Short answer: To install Windows 11 on a Mac with Apple silicon, run the Arm version in a virtual machine. Parallels Desktop is the option Microsoft names. VMware Fusion Pro and UTM are free. Boot Camp exists only on Intel Macs, and we'd remember it officially supports Windows 10 only.
To install Windows 11 on a Mac, you run it in a virtual machine: the Arm version on Apple silicon through Parallels Desktop, VMware Fusion Pro or UTM, and a VM with a virtual TPM on Intel Macs, since Boot Camp officially supports only Windows 10. Then you activate it with a Windows 11 key.
A MacBook on the desk every day, and now you need to install Windows 11 on the Mac. Two clients still run Windows-only tools. On Apple silicon, we’d use a virtual machine. The Windows image? Free, straight from Microsoft’s download page.
- Apple silicon: a VM with Windows 11 on Arm.
- The app: Parallels, VMware Fusion Pro or UTM.
- Intel Mac: a VM with a virtual TPM.
- Boot Camp? Windows 10 only.
- Then a Windows 11 Home or Pro key.
Parallels Desktop is the option Microsoft names. VMware Fusion Pro and UTM are free alternatives. All of them run the Arm version of Windows 11 inside macOS.
On an Intel Mac a virtual machine works too. Boot Camp officially supports only Windows 10.
The steps below cover Intel and Apple silicon Macs alike. This is what we’d tell a colleague who asked how to do it today, the parts that still don’t work included.
| Point | What to know |
|---|---|
| Apple silicon Macs | Can’t boot Windows directly; Boot Camp doesn’t exist on them, so a virtual machine or a cloud PC is the only way |
| The tools | Microsoft names Parallels Desktop for Windows 11 Pro and Enterprise (Arm) on M-series Macs; VMware Fusion Pro is free and UTM is open source |
| Apps | x64 Windows apps run on Windows 11 on Arm through emulation; drivers, some games with anti-cheat and nested virtualization don’t |
| Resources | At least 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB of disk for the virtual machine; 8 GB and 128 GB feel much better |
| Activation | A regular Windows 11 Pro or Home key, under Settings > System > Activation inside the virtual machine |
Can you install Windows 11 on your Mac
On any Mac with an Apple M-series chip, yes, inside a virtual machine. It runs the Arm edition of Windows next to macOS. Intel Macs can run Windows 11 in a virtual machine too.
What you can’t do on Apple silicon is dual-boot. Boot Camp is only available on Intel Macs.
The reason is the processor. Intel Macs are, underneath, PCs with x86 chips. They speak the same language as normal Windows.
Apple silicon Macs use Arm processors and Apple’s own boot process. The regular x64 Windows image won’t even start on them. You need Windows 11 for Arm, and it has to run under a hypervisor.
| Your Mac | Recommended way | Windows version | Dual boot? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apple silicon (M1, M2, M3, later) | Parallels Desktop, VMware Fusion Pro or UTM | Windows 11 on Arm | No |
| Intel Mac with a supported CPU | Parallels or VMware Fusion with a virtual TPM | Windows 11 x64 | Not officially for Windows 11 |
| Intel Mac, older CPU | Boot Camp with Windows 10, or a newer computer | Windows 10 | Yes, Windows 10 only |
| Any Mac | Windows 365 Cloud PC, or Windows App to a remote PC | Windows 11 streamed | Not needed |
Which method to choose
For most people with an Apple silicon Mac, Parallels Desktop is the smoothest choice. Microsoft names it, and it downloads Windows for you.
Want free software? VMware Fusion Pro works well and costs nothing. UTM is free and open source, with more manual setup.
A cloud PC suits anyone who needs Windows occasionally and doesn’t want to spend the Mac’s resources on it.
| Option | Cost model | Strengths | Weak spots |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parallels Desktop | Paid subscription | Named by Microsoft, one-click Windows download, Coherence mode, good graphics | Ongoing cost |
| VMware Fusion Pro | Free | Familiar to IT teams, snapshots, virtual TPM | You supply the Windows ISO; fewer Mac integration extras |
| UTM | Free, open source | Light, scriptable | More manual steps, slower graphics |
| Windows 365 Cloud PC | Monthly per user | No load on the Mac, works on any Mac | Needs a constant internet connection |
Prices change too often to print here. We’d check each vendor’s site before deciding.
