Every year there is a major update to macOS, the Mac operating system, followed by smaller updates bringing fixes and new features in the months that follow. In 2022 Apple previewed macOS Ventura at WWDC in June and then, following an extensive beta testing phase, released the final version to Mac users on Monday, October 24.

If you are yet to update to Ventura, here’s what you need to know about the new features, whether Ventura will run on your Mac, and how Apple’s apps including Mail and Safari have changed. We’ll also discuss details of any issues and flaws people are encountering with the new software

Apple continues to develop macOS even after a major release, so throughout the months since Ventura arrived we have got regular updates bringing new features and fixes. In this article we’ll let you know what the latest version of macOS Ventura is and what new features it brought. And we’ll reveal what features will be coming in the next update to Ventura.

Update May 11 2023: macOS Ventura 13.4 will be here soon–Apple’s beta testers are looking at the release candidate. This followed a Rapid Security Response update that arrived on May 2 and provided important security fixes.

macOS Ventura: latest version

macOS Ventura arrived on Macs on Monday, October 24. As with previous releases, it became available for download at 10 a.m. PT.

On May 2 Apple issued a Rapid Security Response update for macOS Ventura 13.3.1. Apple’s new Rapid Security Response system means it can patch security vulnerabilities quickly, rather than waiting for a larger version releases that can take weeks to test. The patch was for macOS 13.3.1 (as well as iOS 16.4.1 and iPadOS 16.4.1). Apple stated that: “This Rapid Security Response provides important security fixes and is recommended for all users.” The update requires the Mac to shut down and restart and is about 310MB. If you have installed this update it will show on your Mac as macOS 13.3.1 (a).

macOS Ventura 13.3.1 arrived on April 7, two weeks after macOS 13.3. That update includes bug fixes and security updates including a fix for the pushing hands emoji which did not show skin tone variations and an issue where Auto Unlock your Mac with Apple Watch might not work.

macOS 13.3 arrived on March 27, 2023. It brought 21 new emoji, updates to the Freeform app, changes to the way Photos shows duplicates, extra translation support and keyboard layouts, a fix for an issue with Trackpad gestures and more. There is also an update to the Podcasts app with an improved Up Next queue, episode filtering and the ability to browse by season. macOS 13.3 also includes a number of security fixes. Unfortunately macOS 13.3 also introduced a number of problems including: an issue with Universal Control and Handoff not working, Quick Look not working, and a problem with Home directories saved to an external storage device.

macOS Ventura 13.2.1, arrived on February 13 and included three critical security fixes, including one for a WebKit vulnerability that could lead to arbitrary code execution.

macOS Ventura macOS 13.2 arrived on January 23 and included 22 security updates (many critical fixes) and several new features and fixes including support for physical FIDO-certified security keys that were announced as part of the Advanced Data Protection for iCloud. Advanced Data Protection also comes to users outside the U.S. for the first time.

Apple also used the 13.2 beta to push the first Rapid Security Response updates to the Mac, which will allow Apple to push smaller, targeted releases are for security updates that arrive between full OS updates on Macs, iPhones, and iPads.

macOS 13.1 arrived on December 13, 2022 and brought with it a new app called Freeform and iCloud Advanced Data Protection. Other new features include the ability to use a Mac to make an AirTag to play a sound so you can locate it, an improved Home app, better search in Messages, and fixes for various issues.

That update came just over a month after macOS Ventura macOS 13.0.1, which arrived on Macs on November 9, 2022. The macOS Ventura 13.0.1 update included bug fixes and two security updates. The security updates includes fix for an issue where a remote user could cause unexpected app termination or arbitrary code execution.

Next macOS Ventura update release date

We expect that Apple will make macOS 13.4 ready for download very soon–the beta is in the final ‘release candidate’ version as of May 10, so a release around May 16 or a week later on May 28.

macOS Ventura: Latest beta version

Apple’s beta testers are currently looking at the release candidate version of macOS 13.4. The first release for those with a developer account came on March 28, 2023 and this final version on May 10.

It takes Apple about around six weeks to properly test new versions of its operating systems, so we anticipated that macOS Ventura 13.4 will arrive at the end of May 2023, this is in line with our prediction that it could arrive in the week of May 15 or May 27.

The update could coincide with the launch of the rumored 15-inch MacBook Air although Apple may hold that back for WWDC on June 5.

What’s coming in macOS Ventura 13.4?

