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I have a MacBook Air (13-inch, 2017) with 8GB of RAM and a 250GB hard drive (84GB remaining).

I have been stung in the past with macOS upgrades affecting the performance of previous computers, so I'm still running 10.13.6 High Sierra. However, I'm now having trouble downloading some apps which no longer support this version.

If I were to upgrade to Big Sur, will it slow down my computer or produce other adverse effects?

(I'd of course back up my data before doing anything!)

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  • A quick Google search provides a link to macOS Big Sur is compatible with these computers
    – agarza
    Commented Mar 13, 2021 at 20:28
  • @agarza thanks for your reply. My question isn't whether Big Sur is compatible (i.e. physically possible to install), rather whether it's recommended given the operating power of my machine.
    – Sebastian
    Commented Mar 13, 2021 at 21:15
  • Considering that, according to the list on that link, your machine is more powerful than 6 previous models dating back to 2013, then yes it should be.
    – agarza
    Commented Mar 13, 2021 at 21:29

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If Apple lists a device as 'supported' by an OS, then there should be no problems running it. (In fact, the reason that older Macs are excluded from newer OSes can be that the OS performance is not within Apple's expectations.)

I run Big Sur on a 2014 15" MacBook Pro, which functions very well.

I would suggest that past performance issues are likely to be caused by incompatible software that needs to be updated, or things that are incidental to the OS update.

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