Download MacOS full offline installer & DMG [direct link]

Get direct links to download macOS from Apple in APP, IPSW & PKG formats for all versions from OS X Lion up to Sonoma. A macOS full installer helps you build a bootable USB for semi-offline reinstallation and recovery. We also explain about downloading or making macOS DMG version.

The Mac app store is the most avowed and secure channel to download macOS installers and updates. It works well if you have a stable and fast network connection. However, downloading from the App Store doesn’t don’t work in certain circumstances, especially when your account is experiencing issues. Occasionally Macs also get into internal software and hardware problems and may end up in boot loops. So if you are wondering how to get a macOS offline installer in the situations mentioned above, check the solutions given below. This article explores different ways to download the macOS full installer (APP, DMG & PKG) directly from Apple, all through legal channels.

Get macOS full installer from the App Store

First, let’s talk about the official method to save macOS installers downloaded from the App Store. It is effortless if you have the direct App Store links for macOS and if your Mac is in working condition. Click on one of the links given below; they automatically open the Mac App Store. Now, press the “Get” button for the software update to fetch and download the macOS full installer.

MacOS Yosemite, Mountain Lion & Lion are available for download as DMG installers, directly from Apple. Please scroll down to the DMG download section.

Once the download is complete, open your Mac’s “Applications” folder as shown below.

As shown in the above image, you will find an “Install macOS Monterey^*” app; this is your full-size macOS installer. Sometimes the installer gets deleted automatically after a macOS installation or upgrade. So if you want to install macOS on multiple devices or make a bootable USB disk, copy this offline installer to a safe location.

How to make macOS USB disk (offline Installer)

Once you have a copy of macOS full installer downloaded from the App Store, you could use it make a USB disk. The steps for making a bootable macOS USB installer is given below.

First, visit the Apple’s website for the Terminal command that is needed for making a USB drive from the downloaded “install macOS” app. Copy-paste the required command for the OS version to the Terminal app in your Mac. Here I’m copying the code for macOS Monterey 12.6.

Connect a USB disk of nearly 16GB size and choose a suitable name (I use WINYTIPS) for it. Then, delete the label “MyVolume” and add your disk’s name at the end of the terminal command. Finally, execute the command (press the Return key) to make the bootable macOS USB installer; it appears on your desktop after a few minutes.

Alternative: If you are not familiar with using Terminal and command-line tools, you may use an app like DiskMakerX or MDS (explained below) to build a bootable macOS USB installer.

Download macOS offline installer without App Store

You can’t download all macOS versions from the App Store because Apple restricts it. Based on a device’s hardware & software limitations, errors like “update not found,” “we could not complete your purchase,” etc., appear when you try downloading macOS. However, there are situations where users need to download old and new macOS versions across different devices. For example, if my old Mac is not booting up for some reason, I use my 2021 MacBook Air to fix it, most of the time. How? I create a macOS USB and regain access to my device in offline mode. But this approach requires a macOS full installer. Since Apple doesn’t provide it in some cases, we look for an alternative. Here is how I download macOS without App Store that too from Apple.

A direct download link is not available for old macOS versions like Catalina 10.15, Mojave 10.14, High Sierra 10.13, etc. When someone requests these versions of macOS through the software update, Apple downloads the OS part by part to their Mac. The system then joins the OS files to form the macOS installer that we see in the Applications folder. Some apps and scripts can scan the Apple catalog and check which all macOS versions are currently accessible for download. If the user requests a specific OS, it can download macOS files from Apple and join them together to form offline installer. We have a video about one such tool, gibMacOS; have a look at the details below.

Check the later parts of the video (starting from 2.30) to see how we can take advantage of the “gibMacOS” script to download old macOS editions like High Sierra, Mojave, Catalina directly to your Mac. We have explained the steps to select and download the macOS versions and create the full installer using a second script.  

One thing we missed in the video is gibMacOS’s ability to download macOS Big Sur, and Monterey’s Beta and Developer builds. Just change the catalog (put option C in Terminal) to download macOS Beta full installers. The gibMacOS script can also run on a Windows PC. However, we can’t talk about it for for legal reasons; you can try it yourself.

MacOS direct download links: Ventura (13.6.5), Monterey (12.7.4), Big Sur (11.7.10)

After the release of macOS Big Sur, Apple provides public and direct download links for macOS in PKG format. Hence, it is possible to download macOS Big Sur 11.7, macOS Monterey 12.7, and macOS Ventura 13.6 full-size installers to your Mac, Windows, or any internet-connected device. However, you need a Mac to install and extract this downloaded PKG file and save the macOS installer to your “Applications” folder.

Once you get hold of the InstallAssistant.PKG file, double-click on it, and complete the installation. After this, you may go to the “Applications” folder to find macOS Big Sur/Monterey full offline installer and use it for OS upgrade or installation.

