Apple's newest Macs will be able to run Windows 11 through third-party software from Parallels, which today announced that Parallels Desktop 17 has been optimized for Microsoft's new OS.
Parallels Desktop is one of the friendliest ways to run Windows on a Mac computer. It sets up a virtual machine, which can load Microsoft’s operating system in a window on macOS.
Parallels Desktop is especially useful if you own one of Apple’s newest Macs built with the company’s ARM-based M1 chips. These Macs have dropped Intel’s CPUs and Boot Camp, a free utility to install and run Windows 10 on the computer.
However, running Windows 11 on an M1 Mac with Parallels does come with a catch: You’ll only be able to run the ARM-based version of Windows 11, not the x86 Intel-compatible version of the operating system. Hence, the experience is largely limited to using ARM-based apps, although Microsoft is working on an ARM emulator to run x86-based Windows apps.
Intel-based Macs, on the other hand, will be able to run the x86-version of Windows 11 through Parallels. In either case, both Macs can already run Windows 11 Insider Previews via Parallels after going through several steps.
The latest version of Parallels Desktop also includes a virtual TPM chip, a requirement to install the final version of Windows 11. So when the OS officially launches later this year, Parallels should be able to run it without problem.
Parallels Desktop 17 for Mac starts at $79.99 per year for a new license. The program requires 600MB in storage.