update safari

The way Safari is updated is by upgrading your computer's software. An upgrade is when you install a newer OS version, such as upgrading from Catalina to Big Sur. An update is to install a newer version of the same operating system. The reason for this is because Safari is installed as part of the operating system. It cannot normally be individually installed. Incidentally, a newer version of Safari does not always work with every web site. Sometimes it is necessary to install another browser such as Firefox or Chrome to use with certain web sites. They are individually installed and upgraded.

So, the latest Safari version is installed when you upgrade the OS on your iMac. You can check the model year of your iMac under the Apple menu > About This Mac.

"Sometimes it is necessary to install another browser such as Firefox or Chrome..." - I see you suggesting this a great deal. Firefox I wholeheartedly agree with. However, I would NEVER recommend to anyone that they use Chrome. Google, and all of their many products, are nothing short of brilliantly designed data-mining spyware. A large majority of users are not tech-savvy enough to grasp that their personal data, and profiling, is Google's profit producing product.

The Privacy Guides website (https://privacyguides.org) is a great resource. Here is their page on browsers. Scroll down a bit to see their warning on Chrome, Brave, Chromium, etc.