macOS Monterey vs Sonoma

macOS Monterey vs Sonoma: System requirements and compatibility

Ready to solve the dilemma of whether macOS Sonoma vs Monterey is better for your device? To begin, make sure your Mac is compatible. While both of these versions of macOS can run on a range of Apple models, there are several device limitations.

To help, here’s our handy compatibility table:

In addition to a compatible model, it's equally important to make sure your device has the following requirements:

macOS Monterey

• RAM: 4GB or more
• Storage 35GB

macOS Sonoma

• RAM: 4GB or more
• Storage: 25-45GB

Our professional advice:

 

Swaying more towards Sonoma? Be sure to check out our supporting blog that goes through all of macOS Sonoma system requirements so you can prepare your device for a smooth transition.

Differences between macOS Monterey and Sonoma

When deciding between macOS Monterey vs Sonoma, you might be asking, ‘which is better for your Mac?’ While both systems host an impressive suite of features, there are many notable differences between them.

We’ll now explore those differences together, covering the following key differences:

• User interface and design
• Performance and stability
• New features and functional improvements
• App updates and ecosystem integration
• Privacy and security enhancements
• Safari performance

1. User interface and design

While macOS Monterey introduced a sleek interface with more refined UI elements, macOS Sonoma built upon them with enhanced visual upgrades for more personalization. The most noticeable change is the addition of interactive desktop widgets in Sonoma, which can be placed directly on your screen and sync seamlessly with other Apple devices–like your iPhone.

This allows you to have more flexibility over Monterey’s more static Notification Center widgets. Sonoma also introduced smoother animations to fix Monterey's choppy visuals. Finally, the Control Center was also reworked for a more polished layout to improve spacing and alignment.

2. Performance and stability

For performance, macOS Sonoma delivers smoother results but only on Silicon-model Macs. Whereas, macOS Monterey can provide better performance for Intel-based Macs, offering more stability and fewer lags even on older hardware. Sonoma did introduce upgrades and better management on supported devices, but it can feel more sluggish on Intel models. If you're running on Apple Silicon, we recommend Sonoma over Monterey, but for all you Intel users, we advise sticking with Monterey.

A note from our experts:

 

If you're experiencing sluggish performance on macOS Monterey, Sonoma, or a different version, a quick way to boost speed is clearing out junk. MacKeeper’s Safe Cleanup safely removes redundant data, like cache, log, and junk, to free up space to help your device run smoothly.

 

Here’s how to use MacKeeper’s Safe Cleanup tool:

1. Download MacKeeper.
2. Open the app, click on Safe Cleanup, and Start Scan.
3. Tick all the cache, logs, and files you want to install and click Clean Junk Files.
4. Press Remove.

3. New features and functional improvements

Is your macOS Monterey slow? You might want to switch to Sonoma instead, as it introduced several new features that aren't available in Monterey–each one designed to help boost your productivity.

Here are some of those newer features available with macOS Sonoma but not Monterey:

• Game Mode: Prioritizes your Mac’s CPU and GPU performance when you’re gaming, meaning smoother graphics, reduced lag, and better responsiveness.
• Desktop Widget: Lets you place widgets directly on the desktop, making information like the weather, calendar, and reminders visible without disrupting your workflow.
• Presenter Overlay: Enhances video calls by allowing you to appear on-screen while also having the option to share your screen while still keeping your face visible.
• Safari Profiles: Allows you to separate work and personal browsing into distinct profiles with different extensions, cookies, and tab groups, helping you stay more organized.
• Web Apps in Dock: Lets you save any website as a standalone app in your Dock, giving you quick access to frequently used sites.

4. App updates and ecosystem integration

Beyond new features, macOS Sonoma also enhanced many built-in apps that can be used across multiple Apple devices, including Safari, Messages, and FaceTime.

• Safari: Sonoma introduces Profiles, which allow users to maintain separate browser environments for work and personal, keeping history, extensions, and cookies better organized.
• Messages: Sonoma added more search filters, the catch-up feature to prioritize unread messages, and a redesigned Tapback interface that can allow for multiple reaction icons directly for faster interaction.
• FaceTime: Beyond the new Presenter Overlay, Sonoma also adds hand-gesture reactions, such as confetti, balloons, and more, for live video calls.

A hint from us:

 

In our macOS Monterey and Ventura comparison, we explore how each operating system differs from the other– including their key features and compatibility requirements. To find out which version might be best for you, check out our attached blog for a full breakdown.

5. Privacy and security enhancements

Want to know if macOS Sonoma or Monterey offers better security? Sonoma upgraded Monterey’s privacy foundation with several improvements. App Permissions will now ask you for a password when you try to access sensitive data on your computer. Enhanced Sandboxing keeps your apps isolated to minimize the risk of unauthorized access. Tracking Protection in both Safari and Mail has a better defense against trackers and malware. Plus, macOS Sonoma expanded sensitive content warnings to ensure you can avoid unexpected content online.

6. Safari performance

Another big difference between Sonoma and Monterey is with Safari–it’s much faster and more responsive with Sonoma due to its improved memory usage and smoother tab handling. Saving websites as apps in your Dock allowed for quick access, while auto-locking private windows, tab group sharing, and Passkeys were all improved to make Safari more secure.

If you want to find out which is the latest version of macOS, our blog titled Mac operating systems in order has a full rundown of each type with features and initial release date.

Which macOS version should you choose: Monterey or Sonoma

Still not sure if macOS Sonoma vs Monterey is better? If you have an M-series Mac, Sonoma will likely run smoother than Monterey, but if you have an Intel-based Mac, Monterey is best.

No matter which macOS version you use, keeping your Mac clean and optimized is the key to maintaining peak performance. For a helping hand, MacKeeper’s Safe Cleanup can purge your system of junk files, free up storage, and improve system stability—making your device run faster and more efficiently.