Our roundup of free Windows emulators for Mac compares the free options in more depth.
What you need first
- A Mac with enough spare memory and storage.
- The virtualization app.
- A Windows 11 image.
- A Windows 11 license.
Back up the Mac with Time Machine first. Install pending macOS updates too.
| Item | Minimum | Better |
|---|---|---|
| Mac memory | 8 GB total (4 GB for Windows) | 16 GB or more total (8 GB for Windows) |
| Free disk on the Mac | 64 GB for the virtual disk | 128 GB or more |
| Windows image | Windows 11 Arm64 ISO (Apple silicon) or x64 ISO (Intel), from Microsoft’s download page | |
| License | Windows 11 Home or Pro key; Pro is what Microsoft lists for Parallels on M-series Macs | |
| Internet | For the download, activation and the Microsoft account step in setup | |
Leave macOS at least 4 GB of RAM, no matter what. On a 16 GB MacBook we’d give Windows 8 GB and 4 virtual CPUs. Both systems tend to stay responsive.
On an 8 GB Mac it works. You’ll feel it once a browser with a dozen tabs is open on each side.
Windows itself needs about 20 to 30 GB once installed. The rest goes to apps, updates and files.
We’d put the virtual machine on the internal SSD, not on a slow external drive. The difference in boot time and app launches is huge. And a USB drive that disconnects mid-write can corrupt the whole virtual disk.
Before you start: a checklist
- Check the chip under Apple menu, About This Mac.
- Free up at least 64 GB on the internal SSD.
- Run a Time Machine backup.
- Install pending macOS updates.
- Pick the tool: Parallels, Fusion or UTM.
- Download the right ISO: Arm64 for Apple silicon, x64 for Intel.
- Have the Windows 11 key at hand, or plan to activate later.
How to install Windows 11 on a Mac with Parallels
- Download Parallels Desktop from the vendor’s site, open the .dmg and run the installer. Approve the system permissions macOS asks for.
- In the Installation Assistant, select Get Windows 11 from Microsoft and Continue.
- Pick how you’ll mostly use Windows: productivity, games or development.
- Wait while Parallels downloads and installs Windows.
- When Windows starts, finish the setup screens.
- Open Settings, System, Activation in Windows. Select Change next to “Change product key” and type your key.
Parallels downloads the Arm version of Windows 11. It creates the virtual machine with a virtual TPM and Secure Boot, and installs Windows by itself.
A few notes on the steps.
- Step 2. Already have an Arm64 ISO? Choose “Install Windows from a DVD or image file”.
- Step 3. This only sets default resources. You can change them later.
- Step 4. On a typical connection it takes about 25 minutes, most of it the download.
- Step 5. Parallels Tools, the integration drivers, install automatically.
Afterwards we’d adjust two settings, with Windows shut down.
| Setting | Where |
|---|---|
| Memory | Configure > Hardware > CPU & Memory |
| Which Mac folders Windows can see | Options > Sharing |
Microsoft’s own page on Windows 11 on Macs with Apple M-series chips lists the Parallels versions and the editions it covers.
The free route: VMware Fusion or UTM
Download VMware Fusion Pro, which is free, or UTM. Then download the Windows 11 Arm64 ISO from Microsoft’s Windows 11 download page.
Create a new virtual machine from the ISO. Turn on the virtual TPM and UEFI firmware, assign memory and disk, and start it. Windows setup then runs exactly as on a PC.
VMware Fusion Pro
- Download Windows 11 Arm64 from Microsoft’s download page, in the disk image section for Arm-based PCs.
- Install VMware Fusion Pro and open it. Drag the ISO onto the Select the Installation Method window.
- Choose UEFI firmware. For the virtual TPM, set a password, or let Fusion generate one and store it in your Keychain.