It’s not clear what changes will feature in 13.4 but Apple has revealed some fixes for certain issues including a fix for an issue with a Apple Studio Display firmware update.

There are a number of new features coming to iOS 16.5 that we anticipate will appear in the macOS update, including:

• A new ‘multi-view’ sports feature for the TV App, which gains a new Sports tab at the bottom of the screen.
• A new Sports tab in Apple News as well as a My Sports score and schedule cards linking to information about specific games.

macOS Ventura: Compatibility

The following Macs are supported by macOS Ventura:

• MacBook models from 2017 or later
• MacBook Air models from 2018 or later
• MacBook Pro models from 2017 or later
• Mac mini models from 2018 or later
• iMac models from 2017 or later
• iMac Pro (all models)
• Mac Pro models from 2019 or later
• Mac Studio (all models)

This means the following Macs, which were supported by Monterey, have now fallen off the list:

• iMac (models from 2015)
• MacBook Air (models from 2015 and 2017 models)
• MacBook Pro (2015 and 2016 models)
• Mac mini (2014 models)
• Mac Pro (2013 model – cylinder/trash can)
• MacBook (2016 model)

The 2014 Mac mini was sold until 2018, the ‘trash can’ Mac Pro until 2019, and the 2017 MacBook Air was sold until July 2019. We had thought that Apple wouldn’t remove those Macs from the supported list, since people might have purchased the model just such a short time ago. At least they will still be supported by macOS Monterey for at least two more macOS generations. See: This is how long Apple supports Macs. To find out if your Mac will support Ventura read: macOS 13 Ventura compatibility: Can your Mac run the latest version?

Some of the Macs that are supported by Ventura may not support all the new functions. Read: New macOS features that will only work on the newest Macs.

Wondering how Ventura compares to Monterey? Read macOS Ventura vs Monterey.

macOS Ventura: Problems, bugs and issues

As issues and problems arise–and as Apple issues fixes–we will include them here.

• Malwarebytes has flagged an issue with Ventura that it claims “disables security software”, which appears to be related to the inability to grant Full Disk Access to the software. According to Malwarebytes “Apple is aware of the issue and has said that it will be fixed in macOS Ventura version 13.1.” Malwarebytes does offer a fix for the problem.
• A Wi-Fi bug is reportedly affecting some Mac users running macOS Monterey and Ventura, with M1 and M2 MacBook users complaining of lost Wi-Fi connections, slow internet performance in general, and dropped Zoom calls. This is according to San Francisco-based internet infrastructure provider Meter. More information here: Pesky Wi-Fi bug in M1 and M2 MacBooks is likely related to AirDrop.
• macOS 13.1 fixes an issue that causes some notes not to sync with iCloud after updates are made.
• macOS 13.1 fixes an issue where you may lose keyboard and mouse input in some apps and games.
• Universal Control and Handoff broken for some users in macOS 13.3. Several users claimed that Universal Control between a Mac and iPad no longer works, and that Handoff is unresponsive as well.
• Auto Unlock your Mac with Apple Watch may not work. Fixed in macOS Ventura 13.3.1.
• Problem with Home directories not being saved to an external storage device. Fixed in macOS Ventura 13.3.1.

macOS Ventura: Features

Stage Manager

Continuity continues to evolve with the introduction of Stage Manager – a new way to manage your desktop clutter that reminds us a little bit of Spaces, because it allows you to organize working areas and hide them away, albeit at the side of your screen, rather than the top. Here’s how to use Stage Manager to organize your windows.

Continuity Camera

Another continuity-related feature allows you to use your iPhone as a webcam as well as Handoff a FaceTime call from your iPhone or iPad to your Mac. Continuity Camera is a great way to benefit from the superior camera on the iPhone. One really impressive feature is Desk View, which displays two views to the person you are calling – your face and your desk. Using the iPhone camera means that Mac users can benefit from features like Portrait mode and Centre Stage and the new Studio Light feature. Read about how to use your iPhone as a webcam for your Mac.

iCloud Shared Photo Library

You can now set up an album in Photos that lets you select up to five people that can all add photos and videos and quickly share them with each other. Here’s how to set it up on your iPhone, iPad, and Mac.

Advanced Data Protection for iCloud

In macOS 13.1 Apple added more than 20 data categories protected using end-to-end encryption, including iCloud Backup, Notes, and Photos.

