How to Get Windows 10 on a macOS Catalina

MacOS 10.15 Catalina, macOS 10.14 Mojave, macOS 10.13 High Sierra or macOS 10.12 Sierra. DirectX 11 requires at least macOS Mojave 10.14 Parallels Desktop 15 for Mac is the fastest, easiest and most powerful application for running Windows on Mac—without rebooting. Parallels Desktop is developed for developers, advanced users and other demanding professionals. Parallels Desktop serial incl Edition Offers More Computing Power with up to 128 GB of virtual RAM for your VM and up to 32 virtual processors. Optimized for the latest Windows 10 and macOS Catalina updates (10:15). Optimized and ready for the forthcoming macOS Catalina, Parallels Desktop 15 for Mac is available as a downloadable Pro Edition, with the choice of a volume or retail license, as well as a boxed Standard Edition. While both editions will run Windows 10, 8.1, 7, Google Chrome, Linux, Unix, and other operating systems within macOS 10.12 and later without rebooting, the Pro Edition is geared. Today, I want to install Parallels Desktop version 15.0 on my Hackintosh. I want to share with you how this program performs on Catalina. Parallels is not the only software to run Windows on macOS. You can also use Virtualbox as well as VMware Workstation. But in this particular post, I will focus on Parallels. After you finish this setup, you will be able to run 32-bit apps on your Mac running macOS Catalina. Try Parallels Desktop for free for 14 days and run 32-bit apps on your Mac. Let us know in the comments which 32-bit apps you need to run on macOS Catalina and how this is working out for you.

If you want to install Windows on your Macbook, there are a few ways to do it: you may use Mac’s Boot Camp Assistant to install Windows as its own independent OS; then you will be able to startup either macOS or Windows depending on which one you need at the time. The other way is using a virtual machine: you may create a virtual Windows setup using Parallels Desktop, VMware Fusion or VirtualBox. Then at any time you may start that virtual machine and load Windows inside macOS. This article describes pros and cons of each method, so that you can decide which one is right for you.

Option 1: Download Windows 10 on a macOS Catalina With BootCamp

Boot Camp comes with your Macbook for free, and it allows you to install Windows alongside macOS, so you can choose which of them to boot on startup. Mac’s Boot Camp Assistant will help you install Windows, partition the startup drive and install necessary drivers.

If you install Windows via Boot Camp, Windows will have all of your Macbook’s resources and can run programs with the maximum possible performance. That’s why dual-booting is ideal for running resource-intensive programs like video-editing software or high-end games.

On the other hand, only one operating system will be able to run at the same time, so you will have to reboot between them depending on which apps you need to run at the moment. Another possible drawback is fact that Windows and macOS use different file systems, and you will not be able to open Mac files on Windows or vice versa unless you install specific third-party drives for it. That is not a problem when using virtual machines.

Option 2: Run Windows 10 on a Macbook Without BootCamp, Using a Virtual Machine

Virtual machines allow you to install and open Windows 10 in a window on your Mac desktop. Windows will “think” it’s running on a real computer, when it is running inside an app. With virtual machines you run both macOS and Windows at the same time, which is handy if you want to open a single Windows program alongside your Mac applications. However, when you run a virtual machine, your computer’s resources are split between the two operating systems, so everything may run slower than usual.

Install Windows 10 on a Mac Catalina With Parallels Desktop

Catalina Parallels 32 Bit

Parallels Desktop is very intuitive and easy-to-use for regular computer users. The app will configure everything for you, even download Windows 10 or utilize the one you already downloaded via Boot Camp. You can open Windows in a separate window (including a full screen mode), or you can turn on Coherence mode. In Coherence mode the virtual machine will run in the background, while Windows programs can run alongside your Mac apps. You can even put Windows programs on your macOS desktop or pin them to Dock. Parallels Desktop allows you to copy and paste or drag and drop between Windows and macOS without any problems.

Catalina Parallels 13 Slow

Parallels Desktop prices start at $79.99, however there is a free trial period available.

Get Windows 10 on a Mac Catalina With VMware Fusion

VMware Fusion is another popular virtualization software for Macbooks. It is close to Parallels in terms of functionality and pricing, but VMware’s Fusion supports a larger number of operating systems than Parallels. On the other hand, Parallels is easier for beginners, and runs a little smoother. Otherwise, these two programs are approximately on the same level.

VMware Fusion offers a free trial period to its users, same as Parallels, so you may try both for free and decide which one you like better, before committing.

Install Windows 10 a Mac Via VirtualBox

Catalina Parallels 14

If you don’t plan to spend extra money on virtualization software, there’s always VirtualBox by Oracle. VirtualBox is a pretty decent free alternative to paid software if not slower, less polished and missing some handy functions. If you need to run some resource intensive Windows programs, VirtualBox might not be the best choice for you. VirtualBox also requires more technical knowledge than, for example, Parallels, as users need to tune some settings themselves when installing it. However, if you are a power user already or don’t mind doing a little more work, and you are not going to run latest Windows games or video-editing software, VirtualBox is a good (and free!) alternative.