How do I optimise slow 2017 MacBook Air?

My MacBook Air just started running slow, it was not after any update or download.

I completely wiped my computer and reinstalled the OS and did NOT use my back up.

I did log into my apple account and have my files but not old software.

I have run it in safe mode and no change.

Suggestions please.



[Re-Titled by Moderator]

MacBook Air 13″, macOS 12.7

Posted on Jan 24, 2025 8:21 AM

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Posted on Jan 26, 2025 1:21 PM

Performance suggestion: upgrade to a larger/faster 240GB+ internal SSD and downgrade to the penultimate supported version of MacOS (Big Sur for a 2017 MBA). On one hand it should only cost $70-150 if you do it DIY, but on the other hand Big Sur and Monterey are close enough to end-life that It may not be worth spending anything to upgrade a 2015/2017 MBA.


Apple chose to set the system requirements for MacOS 13 (Ventura) to "Kaby Lake or newer CPU". The 2015/2017 MacBook Airs are just too old.

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Jan 26, 2025 1:21 PM in response to LindelDV

Performance suggestion: upgrade to a larger/faster 240GB+ internal SSD and downgrade to the penultimate supported version of MacOS (Big Sur for a 2017 MBA). On one hand it should only cost $70-150 if you do it DIY, but on the other hand Big Sur and Monterey are close enough to end-life that It may not be worth spending anything to upgrade a 2015/2017 MBA.


Apple chose to set the system requirements for MacOS 13 (Ventura) to "Kaby Lake or newer CPU". The 2015/2017 MacBook Airs are just too old.

Jan 26, 2025 3:10 PM in response to LindelDV

You can get internal SSDs for 2017 MacBook Airs:


Other World Computing – OWC Solid State Drives For MacBook Air 11" & 13" (Mid 2013 - Mid 2017)


I believe that the 2017 MacBook Airs are the last ones on which the internal drive is upgradable. Apple started soldering in the SSDs on all MacBook Airs beginning in 2018 (when MacBook Airs got the T2 security chip).

Jan 24, 2025 9:32 AM in response to LindelDV

I would suggest making sure there is some free space on the internal SSD. Filling it nearly to the brim could cause issues, and you really don't want to let it get it completely full.


Other than that - if the slowness persisted even after wiping the Mac and reinstalling just macOS and data (no third party applications), that might suggest a hardware problem.

Jan 24, 2025 5:15 PM in response to LindelDV

For a 2017 MacBook Air, Monterey (macOS 12) is the end of the line. That Mac is not compatible with Ventura, Sonoma, or Sequoia. There are applications like Firefox and LibreOffice whose current versions are compatible with Monterey (and probably will be for a couple of years more) – but Microsoft and Adobe have a policy of only supporting "the most recent three." Monterey is no longer one of those.


iOS is the iPhone operating system. Although it shares some code and technology with macOS, it's a different operating system and isn't even on the same version numbering scheme.

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How do I optimise slow 2017 MacBook Air?

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