How to Check If Your Mac Is Apple Silicon or Intel
Check whether your Mac uses Apple Silicon or Intel, then choose the correct Mac download.
Open Apple menu > About This Mac. If the processor line says Chip and starts with Apple M1, M2, M3, or M4, your Mac is Apple Silicon. If it says Processor and includes Intel, your Mac is Intel.
Last updated: 2026-06-18
Quick answer
Open Apple menu > About This Mac. If you see Chip: Apple M1, M2, M3, or M4, choose the Apple Silicon, ARM64, or aarch64 download. If you see Processor: Intel Core, choose the Intel, x86_64, or 64-bit Intel download.
Step-by-step: check your Mac chip
- Click the Apple menu in the top-left corner of your screen.
- Select About This Mac.
- Look directly under the macOS version for Chip or Processor.
- Match the label to the download name: Apple chip means Apple Silicon; Intel processor means Intel Mac.
What each result means
- Apple M1, M2, M3, or M4: Apple Silicon Mac. Use Apple Silicon, ARM64, or universal Mac downloads.
- Intel Core i5, i7, i9, Xeon, or similar: Intel Mac. Use Intel, x86_64, or universal Mac downloads.
- Universal: Works on both Apple Silicon and Intel Macs when the developer offers it.
Use What-Version to confirm
The What-Version homepage can detect your Mac architecture from browser system data when available. Browser detection is useful for quick download decisions, but About This Mac is the safest check before installing drivers, developer tools, or large apps.
Common download labels
For Apple Silicon, look for labels such as Apple Silicon, ARM64, arm64, aarch64, or Mac M1/M2/M3/M4. For Intel, look for Intel, x64, x86_64, or amd64.