Spotlight

Apple’s method to search your Mac – Spotlight – also received a revamp. Quick Look allows you to preview files and you can search photos by location, objects, people, and more. Live Text improvements mean that you will be able to search text within images and videos. Users will even be able to create a new document, start a timer, or more, from within Spotlight. More information here: How Apple has improved Spotlight search in Ventura.

Reminders

In macOS Ventura, Apple has added several new features to make Reminders more helpful. You’ll be able to see your reminders grouped by time and date, you will be able to pin a list and save lists to be used as templates. Read about the new features in Reminders here: Reminders in macOS Ventura.

System Settings

System Settings is the new name for System Preferences. A name that iOS users will likely feel at home with. Read about how Apple has revamped System Preferences in macOS Ventura in our in-depth article. We also discuss Mac preferences that have a new location in Ventura’s System Settings, including Storage, Hot Corners, Extensions, Mission Control, Appearance, Time Machine and Warranty Information.

Background noises

You can play soothing white noise on your Mac in Ventura, including the sound of rain, the ocean, or a stream. Read: How to play soothing white noise in macOS Ventura.

Gaming

Expect gaming on the Mac to truly take off (well Apple does anyway). Apple says that every new Mac will be able to run AAA games “with ease”. Improvements in Metal 3, MetalFX Upscaling, and Fast Resource Loading API should benefit game developers.

AirPods

In macOS Monterey and earlier, users didn’t get to control much of the AirPod’s settings, but that’s changing in Ventura. When Ventura launches users will finally get access to the full complement of AirPods settings, just like in iOS. Read more here: Full AirPods settings coming to your Mac.

macOS Ventura: App updates

Over the years at the same time as Apple has updated the Mac operating system it has also made changes to various apps that ship with the Mac, and we can expect more this year. Several new features are coming to Safari and Mail along with updates to Weather, the Clock, new accessibility tools (such as Live Captions).

Freeform

This is a brand new app that arrived in macOS Ventura 13.1 in December 2022. The Freeform app is a whiteboard app for the iPhone, iPad, and Mac that lets you work across devices and share sketches, notes, files, web links, documents, photos, video, and audio in real time.

Home

In macOS 13.1 Apple redesigned the Home app and improved performance.

Mail

Mail now has improved search, but probably the most anticipated feature will be the ability to cancel delivery of an email after clicking send (we imagine there is a time limit here) and also schedule sending an email. Both are features offered by third parties, but it’s good to see them coming to Apple’s email software. Read How to unsend and schedule e-mail in Apple Mail for more information.

There is some confusion over the inclusion of the Hide My Mail feature, which should mean that it isn’t a requirement to share your email with third parties. Initially, Apple referred to the feature, but this has since been erased from the webpage describing email features in Ventura, at least in some countries. Hide My Email isn’t new to Ventura – it arrived in Monterey in 2021, but in Ventura Apple was expected to extend it to third parties.

Messages

Like its iOS counterpart, Messages on the Mac will allow users to edit a message once sent and recover accidentally deleted messages.

In macOS 13.1 Apple improved search in Messages allows you to find photos based on their content, like a dog, car, person, or text.

Notes

In macOS 13.1 Apple improved collaboration in Notes by adding Participant Cursors so you can see live indicators when others are making updates in a shared note.

Safari

Passkeys will be generated as a more secure means of identifying you and are associated with Touch ID or Face ID. These will replace passwords. Apple claims that “Passkeys are unique digital keys that stay on the device and are never stored on a web server,” therefore they are more secure because it is impossible to leak one, or for anyone to phish one from you.

You may like to read about what to expect from Apple in 2023 as well the latest information about iOS 16.

Mac, MacOS, Personal Software

Macs may be a far less tempting target for malware and viruses, but they’re not immune from attack. Even if you don’t care about adware or being used as means to infect users on other platforms, it’s still possible to fall victim to ransomware, or password theft.

Accordingly, good antivirus for Mac software will protect your Mac on all of these fronts. It’ll catch malware that’s still spreading or in circulation; block ransomware; protect older systems with out-of-date software from security vulnerabilities; prevent your Mac from acting as a carrier for malware aimed at other operating systems; and keep infected files off of any virtual machines you’re running.

As to the question of which Mac antivirus software you should choose, our current top pick is Intego Mac Internet Security. However, you will find several other recommendations below that may suit you better, depending upon the type and number of devices that need protection and also how much you want to pay.

