Macworld

Being able to create a bootable USB installer for macOS is a useful skill for any Mac user. Whether you’re performing a clean install, setting up multiple Macs, recovering a system that won’t boot, or simply want a reliable offline installer, a bootable USB drive gives you far more control than relying on macOS Recovery alone.

Creating a bootable installer is easier than it used to be thanks to Apple’s Terminal command, createinstallmedia, but the process still isn’t obvious – and it differs depending on whether you’re using an Intel Mac or a Mac with Apple silicon. You’ll need the correct macOS installer, a USB drive with enough capacity, and a few Terminal commands that need to be entered exactly.

In this guide, we’ll show you how to create a bootable USB installer for macOS Golden Gate, as well as macOS Tahoe, macOS Sequoia and older versions of macOS. We’ll explain what you need before you begin, how the process differs between Intel and Apple silicon Macs, and how to use your installer once it’s ready. By the end, you’ll have a reusable macOS installer that can save you time, bandwidth and frustration – and it might even help you recover a Mac when nothing else will.

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We also explain how to create a bootable installer for the latest macOS beta, where available, and provide instructions for macOS Golden Gate, Tahoe, Sequoia and earlier releases.

Why create a bootable USB mac installer

Creating a bootable USB macOS installer is a versatile tool for troubleshooting, system maintenance, and managing multiple computers.

There are several specific scenarios where a bootable USB is superior to standard software updates or built-in Recovery modes:

  • Clean Installations and Troubleshooting: A bootable drive allows you to wipe a Mac’s internal storage and install a fresh copy of the operating system. This is often the best way to fix persistent software issues, resolve persistent software problems, or prepare a machine for a new owner. See: How to do a clean install of macOS
  • Installing on Multiple Macs: Instead of downloading the multi-gigabyte installer (which can be 16GB or more) on every individual machine, you can download it once and use the USB to update several Macs quickly.
  • Installing on a separate volume: You can also use your bootable installer to install macOS on a separate volume of your hard drive.
  • Beta updates: Installing the latest macOS beta
  • Downgrading macOS: If a new update like macOS Golden Gate causes issues, a bootable installer is the primary method for rolling back to a previous version like macOS Tahoe. See: How to downgrade macOS update and rollback to the previous version and How to get older versions of macOS.
  • Unsupported Hardware: For users with older Intel-based Macs that Apple no longer officially supports, a bootable USB can be required to use tools like the OpenCore Legacy Patcher to install newer versions of macOS.
  • Emergency Access: If your Mac can’t access Recovery mode.
SpeedFaster than downloading the OS via Recovery mode for every install.Reduced downloadingThe macOS installer is stored on the drive, so you don’t need to download the full OS on every Mac. An internet connection may still be required during installation.VersatilitySupports clean installs, downgrades, and patching unsupported Macs.EfficiencyOne drive can update an entire fleet of Mac computers. How to create a bootable macOS Installer

We will run through the following steps to create a bootable USB for Mac:

  1. Get the macOS installer files
  2. Create a bootable installer for macOS
  3. Choose the correct createinstallmedia command
What you need to make a bootable USB for Mac
  • A 32GB Flash Drive (Minimum): To create a bootable USB installer, you typically need a USB flash drive or Thunderbolt drive with at least 16GB (we recommend 32GB) of space. Using a faster drive, such as a USB 3.0 or USB-C stick, is recommended to reduce installation times.
    • Note: If you have data on the drive that you plan to use you will need to transfer it to another drive, as it will be completely formatted and erased.
  • macOS installation files: You can obtain these from the Mac App Store, Software Update in System Settings, or other official Apple sources.
  • A Compatible Mac.
  • Admin access: You will need to have an admin user account on the Mac you are working with.
  • Internet access: It goes without saying that you will need an internet connection to download the software and you may need it while installing the version of macOS if it needs to check for firmware or confirm your iCloud credentials.
1.

Get the macOS installer files

You can get installers from the Mac App Store – as long as your Mac is compatible.


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How you get the installation files will depend on the version you want the installer for. Below we’ll look at how to get various macOS installers. If it’s an older version you are after, we have a dedicated article about How to download old Mac OS X and macOS versions.

  • Warning: Download the installation files, but make sure you stop before the actual installation starts. When the installation starts the files will be disposed of, so you need to step in beforehand!

Where to get macOS Golden Gate installer: From September 14, macOS Golden Gate can be downloaded on compatible Macs through the Software Update mechanism within macOS. Navigate to the Apple menu > System Settings > General > Software Update. Your Mac will check for the latest version, and you can click Upgrade Now to begin the download.

Where to get the macOS beta: To get the latest beta files you need to first register for the Apple’s official developer or public beta programs. You can then download the latest beta from Software Update, as described above. See: Latest macOS beta details and how to get it.

