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I have a 2017 iMac 5k iMac 4.2 i7/64GB... I'm running High Sierra and I'm wondering if I can get a performance increase by updating to Mojave, Catalina, Big Sur or Monterey.
Which one is fastest?
iMac Line (2012 and Later)
To add to the excellent advise already provided, Mechanical / Rotational Drives and especially Fusion Drive become a major setback for Big Sur and Monterey in regards to Performance.
How to get old versions of macOS and verify what version this computer Qualifies to install. For Best results use Safari to commence the download as Others may not work.
Safari will open a redirect and open the Apple Store where the download can commence.
Computer Qualify for the Monterey upgrade
macOS Big Sur 11 hardware requirements
macOS Catalina 10.15 hardware requirements
macOS Mojave 10.14 hardware requirements
Caution - jumping over all the newer versions and directly to Big Sur / Monterey on Qualifying computers is Technically possible - there are those who have attempted and were successful. Then there are those who attempted and had less than good results.
If this is a Production or Mission Critical Set-up - a more prudent and measure approach is suggested.
The above is from observations on the Apple Support Community Forums and IMHO
Tips Big Sir Upgrade Released Nov 2020
Tips Monterey Upgrade Released Oct 25, 2021
Make Time Machine Backup is very useful and can be used to Revert to Previous Working macOS
Notation - Mojave is the Last version to support 32 bit applications / extensions and Drivers. Catalina, Big Sur & Monterey supports only 64 bit and there is no workaround.
Suggest using Go64 to find 32 bit application before attempting the upGrade. Some or many of the Application already installed may required update or upGrades to 64 Bit Versions.
To add to the excellent advise already provided, Mechanical / Rotational Drives and especially Fusion Drive become a major setback for Big Sur and Monterey in regards to Performance.
How to get old versions of macOS and verify what version this computer Qualifies to install. For Best results use Safari to commence the download as Others may not work.
Safari will open a redirect and open the Apple Store where the download can commence.
Computer Qualify for the Monterey upgrade
macOS Big Sur 11 hardware requirements
macOS Catalina 10.15 hardware requirements
macOS Mojave 10.14 hardware requirements
Caution - jumping over all the newer versions and directly to Big Sur / Monterey on Qualifying computers is Technically possible - there are those who have attempted and were successful. Then there are those who attempted and had less than good results.
If this is a Production or Mission Critical Set-up - a more prudent and measure approach is suggested.
The above is from observations on the Apple Support Community Forums and IMHO
Tips Big Sir Upgrade Released Nov 2020
Tips Monterey Upgrade Released Oct 25, 2021
Make Time Machine Backup is very useful and can be used to Revert to Previous Working macOS
Notation - Mojave is the Last version to support 32 bit applications / extensions and Drivers. Catalina, Big Sur & Monterey supports only 64 bit and there is no workaround.
Suggest using Go64 to find 32 bit application before attempting the upGrade. Some or many of the Application already installed may required update or upGrades to 64 Bit Versions.
Monterey is the fastest in my experience - having said that, it is mostly hardware that matters.
I looked up specs for yours - note the Geekbench results ( yours has a fusion drive with a spinning hard drive):
Now compare that to a 2020 model with about the same specs (the newer models all have SSDs which are much faster than your hard drive)
Note that the new OS versions are developed to be the fastest with the latest hardware, Also note that you will need a minimum 45 GB empty space on your hard drive for the download and install. And, installing anything but the latest or current OS is a bit more complicated.
So, the OS is not the main component to speed and I don't know if it will speed up a spinning drive and 5 year old processor. But having the latest will give you the latest security updates; you will also probably have some apps that will no longer be compatible.
You have the fast multi-threaded hardware (providing it has an internal SSD) and the RAM configuration to handle any of these newer operating systems. Even though each newer operating system adds features and those features demand more processing capacity to handle the additional processes and threads, you have the hardware to get the job done. Although it is the largest operating system by installed size, Monterey would be my pick.
Leaving macOS High Sierra to Catalina or later would drop support for all of your 32-bit applications, and these would need vendor 64-bit replacements, or other (possibly subscriptions) options for support on 64-bit only operating systems. The same is true with current printer and scanner vendors whose drivers would need to 64-bit as well. Look before you leap. The free Go64 application can reveal your 32-bit and 64-bit applications that have 32-bit dependencies.
And lastly, make one last Time Machine backup of High Sierra before you upgrade, and then shelve that TM drive and do not let the new operating system backup to it. It is your means to return to High Sierra with all of your data and applications intact.
Are you referring to the small SSD which is part of your fusion drive? Or do you have different setup/configuration? If you do have a fusion drive, most all of the "work" takes place on the spinning (nuch slower) drive.
I have an SSD
What is the fastest version of macOS?
