macOS 26 — all the new features coming to your MacBook

Apple is bringing a slate of new features to your MacBook with macOS Tahoe 26, and it promises to be a big deal.

A big theme of macOS 26 is more interactivity with your other Apple devices, as the company is upgrading a slew of Continuity features in macOS. It's also going to look a little different, as Apple is bringing key elements of its new "Liquid Glass" design language to macOS so it looks a bit more like iPadOS 26, iOS 26 and VisionOS.

You can also expect a bunch of Apple Intelligence-fueled features like new Live Translation options, new Genmoji and new ways of searching and sorting through your files.

We're at WWDC 2025 live reporting on what's new with macOS 26, so scroll down for the latest updates on what Apple's big macOS changes in 2025!

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macOS 26: Quick facts

Here are the highlights of what's new with macOS 26:

• Apple is giving macOS a makeover to bring it closer in line with the company's new "Liquid Glass" cross-platform design aesthetic.
• Spotlight Search is getting what Apple calls "the biggest update ever to Spotlight", which translates to new result ranking algorithms, new reach into third-party cloud services, better browsing and more.
• Live Translation is coming to Messages, so your texts will be translated live just like they will be on iPhones and iPads running this year's update. FaceTime videos Phone app calls will also gain live translations via captions.
• Get ready for Live Activity updates on your Mac via Continuity with your iPhone, so you can see your DoorDash notification on your MacBook and pick up the call on your iPhone.

macOS 26: Release date

Apple is slated to release macOS Tahoe 26 in September of 2025, though I expect a beta version will be available for the public sometime this summer.

Of course, the developer beta is available right now so that companies can start updating their apps to fit in with Apple's big change to macOS. So those brave and foolhardy enough to submit themselves to the potential bugs and instabilities of that early version could theoretically be downloading macOS Tahoe 26 right now.

macOS Tahoe: New features

There will be a host of changes under the hood of your Mac when you upgrade this year, but these are the notable new features coming in macOS 26.

New Apple Intelligence features that span the breadth of the operating system, including access to improved Genmoji, a more capable Image Playground with new art styles and more capable Writing Tools.

New Apple Games app which aims to be your one-stop shop for gaming on your Mac. The Apple Games app will give you access to a Game Overlay you can call up during gameplay to do things like mess with settings or message friends, just like Steam.

New "Liquid Glass" design that features changes like a more transparent menu bar, more customizable menus and interfaces that evoke the crystalline liquidity of Apple's new cross-platform design language.

New Spotlight Search features that will make the search tool much more receptive to natural language and capable of giving results that are easier to access. It will get a browser upgrade, new capabilities to access a broader range of files in a wider range of places, including third-party cloud services.

New Live Translation features in multiple apps, including live captions in Phone and FaceTime calls as well as live translations in Messages so that you can text folks in other languages and see their responses translated in rea ltime.

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