Apple Inc. operating systems

macOS (previously OS X and originally Mac OS X) is a proprietary Unix operating system, derived from OPENSTEP for Mach and FreeBSD, which has been marketed and developed by Apple since 2001. It is the current operating system for Apple's line of Mac computers. Within the market of desktop and laptop computers, it is currently the second most widely used desktop OS, after Microsoft Windows and ahead of all Linux distributions, including ChromeOS and SteamOS. , the most recent release of macOS is macOS 26 Tahoe, the 22nd major version of macOS.

iOS (formerly iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple for its iPhone line of smartphones. It was unveiled in January 2007 alongside the first-generation iPhone, and was released in June 2007. Major versions of iOS are released annually; the current stable version, iOS 26, was released to the public on September 15, 2025.

watchOS is the operating system of the Apple Watch, developed by Apple. It is based on iOS, the operating system used by the iPhone, and has many similar features. It was released on April 24, 2015, along with the Apple Watch, the only device that runs watchOS. watchOS exposes an API called WatchKit for developer use.

iPadOS is a mobile operating system developed by Apple for its iPad line of tablet computers. It was given a name distinct from iOS, the operating system used by Apple's iPhones, to reflect the diverging features of the two product lines, such as multitasking. It was introduced as iPadOS 13, reflecting its status as the successor to iOS 12 for the iPad, and first released to the public on September 24, 2019. Major versions of iPadOS are released annually; the current stable version, , was released to the public on .

core Unix-like operating system of macOS, iOS, etc.

tvOS (formerly Apple TV Software) is an operating system developed by Apple for the Apple TV, a digital media player. In the first-generation Apple TV, Apple TV Software was based on Mac OS X. The software for the second-generation and later Apple TVs is based on the iOS operating system and has many similar frameworks, technologies, and concepts.

A/UX is a Unix-based operating system from Apple Computer for Macintosh computers, integrated with System 7's graphical interface and application compatibility. It is Apple's first official Unix-based operating system, launched in 1988 and discontinued in 1995 with version 3.1.1. A/UX requires select 68k-based Macintosh models with an FPU and a paged memory management unit (PMMU).

visionOS is an extended reality operating system derived primarily from iPadOS and its core frameworks (including UIKit, SwiftUI, ARKit and RealityKit), and MR-specific frameworks for foveated rendering and real-time interaction. It was developed by Apple exclusively for its Apple Vision Pro mixed reality headset. It was unveiled on June 5, 2023, at Apple's WWDC23 event alongside the reveal of the Apple Vision Pro. The software released on February 2, 2024, shipping with the Apple Vision Pro.

fourth major release of iPadOS, the tablet operating system developed by Apple Inc.

family of disk operating systems

2021 iPad operating system

mobile operating system of the iPad

operating system on Apple II and III series computers

Wikimedia list article

mobile operating system of the iPad

operating system

seventh major release of iPadOS, the tablet operating system developed by Apple Inc.

MkLinux (Microkernel Linux) is a discontinued open-source experimental operating system for PowerPC Macintosh computers. It was launched in 1995 as a collaboration between the Open Software Foundation (OSF) and Apple Computer, as a critical pivot in Apple's technical and social history. MkLinux became Apple's first official free and open-source software community project, and the debut of Linux on the first Power Macintosh.

fifth major release of iPadOS, the tablet operating system developed by Apple Inc.

sixth major release of iPadOS, the tablet operating system developed by Apple Inc.

operating system

operating system for apple newton PDA

aspect of history

Apple IIGS operating system

bridgeOS is an embedded operating system created and developed by Apple for use exclusively with its hardware. bridgeOS runs on the T series Apple silicon processors and operates devices such as the OLED touchscreen strip called the "Touch Bar", Touch ID fingerprint sensor, SSD encryption, and cooling fans.

8-bit Apple III operating system

Taligent Inc. (a portmanteau of "talent" and "intelligent") was an American software company. Based on the Pink object-oriented operating system conceived by Apple in 1988, Taligent Inc. was incorporated as an Apple/IBM partnership in 1992, and was dissolved into IBM in 1998.