Wondering what the name of the latest macOS version is? Want to know what the next version of macOS will be called? Curious about the versions of Mac OS X that came before? Here we’ll fill you in on the names of the different versions of the Mac operating system in order: from the newest macOS to the first version of Mac OS X and the codenames that Apple used for them. We’ll also show you how you can check which version of macOS you are running and find out what the latest version of macOS is.

What is the latest macOS?

The latest version of macOS is called macOS Tahoe after the lake located in California. That version of macOS launched to the general public on September 15, 2025. Prior to Tahoe, the latest version of Sequoia was macOS 15.7, which also arrived on September 15, 2025, but includes only security fixes.

If you are looking for help installing macOS read: How to update macOS and Fixes for Macs that won’t update. We can also help with How to install macOS on an unsupported Mac.

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macOS Tahoe is here.

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Foundry

What is macOS?

macOS is the Mac operating system, like iOS is the iPhone operating system and iPadOS is the iPad operating system. It’s the software that runs in the background, providing the user interface and providing the link between the hardware and software.

All Macs run macOS, previously known as Mac OS X, and have done so since the introduction of the first version of Mac OS X in 2001. Before that, Macs ran Mac OS 9 which came out in October 1999 and received updates until December 2001. Mac OS X was based on technology from NeXT Computer, which was another company founded by Steve Jobs. Jobs brought the technology back to Apple with him when he was reinstated as Apple CEO. The operating system is Unix-based.

Mac OS X was launched more than two decades ago on March 24, 2001. There’s been a lot of change over those two decades: good and bad. From the problems with the first edition (it was slow and didn’t run important apps like Microsoft Word) Mac OS X has evolved through various iterations and various designs to what we know today. We’ve seen tight integration with iOS devices, the incorporation of the cloud, and the arrival of excellent and helpful features including integrated Time Machine backups, Quick Look – which lets you see a preview of a document without opening the application, and innovations like Expose and Spaces and Desktop Stacks to help you work more efficiently.

For an overview of the features of the various versions of the Mac operating system, showing how it has developed over time, take a look at our video above. If you want to know the names Apple assigned to Mac OS X over the years, and the codenames that were used internally, read on.

macOS versions in order

Here’s an overview of every version of macOS and Mac OS X Apple has released. You’ll find a complete list of the latest release of each version of OS X and macOS, along version code names, along with internal code names (if available):

• OS X 10 beta: Kodiak – September 13, 2000





• OS X 10.0: Cheetah – March 14, 2001 (Latest: 10.0.4)





• OS X 10.1: Puma – September 15, 2001 (Latest: 10.1.5)





• OS X 10.2: Jaguar – August 14, 2002 (Latest: 10.2.8)





• OS X 10.3 Panther (Pinot) – October 24, 2003 (Latest: 10.3.9)





• OS X 10.4 Tiger (Merlot) – April 29, 2005 (Latest: 10.4.11)





• OS X 10.4.4 Tiger (Chardonnay) – January 10, 2006 (for Intel Macs) (Latest: 10.4.11)





• OS X 10.5 Leopard (Chablis) – October 26, 2007 (Latest: 10.5.8)





• OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard – August 28, 2009 (Latest: 10.6.8)





• OS X 10.7 Lion (Barolo) – July 20, 2011 (Latest: 10.7.5)





• OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion (Zinfandel) – July 25, 2012 (Latest: 10.8.5)





• OS X 10.9 Mavericks (Cabernet) – October 22, 2013 (Latest: 10.9.5)





• OS X 10.10: Yosemite (Syrah) – October 16, 2014 (Latest: 10.10.5)





• OS X 10.11: El Capitan (Gala) – September 30, 2015 (Latest: 10.11.6)





• macOS 10.12: Sierra (Fuji) – September 20, 2016 (Latest: 10.12.6)





• macOS 10.13: High Sierra (Lobo) – September 25, 2017 (Latest: 10.13.6)





• macOS 10.14: Mojave (Liberty) – September 24, 2018 (Latest: 10.14.6, July 2021)





• macOS 10.15: Catalina (Jazz) – October 7, 2019 (Latest: 10.15.7, Security Update 2022-005, July 2022)





• macOS 11: Big Sur (GoldenGate) – November 12, 2020 (Latest: 11.7.10, September 11, 2023)





• macOS 12: Monterey (Star) – October 25, 2021 (Latest: 12.7.6, July 29, 2024)





• macOS 13: Ventura (Rome) – October 24, 2022 (Latest: 13.7.8, August 20, 2025)





• macOS 14: Sonoma (Sunburst) – September 26, 2023 (Latest: 14.8, September 15, 2025)





• macOS 15: Sequoia (Glow) – September 18, 2024 (Latest: 15.7, September 15, 2025)





• macOS 26: Tahoe (Cheer) – September 15, 2025

We have a full list of which Macs run which versions of macOS here.

You can install a beta version of macOS and test new features that haven’t yet launched. If you want to install the latest beta of macOS read about joining Apple’s beta program.

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macOS Tahoe.

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Foundry

Mac OS X and macOS names

As you can see from the list above, with the exception of the first OS X beta, all versions of the Mac operating system from 2001 to 2012 were named after big cats, from Cheetah to Panther to the final release, Mountain Lion. But while the public-facing builds were named after big cats, internally, they were named after wines (aside from OS X 10.6 which had no codename).

Even after Apple switched public-facing code names to places in California back in 2013, it carried on naming them after wines internally until 2014. In 2015, Apple decided to change the theme of internal code names from wines to types of apples. Original.

In 2016, Apple took the plunge to unify the branding of its operating systems by rebranding Mac OS X to macOS, which sits nicely alongside iOS, tvOS, and watchOS and paved the way for macOS 11, the successor to