- Select Customize Settings. Raise memory to 8 GB and the disk to 128 GB, if you have the space.
- Start the virtual machine. Press a key when it says “Press any key to boot from CD or DVD”.
- Go through Windows setup. Then choose Virtual Machine, Install VMware Tools, for proper display and network drivers.
UTM
UTM works with the same ISO. Choose Virtualize, then Windows, and point it to the ISO. Tick the option to install the drivers and SPICE tools.
Setup takes more clicks, and graphics are slower than in Parallels or Fusion. For a test machine or light office use it’s perfectly fine.
The setup screens
Whichever app you use, the installer shows the same screens you’d see on a PC.
- Language.
- “I don’t have a product key”, if you plan to activate later.
- Edition.
- The virtual disk.
Our walkthrough on how to install Windows 11 from USB explains each of those screens in detail.
Stuck at “Let’s connect you to a network”? The virtual network adapter has no driver yet. In VMware Fusion, switch the adapter type in the VM settings, or connect the guest tools ISO early. Parallels and UTM normally load a working network driver during setup.
Intel Macs and Boot Camp
Not officially, for Windows 11. Apple’s Boot Camp Assistant supports Windows 10 on Intel Macs. Windows 11 fails its TPM 2.0 check on that hardware.
A native Windows 11 install via Boot Camp needs unsupported workarounds and gets no guarantee of updates. With a supported Intel processor, we’d run a virtual machine with a virtual TPM.
Windows 10 under Boot Camp ran very well on Intel MacBooks, because Windows had the whole machine to itself. The trade-off: a restart every time you switched. And Apple’s Boot Camp drivers aged quickly.
Today that path leads nowhere. The macOS 27 release runs only on Apple silicon, so Intel Macs stay on older macOS versions.
For Windows 10 under Boot Camp on an Intel Mac, the process in short:
- Open Boot Camp Assistant from Applications, Utilities.
- Select the Windows 10 ISO.
- Choose the partition size, 64 GB at the very least.
- Let the Mac restart into Windows setup.
- After the first boot, install the Boot Camp support software from the Boot Camp folder.
Our older guide to installing Windows 10 on Mac covers it step by step.
What works and what doesn’t
Office apps, browsers, business software, most development tools and many older games run well. That includes x64 apps, through Microsoft’s built-in emulation.
What doesn’t work:
- Hardware drivers written only for x64.
- Many games with kernel anti-cheat.
- Apps that need DirectX 12 features.
- Windows Subsystem for Linux.
- Windows Sandbox.
- Virtualization-based security.
| Use case | How it goes in practice |
|---|---|
| Office, email, browsers | Runs very well; Microsoft 365 apps run natively on Arm |
| Line-of-business apps (accounting, ERP clients) | Usually fine through x64 emulation; test before you commit |
| Development (.NET, Visual Studio Code, web) | Good; some debuggers and older SDKs misbehave |
| CAD, engineering, specialist tools | Unpredictable: some run perfectly, others fail on graphics or licensing dongles |
| Games | Older and lighter titles playable; current AAA titles and anti-cheat games mostly not |
| VPN clients, banking and security software | Hit and miss, because many install kernel drivers that have no Arm64 build |
| WSL, Windows Sandbox, Android apps | Not supported (no nested virtualization on these Macs) |
Microsoft’s list also notes that 32-bit Arm apps from the Store aren’t supported on these Macs. The 64-bit Arm apps are. So are emulated x64 and x86 apps.
A typical pair of results. An x64 reporting tool runs fine. The VPN client next to it refuses to install until the vendor ships an Arm64 version.
Expect the Mac to work harder too. When Windows is busy, fans spin up on models that have them, and the battery drains faster.
That’s not a bug. It’s two operating systems sharing one machine. For light office work you’ll barely notice. For an hour of compiling, plug in.
Activating Windows 11 in the Mac VM
It works the same way as on a PC. Our guide on how to activate Windows 11 has the full picture.
- Open Settings, System, Activation inside Windows.
- Select Change next to “Change product key”.
- Enter a valid Windows 11 key.
