The following is a table showing MacOS version history:
| MacOS | Name | Year | Description |
| 10.0 | Cheetah | 2001 | Aqua interface |
| 10.1 | Puma | 2001 | Improved performance, CD and DVD burning, DVD playback, Enhanced printing support |
| 10.2 | Jaguar | 2002 | MPEG-4 QuickTime support, Quartz Extreme (graphics acceleration), Search in Finder, Universal Access, Address Book |
| 10.3 | Panther | 2003 | Safari set as default browser, Font Book, Fast user switching, Exposé (Window manager), FileVault, Improved Portable Document Format (PDF) rendering |
| 10.4 | Tiger | 2005 | Spotlight search, Dashboard, Smart folders, Automator, Intel processor support |
| 10.5 | Leopard | 2007 | New 3D style dock, Support for 64-bit applications, Time Machine, Spaces, BootCamp |
| 10.6 | Snow Leopard | 2009 | Most apps updated to 64-bit, Update introduced App Store |
| 10.7 | Lion | 2011 | Natural scrolling, Launchpad, Mission control, Intel only (dropped support for PowerPC) |
| 10.8 | Mountain Lion | 2012 | Notes, Reminders, Messages, Game Center, Notification Center |
| 10.9 | Mavericks | 2013 | iCloud Keychain, Maps, iBooks support |
| 10.10 | Yosemite | 2014 | Major redesign of user interface (flat design), Handoff, Continuity, Phone calls and text message handling, Update introduced Photos (replacing iPhoto) support |
| 10.11 | El Capitan | 2015 | Major performance boost, Metal API support |
| 10.12 | Sierra | 2016 | Unlocking with Apple Watch, Siri, Apple Pay, iCloud Documents and Desktop support |
| 10.13 | High Sierra | 2017 | APFS File System, HEIC Video Standard, Metal 2 API support |
| 10.14 | Mojave | 2018 | News, Stocks, Home, Dark mode, Dynamic desktop (changes depending on time of day) |
| 10.15 | Catalina | 2019 | iTunes split into Music, Podcasts and Apple TV, Sidecar, 64 Bit applications only (dropped support for 32 Bit apps) |
| 11 | Big Sur | 2020 | Major redesign change of user interface, Support for M1 processors (ARM based), Support for running iOS applications |
| 12 | Monterey | 2021 | Shortcuts, Improved Notes (Tags), Focus, Improved FaceTime, Shareplay, Shared with You, Universal Control, Airplay to Mac, Live Text. iCloud+ |
| 13 | Ventura | 2022 | Stage Manager, Continuity Camera, Weather and Clock, Freeform, Mail send later and unsend, Messages edit and unsend, iCloud Shared Photo Library |
| 14 | Sonoma | 2023 | Desktop Widgets, Game Mode, Dynamic Wallpaper, Enhanced Video Conferencing, Safari profiles, Sharing passwords, Enhanced messages app, PDFs in notes, Reminders grocery lists |
| 15 | Sequoia | 2024 | Apple Intelligence, AI driven writing tools, Genmoji, improved Siri, iPhone remote control & notifications, Drag and drop between Mac and iPhone, Easy window tiling, Background replacements in Facetime, Safari (highlights, reader improved), Passwords app, Improved gaming, Messages (text effects, tapback with emoji, schedule message for later), Topographical maps, Math notes, Notes (live audio transcription, collapsable sections, highlighted text), Calculator improvements, Reminders in Calender, Freeform snap to grid, Photos collections, Home app guest access |
| 26 | Tahoe | 2025 | New Phone App, Phone Live Activities, improved Spotlight (allowing users to directly execute actions), expanded Apple Intelligence capabilities, new colour options (for folders, app icons, and widgets), new look and feel (Liquid Glass), new Apple Games App, Game Overlay, Metal 4, updated Messages App (Backgrounds, Polls, typing indicators in groups), new Journal App |
The following is a table showing MacOS compatibility:
| MacOS | Year | Required Mac |
| Big Sur | 2020 | MacBook: Early 2015 or later MacBook Air: 2013 or later MacBook Pro: 2013 or later Mac mini: 2014 or later iMac: 2014 or later iMac Pro: All models Mac Pro: 2013 and 2019 |
| Monterey | 2021 | MacBook: Early 2016 or later MacBook Air: Early 2015 or later MacBook Pro: Early 2015 or later Mac mini: 2014 or later iMac: 2015 or later iMac Pro: All models Mac Pro: Late 2013 and later Mac Studio: All models |
| Ventura | 2022 | MacBook: 2017 or later MacBook Air: 2018 or later MacBook Pro: 2017 or later Mac mini: 2018 or later iMac: 2017 or later iMac Pro: All models Mac Pro: 2019 or later Mac Studio: All models |
| Sonoma | 2023 | MacBook Air: 2018 and later MacBook Pro: 2018 and later Mac mini: 2018 and later iMac: 2019 and later iMac Pro: All models Mac Pro: 2019 and later Mac Studio: All models |
| Sequoia | 2024 | MacBook Air: 2020 and later MacBook Pro: 2018 and later Mac mini: 2018 and later iMac: 2019 and later iMac Pro: 2017 and later Mac Pro: 2019 and later Mac Studio: All models |
| Tahoe | 2025 | MacBook Air: Apple Silicon MacBook Pro: Apple Silicon, 16" Intel 2019, Intel 13" 2020 Mac mini: Apple Silicon iMac: Apple Silicon Mac Pro: 2019 and later Mac Studio: All models |
The following is a table showing Classic Mac OS version history:
| MacOS | Year | Description |
| 1 | 1984 | Initial Release |
| 2 | 1985 | Finder update, Shutdown command, MiniFinder, Screenshots (command-shift-3) |
| 2.1 | 1985 | Hard drive support |
| 3 | 1986 | MacIntosh Plus support |
| 3.3 | 1987 | Appleshare 1 |
| 4 | 1987 | MacIntosh SE support |
| 5 | 1987 | MultiFinder (multitasking) |
| 6 | 1988 | Support for 68030 CPU and 1.44 MB floppy drive |
| 7 | 1991 | Major redesign of user interface, Support for 68040 CPU, Virtual memory, 32-bit memory addressing, improved multitasking, Fonts folder, Personal file sharing, Aliases, Drag and drop, Applescript, TrueType fonts, PowerPC support |
| 8 | 1997 | Multi-threaded Finder, Copying files in background, New Platinum shaded appearance, Themes added, HFS+ file system |
| 8.5 | 1998 | PowerPC only, Firewire support, Anti-aliased text, Sherlock (for finding files) |
| 9 | 1999 | Multi-user support, File encryption, modifications to allow for running under OS X, 9.2.2 (2001) was the final Classic release |