Our top contenders in our best Mac antivirus round up dominate by posting perfect (or virtually near perfect) scores from security research labs, passing our own malware detection tests with flying colors, offering well-designed interfaces, and even throwing in extra features like a firewall or password manager.

For some great discounts and deals see our best Mac antivirus deals round up.

Updated May 5, 2023 to update the F-Secure review.

Best antivirus for Mac reviews

Best Mac antivirus at a glance comparison

Here is an overview of the top Mac antivirus software tested above.

Developer

Product name

USB scan

Ransomware protection

Adware prevention

Anti phishing  protection

Email protection

Firewall

VPN

iOS version

Parental Controls

Support

Trial

Price

Intego

Internet Security X9

Y

Y

X

Y

X

Y

X

Y

Y

Y

7 days

$49.99/£49.99 / ye ($24.99/£20.99 /yr deal)

Clario

Antivirus 1.5 for Mac

Y

Y

Y

Y

X

X

Y

Y

X

Y

7 days

£107.88/£107.88 / ye (currently $50/£50 /ye); ($4.17/£4.17 / mo for a year, or $8.99/£8.99 /mo billed monthly)

AVG

AntiVirus for Mac

X

X

X

X

Y

X

X

Y

X

X

60 days

Free (Paid for version is $2.49 per month for one year / $2.39 a month for two-years / $2.29 a month for three-years)

Norton

360 Deluxe

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

30 days

$39.99/£34.99/yr

McAfee

Total Protection

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

30 days

$34.99/£34.99/yr

Avast

Premium Security

Y

Y

X

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

X

Y

60 days

$44.99/£39.99/yr

Bitdefender

Total Security

Y

Y

X

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

30 days

$39.97/£34.99/yr

Eset

Cyber Security Pro

Y

Y

X

Y

Y

Y

X

X

Y

Y

30 days

$49.95/£39.95/yr

Trend Micro

Antivirus for Mac

X

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

30 days

$39.99/£49.95

Avira

Prime

Y

Y

Y

Y

X

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

30 days

$99.99/£85.99

Do Macs need Mac antivirus software?

Plenty of Mac aficionados will tell you that Apple computers are inherently secure and don’t require protection. We’d argue that they are wrong – or overconfident, at the very least.

Not long ago, the Silver Sparrow malware was detected on Macs powered by the M1 processor and infected hundreds of thousands of Macs in total. The bad guys, then, are still very much targeting Mac users and they’re getting smarter and greedier. As a result, cyber security is something you can’t afford to ignore, and good Mac antivirus is a very good place to start if you want to stay safe.

Macs are generally more secure than their Windows brethren for two reasons. On the technical side, macOS is a Unix-based operating system. As a Unix-based operating system macOS is sandboxed.

Sandboxing is like having a series of fire doors: even if malware gains access to your Mac, it is unable to spread to other areas of the machine. They are more difficult to exploit than Windows PCs, but Macs are not unhackable.

More general advice can be found in our Mac security tips; and those who have been hit by a malware attack should try how to remove a virus from a Mac.

How to choose the best Mac antivirus

Features fundamental to all packages are two ways to find viruses: on-demand protection and via always-on protection. The former finds viruses by examining one file after another during scheduled scans, or when you choose to undertake a scan, perhaps because you’re worried your Mac might be infected. The speed at which the Mac antivirus app can do this is important, because some take a long time and also hog the Mac’s CPU while they do so. Waiting six hours to find out if your Mac is infected is neither convenient nor relaxing.

Always-on malware protection is what protects the user outside of the times when scans are run. If some malware arrives, perhaps via an email or a downloaded file, then the always-on protection should be able to detect it and either quarantine it (copy it to a safe folder so the user can decide what to do with it), or simply delete it. Usually a notification is shown when malware is detected in this way, but not all antimalware apps show the same amount of explanation of what’s happened – and this was one of the factors we examined in our testing.

Outside of direct malware detection, many security suites include additional tools such as ransomware protection. Ransomware is a type of malware that, once it’s infected a computer, encrypts all the user’s files and then demands a fee to decrypt them. To protect against this infection, anti-ransomware features typically block any app from writing to a user’s home folders, such as Documents or Photos, unless the app’s pre-approved (a process called whitelisting). Lots of apps come already pre-approved, of course, such as Microsoft Word, or Apple’s own Photos app. But you can add others.

