The macOS operating system on your Mac is powerful, reliable, and easy to use. It comes with access to powerful free apps, like GarageBand and iMovie, and works seamlessly with your other Apple devices. But lots of people still choose to also install Windows on their Mac.
In fact, so many people use Windows on their Mac that Apple created a utility dedicated to helping them do it: Boot Camp. This lets you partition your Mac so you can run Windows on one side and macOS on the other.
Here are all the reasons you should consider installing Windows on your Mac.
1. Windows Has More Games With Better Performance
You don’t need to look very hard to find people touting the benefits of PC gaming compared to consoles, like Xbox or PlayStation. With a PC you get better graphics, higher frame rates, less lag, and a broader selection of games and mods.
But most of those PC benefits only apply to gaming on Windows, not macOS.
Although you can still download Steam to shop for new games, you’ll find that only a tiny fraction of what’s available actually works on your Mac. The Mac gaming market is so small that most developers don’t bother creating versions for macOS. This leaves Windows gamers with a comparative wealth of options.
For games that do work on your Mac, you’ll often find they don’t run as smoothly as they would on Windows. In fact, if you installed Windows on your Mac to run the same game without changing any hardware, you’re likely to experience a bump in performance.
This is partly because of limitations in macOS and partly because most developers design their PC games with Windows in mind.
If you ever plan to play games on your Mac, it pays off to install Windows first.
2. Some Apps Don’t Work in macOS
PC games aren’t the only types of software that favor Windows. Plenty of engineers, researchers, architects, and other specialists find themselves tied to Windows because of particular industry-standard software that isn’t compatible with macOS.
This is likely to become less of an issue as Mac computers continue to grow in popularity.
With every passing year, Macs claim a larger share of the worldwide PC market. This is gradually encouraging more developers to make their software work with macOS. But while some popular apps already work across both platforms—such as Microsoft Word or Adobe Photoshop—there are still plenty that only work with Windows.
Fortunately, there are a few ways to install Windows on your Mac that let you run whatever software you like. If performance is your top priority, you should use Boot Camp to dual-boot your computer. Otherwise, it’s far more convenient to install a virtual machine.
A virtual machine runs Windows inside macOS; it usually appears in a floating window like any other app. This puts more strain on your computer since it needs to run two operating systems at once, but it also lets you use Windows and macOS apps at the same time.
3. Developers Need to Test Projects in Windows
Developing software, apps, and websites is hard work. One of the most frustrating and time-consuming aspects of the job is testing your project to find bugs, errors, or other problems that you need to fix.
If you want your software to work well in macOS and Windows, you need to spend time testing it in both operating systems. Sometimes an app works flawlessly in one OS while barely functioning in another. If you don’t spend the time testing it, you won’t find that out until you release it to the public.
The easiest way to do this—if you don’t already own separate Windows and macOS computers—is to install Windows on your Mac. This lets you use a single computer to test your projects in whichever operating system you need.
There’s no reason to stop at Windows either. If you want to develop software for all operating systems, you can install Linux on your Mac as well.
The same goes for web developers. If you want to make sure your site works in every popular browser, you need to test it in Microsoft Edge and Apple Safari as well as common cross-platform apps. That means you need access to Windows and macOS.
4. Macs Are Some of the Best Windows Computers
Macs are slim, lightweight, and long-lasting. They feature high-definition displays and great speakers. Apple has made some blunders in the Mac department in the past, but for the most part they’re incredibly well-made computers.
In fact, Macs often rank as some of the best computers on the market. Even if you’re a die-hard Windows user, the hardware of a Mac can be hard to beat.
What’s more, Apple offers world-class customer service and supports your decision to install Windows on your Mac. Apple can’t troubleshoot issues with Windows itself, but it can certainly help you install the operating system in the first place.
By choosing to run Windows on a Mac, you can still switch to macOS if you ever need to. To get the same versatility on a Windows laptop, you need to look into creating a Hackintosh. This often means replacing particular components, which is troublesome and expensive.
A major reason that lots of people run Windows on a Mac is because it’s their operating system of choice, with the best hardware available.
Convinced Yet? Find Out How to Install Windows
Installing Windows on your Mac makes it better for gaming, lets you install whatever software you need to use, helps you develop stable cross-platform apps, and gives you a choice of operating systems.
Even if you only use Windows once in a blue moon, it costs nothing to install and can save you a major headache if you need it in the future. We’ve explained how to install Windows using Boot Camp, which is already a part of your Mac. This is the best way to install Windows if you need it to run as smoothly as possible.