A Pro key activates Windows 11 Pro for Arm too. The license is the same, and only the installation media differs.
Two things trip people up. First, the edition must match the key. A Home key won’t activate a Pro installation. Still choosing? See Windows 11 Home vs Pro.
Second, a virtual machine recreated from scratch can look like new hardware to Microsoft’s servers. If activation then fails, use the Activation troubleshooter on the same page. Sign in with your earlier Microsoft account. It usually links the license to the new VM.
Our article on Windows 11 activation errors covers the codes you might see.
Need a key? Our Windows 11 Pro key comes as a genuine license. Delivery is instant to email. It works in all three virtualization tools, and so does a Windows 11 Home key on a Home install.
Making Windows 11 on a Mac run better
Give the virtual machine enough memory, and never starve macOS. Keep the virtual disk on the internal SSD. Install the guest tools.
Update one thing at a time: macOS, the virtualization app, then Windows. That way you know which update broke something, if anything does.
| Area | What we’d do |
|---|---|
| Memory | Half of the Mac’s RAM is a good ceiling for the VM; leave macOS at least 4 GB |
| CPU | 4 virtual cores is plenty for office and development work |
| Visual effects | In Windows, search “Adjust the appearance and performance of Windows” and pick “Adjust for best performance” if things feel sluggish |
| Startup apps | Trim them in Task Manager > Startup apps, just as on a PC |
| File sharing | Shared folders work; for files edited on both sides, a cloud folder such as OneDrive is more reliable, because built-in sharing occasionally locks a file |
| Snapshots | Take one before big Windows updates; rolling back a VM is the nicest thing about running Windows this way |
| Display | An external monitor beats flipping between full-screen spaces on a laptop panel |
One habit worth copying: a short text file next to each VM. Write down its Windows version, the date you made it and which key it uses. Months later, when something goes wrong, that note saves real time.
Alternatives that skip the VM
If you only need Windows now and then, you may not need a local copy at all. The options below spare the Mac’s RAM, disk and battery.
- Windows App. It used to be called Microsoft Remote Desktop for Mac. It connects to a Windows PC at home or at work. On a good connection it’s smooth. The remote PC has to be on, and its edition must accept incoming Remote Desktop connections. That takes Pro or higher.
- Windows 365 Cloud PC. A full Windows 11 desktop in Microsoft’s cloud, billed monthly, opened through Windows App. Microsoft points Mac users to it as one of its two options.
- Web apps. Office on the web, many accounting and CRM systems, even design tools. We’d check whether the “Windows-only” app has a browser version before building a VM.
Connecting to Windows Server, not to a desktop? Our guide to accessing Windows Server from a Mac walks through Windows App setup.
Problems after you install Windows 11 on a Mac, and fixes
Nearly all problems come down to four things.
- Memory.
- A missing virtual TPM.
- Guest tools that aren’t installed.
- An app with no Arm64 driver.
| Problem | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Everything is slow | Too little RAM for Windows, or Mac memory pressure | Raise the VM memory, close Mac apps, move the VM to the internal SSD |
| “This PC can’t run Windows 11” (see the Windows 11 requirements) | No virtual TPM or not UEFI | Add a TPM device and UEFI firmware in the VM settings |
| No network in setup | Guest network driver missing | Change the virtual adapter type or load the guest tools driver |
| Wrong screen resolution | Guest tools not installed | Install Parallels Tools, VMware Tools or SPICE tools |
| App or VPN will not install | Needs an x64 kernel driver | Ask the vendor for an Arm64 build, or use a cloud PC |
| Windows not activated | Edition mismatch or recreated VM | Match key and edition; run the Activation troubleshooter |
| Stopped working after an update | macOS, VM app and Windows updated together | Restore a snapshot; update one at a time, a few days apart |
Before any of this, back up. A virtual machine is just a large file on your Mac. A careless delete or a full disk can wipe it.
Time Machine catches it, so long as the VM isn’t excluded.