Several products also include virtual private network (
VPN) add-ons. These protect an internet connection by encrypting it, and this is useful when utilising unsafe open WiFi such as that provided by a café or hotel. In our experience, these are not replacements for separate paid-for VPN services as many do not unblock video streaming services and some are cut-down versions which constantly nag you to pay extra for the full, premium versions.

Web protection via browser plugins or extensions is also a common component and aims to stop you (or your children) doing anything you regret online, such as visiting fake or infected websites or handing over personal information.

There are usually different options from each vendor, and you get more extras with the top packages, and far fewer with free ones. They might include password managers, parental controls, cloud storage – the list goes on. Generally, the underlying antimalware engine is the same in all products from the same company, so you can save money if you don’t need those additional features.

Do bear in mind that all antivirus for Mac apps are sold as yearly subscriptions. That’s right, you can’t just pay once and use forever. Often there’s a hefty discount for that first year’s subscription, but this can burn you when automatic renewal occurs a year later and the full retail price is charged: often 100% more. Alternatively, you can purchase several years’ subscriptions at once for a bigger discount.

Some of the best Mac antivirus subscriptions allow you to install the software on more than one computer (including Windows and Android devices), which can sometimes add significantly to the value – all computers, phones and tablets within a household can be protected with one subscription.

Spotting fake Mac antivirus software

Beware that, due to the fact that people are so concerned about malware threats on the Mac, there have been cases of malware disguising itself as an antivirus app, such as the Mac Auto Fixer pop-ups that appeared on some Macs suggesting that software needs to be installed (at a high price). This is similar to another fake antivirus app called MacDefender.

Another Mac antivirus company that is often thought of as unscrupulous is MacKeeper. In the past various reports have suggested it is a scam or at worst malware. In recent times MacKeeper has attempted to transform itself and leave its disreputability behind. It has, for example, gained Apple Notarization – which means the software is checked by Apple for malicious components. The company has also been working to get certifications from various bodies to prove it isn’t a PUP, including an AV-Test certificate. If you have any problems with MacKeeper we do explain how to remove it here: How to uninstall MacKeeper.

How we test Mac antivirus software

Each software package is evaluated creating a clean installation of macOS, cloning it for each AV product, and then booting separately into each one to install a different package. This was to ensure that previous app installations didn’t interfere with new ones – sometimes AV software treats other AV software as an infection.

In addition to visiting malicious websites, downloading known malicious software, and even running said malware on our Mac, we also reference the most recent reports from two labs that regularly cover macOS malware: AV Comparatives and AV-TEST. These laboratories test AV software against sets of known malware as well as products that are grouped as potentially unwanted applications (like adware).

The latter doesn’t damage or expose your computer or its files but may consume power and CPU cycles. Because the testing effectively looks at a combination of virus databases and behavior, they remain good gauges even after many months. When an antivirus for Mac software package lacks a rating from a known security research lab, we do more extensive testing with real malware.

Finally, while we gave props for a lot of different features and behaviors, we marked products down if they lacked any or all of the following:

• A nearly perfect score on macOS malware detection
• Ransomware monitoring
• Native browser plug-in or system-level Web proxy
• A high score on Windows malware detection

Privacy concerns

Using a Mac antivirus product, especially any that includes tools to also improve your online privacy, may lull you into believing you’re safe from personal and private information leaking out. That’s not quite the case. While there’s no reason to panic, you should consider a few reasonable issues.

First, an antivirus for Mac product may upload the complete text of files flagged to the cloud, where it can be analyzed by separate tools hosted there. This practice is normal and sensible: Some malware can detect when a running process may examine it, and will then engage in subterfuge. Antivirus software makers also can access their massive databases to examine files with characteristics that trigger their algorithms—certain elements that match known malware. As a result, security researchers discover new viruses, worms, Trojans horses, and the like.

However, helping the greater good means you’ll have to be comfortable with trusting a third-party with your file contents. Where appropriate, we noted privacy policy issues in individual reviews.

Second, this software may also rely partly or entirely on cloud-based checks of URLs, malware, and the like. Accordingly, an AV package might upload every URL you visit, metadata about files, signatures of files, information about your computer’s hardware, a list of running or installed applications, and more. Companies vary on their disclosure of such policies, and may not let you opt out of this kind of sharing. We note issues in each review as available.

Third, anti-virus software makers also get a sense of what behavior is happening on your computer that’s being monitored or blocked, and may use that information for their own purposes. In some cases, you can opt out of this information gathering.

Antivirus, Personal Software, Security