This is how long macOS Sierra installation takes to complete. We’ll cover how long it takes to download macOS Sierra and how long it takes to install macOS Sierra.
The macOS Sierra update is here to bring Siri, Apple Pay on the Web, and more to your Apple Watch. This is a major update for your Mac that is more than just a name change.
Every year we hear the same question and already “How long will it take to install macOS Sierra?” and “How long does it take to download macOS Sierra?”
How long does it take to download and install the macOS Sierra update.
On the first day of macOS Sierra release, you may see longer macOS Sierra download times listed. Normally these will sync over time and will not actually last eight hours, but are expected to last longer than average times today.
How Long Does the macOS Sierra Update Take?
If there are no server issues and you have a good Internet connection, you can complete the macOS Sierra download in an hour or a half. This may take longer depending on various factors.
The table below summarizes how long each step can take to complete as you work through the download and installation of macOS Sierra.
| Task | Time |
|---|---|
| Backup to Time Machine (Optional) | 5 minutes a day |
| Download macOS Sierra | 1 hour 15 minutes to 4 hours. |
| macOS Sierra Installation Time | 30 to 45 minutes |
| Total macOS Sierra Update Time | 1 hour 45 minutes to four hours |
Time Machine Backup
You can skip a Time Machine backup, but we highly recommend performing one. Without backup, you may lose a lot of data. It will take a few minutes if you did it recently, but a long time if you haven’t done it at all or for months.
macOS Sierra Download Time
macOS Sierra download times will vary.
Expect the longest macOS Sierra download times today as many people are trying to install the update. You can try installing the update tonight or later this week if you want.
This will take a long time as the macOS Sierra update is over 4GB in size. We saw our macOS Sierra update jump to eight hours, but then it went up to just over an hour.
macOS Sierra Installation Time
The macOS Sierra installation time is about 45 minutes after everything is downloaded. This assumes nothing goes wrong and you have a typical upgrade.
During this time, your computer will restart and you will not be able to use your Mac while installing macOS Sierra.
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