How to install Windows 11 on Mac with Parallels – Guide
You can install Windows 11 on Intel-based Macs without any issues using the latest version of the Parallels Desktop app. Newer Macs equipped with Apple’s M1 chip are more demanding because they can only handle ARM-based versions of Windows. But you can make it work using Microsoft’s Insider Preview of Windows 11 for Arm, which runs as a virtual machine in Parallels Desktop.
Windows on Parallels Desktop requires a product key to activate. If you upgrade from the previous version, you can get the Standard version for $50 and the Pro version for $50 a year. But anyone can try Parallels Desktop for free through a featured 14-day trial.
How to install Windows 11 on Mac with Parallels
Install Parallels Desktop 17
If you have not already installed Parallels Desktop on your Mac, you can do so by going to the Parallels 17 trial page and clicking Download Parallels Desktop button. The installer DMG file will appear in the Downloads folder, which you can double-click to start the installation. You will likely get a warning that Parallels Desktop is an application you downloaded from the Internet. This is a standard Apple dialog for security purposes. Just click Open to continue.
Double-click the box icon with a Windows screen inside it (see below). At this point, the installer will download the entire Parallels Desktop 17 software package to prepare for the installation. This file is about 325MB on Intel Macs, as you can see in the screenshot below. You will then need to accept the Parallels 17 software license agreement. You may also choose to share information with Parallels to help improve the stability of the software. If you don’t want to share this information, just uncheck the box. Now that Parallels is installed on your machine, you will need to download Windows 10. The good news is that Parallels handles the entire Windows 10 download process for you.
Download and install Windows 10
The Parallels 17 installation wizard will present a dialog to download Windows 10. Keep in mind that you can also run other operating systems using Parallels, such as Linux or older versions of macOS. This means that you can technically skip this step when installing Parallels 17. However, as our goal final is to use Windows 11, we will install Windows 10 here. Once you choose the Install Windows option, Parallels will start to download Windows 10. The download is quite large as you can expect 5.82GB for my Macbook Pro 2018. Depending on your internet speed, this step may take some time quite.
Once Windows 10 is fully downloaded, you will need to accept some permissions to complete the installation and set up Windows 10 with Parallels 17. The microphone permission below might seem a bit strange, but it’s just a requirement to run the Windows 10 boot process. Once you accept the permissions, Windows 10 will complete the boot process, which can also take about 10 minutes in total. ..
After you click the Finish button, Windows 10 will start up in a virtual machine inside of Parallels Desktop 17 for Mac. To actually use Windows 10 in this virtual machine, you need to read and accept a few more data privacy related agreements. These are pretty standard legal terms, but you should read them to know what you’re getting yourself into when using this software. ..
After accepting these privacy agreements, Windows 10 will open Microsoft Edge and display the Parallels 17 splash screen. There is some useful information on this page, so let’s take a look at some of the helpful tips. O final dialog box simply mentions that all your Mac files are accessible in Windows user profile folders. This is one of the best features of Parallels as it allows you to use macOS and Windows side-by-side seamlessly. You can even choose to set files on macOS to open in a Windows app by default, which is pretty cool. ..
Install Parallels Toolbox for Mac and Windows (optional)
Windows 11 installation:
- Open the Start screen and type “Parallels Toolbox for Mac” into the search bar.
- The Parallels Toolbox for Mac window will open and you will be able to choose to install either the macOS or Windows toolboxes. If you have not already installed Parallels Desktop 17, it will automatically install it when you select the Windows 11 toolbox.
- Once you have installed the macOS or Windows toolboxes, click on the “Install” button to start installation.
- The installation process will take a few minutes to complete and you will be able to see a window that says “Windows is now installed.”
These programs are very quick to install, and they are quite useful if you plan on switching between macOS and Windows quite often. The Mac version of the Toolbox has a few more options like presentation mode, image resizing, and the ability to uninstall programs from your Mac. The Windows toolbox is a little more limited, offering the ability to download videos, take a break from work, and a few other screenshot tools in the Dashboard. Anyway, considering that these tools are free and quite robust, you can also grab both packages.
Join the Windows Insider Program
The next step on our journey is to join the Windows Insider Program. To do this, first navigate to the Windows 10 menu at the top of your Mac while using Parallels Desktop. Choose the About Windows 10 option. Inside this menu, you will see a menu panel on the left side. Near the bottom, you will click on the Windows Insider Program option.
If you want to participate in the Windows Insider Program and provide feedback on the beta software experience, you need to enable optional diagnostic data. This is a requirement to join the Insider Program. Follow the instructions to enable optional diagnostics in the Diagnostics and Feedback settings. After enabling optional diagnostic data, return to the Windows Insider program menu and click Get Started to start the process. ..
You need to join the Windows Insider Program or switch to an already registered account in order to get the preview version of Windows 11. After accepting these agreements, you will need to restart Windows in Parallels Desktop 17 in order to get the preview version.
Download and install Windows 11 beta
After Windows restarts, go back to Settings and check for updates. You should see an available version of the Windows 11 Insider Preview, which should be the latest version. There may be some other updates as well. Wait until the Windows 11 Insider Preview is fully downloaded before restarting. When the download is complete, restart to install Windows 11 Pro. ..
After reboot, make sure you are running Windows 11 Pro. Now you can use all new features of Windows 11 Pro available in Insider build. All your macOS files appear perfectly in Windows 11 and you can even set certain files to open with Windows programs by default.
Customize Windows Settings for Parallels
To configure your Windows installation for different use cases, go to the Configure option at the bottom of the Parallels Desktop 17 setup menu.
You can customize how Windows starts up and shuts down, optimize battery life, and share settings in this menu. It’s worth spending some time tweaking these settings on each tab, especially if you plan to switch between Windows and macOS. Finally, remember that it’s a good idea to suspend Windows if you don’t plan on using it for a long period of time. While Parallels Desktop 17 is more optimized than ever, it may still take some time up significant amount of system resources while running. This is especially important if you only use Windows for a few programs and spend most of your time on macOS. ..
Windows 11 Pro on a Mac is now possible with Parallels Desktop 17. This product is excellent for students, as it allows you to run Windows 11 on your Mac while also using Mac applications. Additionally, the overall experience has been pretty positive for me so far. I prefer coherence mode, where I can use my Windows and Mac applications side by side. The fact that you can now enjoy Windows 11 on a Mac with Intel and M1 Macs is also a big deal.
Final note
How to Install Windows 11 on Mac with Parallels If you’re looking to install Windows 11 on your Mac, there are a few things you’ll need to do first. First, you’ll need to create a new account and select the type of computer you want to use. Then, you’ll need to install the Parallels software. Once that’s done, it’s time to start installation. To begin, open the Parallels software and click on the “Create a new virtual machine” button. Then, enter in your computer’s name and operating system information. Once that’s complete, click on the “Create” button and wait for the process to finish. When it does, your new Windows 11 virtual machine will be created! Now that your virtual machine is created, it’s time to start it up! To do this, open the “Windows 11” virtual machine and click on its “Start” button. Then, type in “C:\Users\YourName\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\policies" into the text field and hit enter. Nowadays, most Macs have a hidden folder called “System Preferences”, so this should take care of everything else for you! If everything went according to plan and your virtual machine started up correctly, congratulations! You now have Windows 11 installed on your Mac! If not… well then we recommend reading our other guide Howto Install Windows 10 on a Mac with Parallels first before continuing with this one!