Related guides
- Windows Virtual Machine on Mac
- Mac Emulator for Windows
- Bootable Windows 11 USB on a Mac
- Parallels Desktop for Mac
- Boot Camp vs Parallels
Terms used on this page
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Hypervisor | The software that runs virtual machines |
| Arm64 | The processor architecture of Apple silicon |
| x64 | The architecture of Intel Macs and ordinary PCs |
| Virtual TPM | A software version of the security chip Windows 11 checks for |
| Guest tools | Drivers and helpers the virtualization app installs inside Windows |
| Snapshot | A saved state of the VM you can roll back to |
| Cloud PC | A Windows desktop that runs in Microsoft’s cloud and streams to your Mac |
Typical issues when you install Windows 11 on a Mac
Setup won’t start from the x64 ISO on Apple silicon
Expected. Apple silicon needs the Arm64 ISO, from the Arm section of Microsoft’s download page. The regular x64 image never gets past the first screen. Swap the ISO, recreate the VM.
A Home key won’t activate a Pro VM
Edition and key have to match. Reinstall the VM as Home, or use a Pro key. Settings, System, Activation shows which edition you have.
A VPN or security app refuses to install
Usually an x64 kernel driver with no Arm64 build. Emulation covers apps, not drivers. Ask the vendor for an Arm64 version, or use a Cloud PC for that one tool.
The virtual disk got corrupted on an external drive
A USB drive that disconnects mid-write can damage the whole virtual disk. Bumped cable, ruined VM. We’d keep the VM on the internal SSD and inside the Time Machine backup.
The VM won’t boot after several updates
macOS, the virtualization app and Windows updated on one evening leave no clue which one broke it. Restore the last snapshot. Then update one thing at a time, a few days apart.
Windows 11 versions and Macs this guide covers
Windows setup screens inside the virtual machine are the same in each case.
| Windows | Tool | Mac |
|---|---|---|
| Windows 11 Home or Pro for Arm, current versions | Parallels Desktop, the option Microsoft names, and VMware Fusion Pro | Apple silicon Macs, M1 or newer |
| Windows 11 Home or Pro for Arm | UTM, free and open source | Apple silicon Macs |
| Windows 11 x64 | A VM with a virtual TPM | Intel Macs |
| Windows 10 | Boot Camp, for that section only | Intel Macs |
FAQ
Can I install Windows 11 on an M1, M2 or M3 Mac?
Yes, in a virtual machine. Microsoft names Parallels Desktop for the Arm version of Windows 11 on M-series Macs. Two free tools run it as well, VMware Fusion Pro and UTM. Dual-booting isn't possible on Apple silicon.
Is there a free way to install Windows 11 on a Mac?
The virtualization software can be free. VMware Fusion Pro costs nothing, and UTM is free and open source. Microsoft offers the Arm64 ISO as a free download. You still need a Windows 11 license to activate it, and we'd count that in.
Does Boot Camp support Windows 11?
Nope. Boot Camp Assistant is available only on Intel Macs and officially supports Windows 10. Intel Macs lack TPM 2.0. Windows 11 fails the requirement check there. On Apple silicon Macs, Boot Camp doesn't exist at all.
Will my Windows apps work on a Mac with Apple silicon?
Most do. Windows 11 on Arm runs 64-bit Arm apps natively, and x64 or x86 apps through emulation. Apps with their own hardware drivers don't work. Many games with anti-cheat don't either, and we'd not count on WSL or Windows Sandbox.
Can I use a normal Windows 11 Pro key in Parallels or VMware Fusion?
Yes. The license is the same for x64 and Arm editions. A Windows 11 Pro key activates Windows 11 Pro for Arm in any of the three tools. We'd just make sure the installed edition matches the key.
How much RAM should I give a Windows 11 virtual machine on a Mac?
At least 4 GB, and 8 GB if the Mac has 16 GB or more. Leave macOS at least 4 GB for itself. Otherwise both systems slow down.
Can I use Windows on a Mac without installing it?
Yes. The Windows App connects your Mac to a PC you already own. It used to be called Microsoft Remote Desktop. Windows 365 streams a Cloud PC from Microsoft. Both avoid running Windows on the Mac itself.