Those who want to participate in the macOS Ventura Public Beta program may now sign-up for the opportunity from the Apple website. Then you may open up the go Software update and check for the Monetary download. Alternatively, people facing issues with the download may click the above direct link to save macOS Ventura 13.6 full installer to your Mac.

If your Mac has an M1 chip, there is a version of macOS that comes in IPSW format, just like iOS. The recoveryOS (firmware) helps restore a Mac using the Apple configurator app (available on the app store) and a separate Mac.

How to get macOS IPSW firmware (offline installer)

Download macOS latest IPSW files for Sonoma 14.5, Big Sur 11.6, Ventura 13.6, Monterey 12.6.1 (download this version and upgrade to 12.6.4 through software update).

Similar to iOS, M1 macs also have the feature that allows you to restore your faulty device using a downloaded IPSW file. You have to put your Mac in DFU mode and download the Apple Configurator app to perform the recovery. Connect the M1 mac to another Mac, run the Apple configurator, and drag and drop the macOS IPSW file to start the offline restore process. The complete set of instructions for reviving and restoring your M series Mac using the IPSW file is presented on the Apple website.

How to download macOS DMG

DMG or Disk image is a conventional format used in macOS for distributing macOS installer and applications. DMG is a mainstream file type in older Macs.  Still, some old versions of macOS like OS X Lion 10.7, OS X Mountain Lion 10.8, Sierra 10.12, El Capitan 10.11, and Yosemite 10.10 are available to download in DMG format. However, presently, almost all applications have the .app extension when you download from the App Store.

Double-click on the downloaded file (on a Mac) to open and access the macOS installer. In Windows, you may use 7-Zip to extract it since DMGs are almost like ZIP or RAR, the archive formats.

Links to macOS DMG update installers.

Apple no longer provides the full installer of macOS in DMG format for OS updates after OS X Sierra. What they provide in DMG extension is the incremental security and supplemental updates for the already existing OS. That means the macOS DMG files listed on some sites are not the full-size macOS installer. They cannot be used to re-install or recover a computer. These macOS DMG files are actually offline update installers.

Get a DMG installer if you get the error message “macOS update could not be installed” in the App store or if the software update download is stuck because of network issues or for any reason.

Latest macOS offline update installers as on 29-07-2023.

Update: Apple stops providing offline update installers (DMG) from macOS 11 Big Sur.

PS: If you’re searching for macOS bootable DMG files that enable you to create a USB installer from Windows or do a virtualisation, the files above are not suitable. However, if you want to obtain such DMG images, please refer to our article, which explains how to convert a macOS installer.app to a bootable DMG.

Download macOS Ventura, Monterey, Big Sur and High Sierra DMG using MDS app

The advantage of DMG is that it can hold multiple files in the package; the author can provide it to the user as a direct single-file download, suitable for internet transfer. Since it’s a disk image, we need to mount it to access internal files, and it also has properties similar to the ISO extension in Windows.

You can also use apps like MDS to download macOS offline installer as a DMG file, as shown in the above screenshot. Just like the gibMacOS, MDS can download macOS High Sierra, Catalina, Mojave, Big Sur, and Monterey, but in DMG format. Select the PublicSeed Catalog to see all available macOS versions. However, macOS DMG downloaded through MDS is not bootable; it’s a package of macOS offline installer, apps, settings, and some scripts. MDS can automate and install macOS on multiple Macs with pre-configured settings and apps.

Making bootable macOS USB installer drive with MDS

Another interesting feature of MDS is the option to create bootable USB installer for latest versions of macOS, especially the ones not supported by DiskmakerX. After downloading a macOS DMG using MDS, mount it and open “Applications” directory. Then copy the macOS full installer to a suitable location and then provide this directory in the “Create Bootable Installer” window of the MDS app. Finally, select a “Target Volume” as press the create button to build the recovery USB key.

How to make bootable macOS DMG image from the full installer

In our column about making macOS USB in Windows, we tell about a special DMG file. This macOS DMG installer is the only hope when your Mac is faulty, and you got only a Windows PC at your place for any possible recovery. It has the boot files of a macOS USB made on a Mac. Hence, when you write this image to a USB on Windows, it works exactly like a Mac-built USB. You can use third-party apps TransMac or Balena Etcher to complete this process.

The above video illustrates the step-by-step process to make bootable a macOS disk image in a Mac. You may also convert the output DMG file to a macOS ISO if wanted. Unfortunately, we can’t share them on our website as they are slightly altered versions of macOS. Therefore, if you encounter boot issues with your Mac and only have a PC at your place, get the help of someone who can make macOS DMG by watching the above video; they can easily send the DMG file to you through the Internet.