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I have used Apple Numbers in the past, have deleted it because of a tiny 128GB ssd. I'm still on macOS 10.15 Catalina, want to install it via the Appstore, and get this message:

Numbers can’t be installed on “macos” because macOS version 11 or later is required.

What stupidity is this? Why can't they offer a version for macOS 10 for download? Is this a way to force users to install 11?

How can I install Numbers for macOS 10?

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  • This is a real nightmare of user experience, conceived by Apple: a religious software policy for addict consumers.
    – athena
    Commented Feb 20 at 15:32

3 Answers 3

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Open the App Store application. If necessary, sign in. Press the key combination ⌘0 or select Store→View My Account..... If you previously downloaded Numbers, then you should be able to download the older version from the webpage.

I have Catalina installed on a 2013 iMac. Below is an example for the Pages application. I can not show an example for the Numbers application, because I already have Numbers installed.

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If you never downloaded Numbers previously, then you may wish to try one of the alternatives given below.

  • Find someone you has purchased Numbers. Use their account to download Numbers to your Mac.
  • Find another Mac with a version of Numbers compatible with your Mac and migrate to your Mac.
  • Find a machine running Big Sur or newer, which does not have Numbers installed. Use your account to install Numbers on that machine, then go back to your Mac and install Numbers. See my other answer for an example.
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    I have downloaded it in the past, so this worked for me. Thanks for the tip! But to be honest, this is a shitty user experience. The Appstore should automatically select the right version for my OS.
    – SPRBRN
    Commented Nov 7, 2021 at 13:32
  • I know I probably shouldn't post something that is not helping with the answer but I just want to say thank you! You saved my day!
    – Zorji
    Commented Jun 14, 2022 at 10:49
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If the Numbers application is not shown as a previous purchase under your Apple ID, then you may be able to use following steps to download and install. Since you have a small internal SSD, you would probably need the additional space provided by an external drive for the temporary virtual machine.

Basically, the temporary virtual machine is needed to put the Numbers application in the list of purchases under your Apple ID. Once in the list, an older version of the application can be downloaded on the real Mac. (Actually, since the Numbers application is already install on my Mac, I tested using the Pages application instead.)

I have a 2013 iMac. The latest version of macOS that Apple officially supports for my Mac is Catalina. I have Catalina installed on a external 500 GB USB SSD. I created a new Apple ID for the purpose of determining a way to download the Numbers application using an Apple ID with no previous purchases.

  1. Download and install the VMware Player application. This is a free product provided the use is for Non-Commercial activity.
  2. Download the "Install macOS Catalina" application from the App Store.
  3. Create a Catalina virtual machine. Afterwards, you can delete the "Install macOS Catalina" application.
  4. Upgrade the virtual machine to Monterey.
  5. Use the virtual machine and your Apple ID to install the current version of the Numbers application from the App Store into Monterey. Afterwards, you can delete the virtual machine.
  6. Use your Apple ID to install the older version of the Numbers application from the App Store into Catalina. See my other answer for the procedure.

    Note: You probably will incur a delay before an application purchased appears in your account when viewed on a machine which is different from the machine where the purchase was made. This appears to be true regardless of whether either machine is real or virtual.

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As of 2024.10, The way to download the last/latest supported version of Numbers for Mac that is supported by your version of MacOS (OSX is dead, long live OSX!) is:

If you already have an older version installed:

  1. On your Mac, move your installed version into Trash (do NOT empty the Trash until you're done because your fallback is to remove it from Trash and put it back in Applications).

  2. CONFIRM (see) Numbers is in your app store account [command+0 (zero), aka: ⌘0, or select Store→View My Account]

  3. From the App Store (in your account>purchased-apps, or from the main App Store page)look for Numbers.

  4. Click the cloud-download button. This will cause a popup that asks something like "Download an oder version of Numbers?"..click the DOWNLOAD button.

This will install the latest version of Numbers that is compatible with your MacOS/OSX version. This will work for any Apple app (Pages, etc). step by step process

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    OP's question states they don't have a version of Numbers installed due to space. How does your answer help them in this circumstance? Your answer assumes an already installed copy with no alternative.
    – Andy Griffiths
    Commented Oct 21 at 19:35

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