup drive.
El Capitan Direct Download Link
This option, however, is the most frequent installation option of these two. Most users will install the OS X on top of the current startup volume in order to get a clean, pristine OS. Since you’re replacing the existing startup drive, unable to boot from the existing startup drive, this method requires you to create a bootable USB stick which has download El Capitan Installer software in it. By plugging it into your Mac computer you can simply go through the steps to install the new OS fresh onto your existing startup volume without selecting a restore option.
El Capitan Direct Download Link is available with us. So if you want to upgrade to OS X El Capitan, you can get the direct download link from our website. El Capitan is the twelfth major release (version 10.11) to the Macintosh operating system. It is the successor to the Yosemite and Apple has added new features and a few improvements to this version. You can download El Capitan on your Mac PC to upgrade your MacOS or to downgrade your MacOS. And from here, you can get the El Capitan Download Link.
Introduction to El Capitan Download
OS X El Capitan is a feature-rich version of the Macintosh operating system. Because of the stunning features of it, many people upgrade and downgrade to the El Capitan. This is the last version of the OS X family. El Capitan Download features include a new system font, adjustments to the Mission Control Window Manager, split screen view, Spotlight Search improvements, enhancements to the Mac apps such as Safari, Mail, Notes, Photos, Maps, etc.
Any Mac personal computer or laptop running on OS X Yosemite or OS X Mavericks is compatible to get El Capitan Direct Download Link. If you haven’t tried this amazing MacOS version before, maybe this is the perfect time to try it. If you are using MacOS Sierra or High Sierra, and you are more satisfied with the previous version; El Capitan, you can downgrade your MacOS to El Capitan at any time you want.
Where to get El Capitan Direct Download Link?
OS X El Capitan is a well-famous MacOS version because still, there is a good demand for this versions. The reason for that is, El Capitan has amazing features in it. Some people upgrade to El Capitan to experience advanced features of it, and some people downgrade to El Capitan because some apps and app features are not supported in the upper MacOS versions. However, you first have to find the direct download link to El Capitan. And if you are curious about where to get El Capitan Download Link, this is perfect place you can get it because we provide you reliable download links to MacOS versions.
OS X 10.11 Download
OS X 10.11 Download is the twelfth major release to the Macintosh operating system which is namely, the El Capitan download. This is the 10.11 version to the MacOS and it is the last member of the OS X family. Apple has added new features, improvements, and bug fixes to this version of MacOS. Therefore, many people search to download El Capitan on their Mac computers and laptops.
If you are too searching to download El Capitan on your Mac PC/ laptop, you can get the direct download link from us. And if you are currently using MacOS Mojave or lower version (High Sierra, Sierra, Yosemite or Mavericks), your PC is compatible with OS X 10.11 Download.
Features of OS X 10.11 Download
- Safari has new features in the El Capitan update. It allows you to easily pin the tabs in the browser to the tab bar so that you can easily access them in the next time
- It has multi-touch gestures to applications like Mail and Messages. And it uses the gathered information of the individual emails on the apps like Calendar
- The Maps feature in the OS X 10.11 offers you the information about public transportation
- Notes feature has been added more powerful text processing capabilities. Under this improvement, you can add to-do-lists just like the Reminders application, map locations, photos and videos, inline webpage previews, digital sketches, and other media types
- The Spotlight feature is more improved with more contextual information
- The Photos feature in the El Capitan can now use editing tools from other apps
- The System Integrity Protection gives you more protection to the OS X El Capitan running Mac computers and laptops
Compatible Mac Computers to get OS X 10.11
- MacBook that was introduced in late 2008 or later
- MacBook Air that was introduced in late 2008 or later
- MacBook Pro that was introduced in mid-2007 or later
- Mac mini that was introduced in early 2009 or later
- iMac that was introduced in mid-2007 or later
- Mac Pro that was introduced in early 2008 or later
- Xserve models that were introduced in early 2009
Download El Capitan Without App Store
If you are curious whether it is possible to download El Capitan without App Store or not, yes, it is possible to download it without from the app store. We provide you the direct download links to upgrade/ downgrade El Capitan on your Mac computer. El Capitan is a featureful version of the Macintosh operating system.
As such, still, there is a good demand to El Capitan download. Some people think that it is only possible to download El Capitan from the app store but, they are wrong. It is possible to download El Capitan and we give you the download links to El Capitan.
El Capitan Download Methods
Usually, we download versions of operating systems as the disk images. There are two main disk images we use to carry MacOS versions.
01. El Capitan DMG Download: DMG is a mountable disk image which is used to carry MacOS versions. It used raw block data which is compressed or encrypted normally.
02. El Capitan ISO Download: ISO is also a disk image which is used to carry MacOSs. This is in fact, an entire copy of everything stored on a physical disc like Blue-ray disc, CD or DVD. It allows people to take an exact copy of a disc and burn a new disc just like the original.
Requirements to download El Capitan without App Store
- First of all, you must check and confirm the compatibility of your Mac PC or laptop
- You Mac PC or laptop must have at least 2GB of memory
- And the PC must have at least 8.8GB of available storage space
Select your Language
How to download El Capitan without App Store?
- Check the compatibility of the device, and make sure the PC has met with the requirements.
- Take a complete backup of the PC data so that you won’t lose your data if any case something went wrong.
- Mac Notebook computer users, connect your computer to the power. Then make sure you have a stable internet connection execute the download and installation.
- Visit our website and get the direct download link to El Capitan.
- Click on the Continue in the installer and follow the instructions on the screen to complete the installation.