Where to get other macOS installers: You can download the installers from these Mac App Store links. Make sure you use Safari and close the Mac App Store before clicking on the link or it may not work. If your Mac is too new it may not be compatible with these older versions.

  • macOS Tahoe
  • macOS Sequoia
  • macOS Sonoma
  • macOS Ventura
  • macOS Monterey
  • macOS Big Sur
  • macOS Catalina
  • macOS Mojave
  • macOS High Sierra

Once the installation files are downloaded you will be able to find them in the Applications folder via the Finder. Now you have the installation files, we can move on to the process of making the bootable installer.

Creating a bootable installation of macOS requires a single command in Terminal (this has been the case since Mavericks arrived in 2013). The createinstallmedia command makes it possible to create a bootable copy of an installer on any drive that’s connected to your Mac. You’ll find all the createinstallmedia commands at the bottom of this article.

  • Warning: The createinstallmedia command erases anything on the external disk you use for your bootable drive, so make sure there’s nothing on it that you need.
2.

Connect and prepare the drive manually, if necessary

Using Disk Utility to prepare the hard drive.


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You may not need to prepare the drive manually. If everything in step 3 (below) works as expected, the createinstallmedia command will erase the external drive and format it as Mac OS Extended (Journaled) automatically. You can therefore skip these Disk Utility steps and go straight to creating the bootable installer. However, if createinstallmedia can’t erase or prepare the drive correctly, we recommend formatting it manually first using the steps below.

  1. Connect a USB flash drive or other external drive with at least 32GB of space. Everything on the drive will be erased, so make a copy of anything you want to keep first.
  2. Open Disk Utility (press Command + spacebar and start to type Disk Utility).
  3. In Disk Utility click View and select Show All Devices.
  4. From the sidebar, physical external drive itself, rather than one of the volumes underneath it.
  5. Click Erase.
  6. Give the drive a simple name such as MyVolume. You can use another name, but you must use that exact name later in the Terminal command.
  7. Set Scheme to GUID Partition Map. Note that createinstallmedia will ultimately erase the drive as Mac OS Extended (Journaled).
  8. Click Erase, wait for Disk Utility to finish, then click Done. 
3.

Create the bootable macOS installer

Use Terminal to create your installer.


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Before starting this part of the process, make sure the full macOS installer is in your Applications folder. If you ran the update when you downloaded it the installer will need to be downloaded again.

  1. Open Terminal (Command + Space and type Terminal).
  2. Enter the createinstallmedia command for the version of macOS you want to install. You can find the commands at the bottom of this article.
  3. Press Return.
  4. Enter your administrator password when prompted. Nothing will appear on screen while you type the password; this is normal.
  5. If macOS asks Terminal for permission to access the removable drive, click OK.
  6. When Terminal warns that the drive will be erased, type Y and press Return.
  7. Wait while Terminal erases the drive and copies the macOS installer. This may take several minutes. When it is finished you should see “Copy complete. Done.”

The external drive is now a bootable macOS installer.

4.

Boot the Mac from the installer

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This process is different on Apple silicon and Intel Macs.

On an Apple Silicon Mac:

  1. Connect the installer drive and shut down the Mac.
  2. Press and hold the power button until Startup Options appears.
  3. Select the macOS installer.
  4. Click Continue.

On an Intel Mac:

  1. Connect the installer drive and shut down the Mac.
  2. Turn it on while holding the Option/Alt key.
  3. Select the macOS installer from the startup menu.
  4. Press Return or choose Continue.

Note: Apple warns that Macs with a T2 Security Chip may need Startup Security Utility configured to allow booting from external or removable media.

5.

Install macOS

Install the version of macOS you want.


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Once the Mac has started from the USB installer, choose the option to Install macOS and follow the onscreen instructions.

The installer can only install that version of macOS on Macs that support it.

If you want a clean install, you must first erase the Mac’s internal disk before installing macOS; otherwise, you can install the OS normally without wiping the Mac. Read How to clean install macOS for step-by-step instructions.

createinstallmedia commands 

The createinstallmedia command will be slightly different depending on which version of macOS you are wanting to use.

Note MyVolume may have a different name for you, for example it might be USB or Untitled. Check in Disk Utilities, it’s the name of the external disk you are using.

  • WARNING: We have heard of people copying and pasting in the -- only for them to change to a – in Terminal, so be careful of that. There should be two dashes!

Golden Gate

sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Golden\ Gate.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume

Tahoe 

sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Tahoe.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume

Sequoia

sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Sequoia.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume

Sonoma

sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Sonoma.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume

Ventura 

sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Ventura.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume

Monterey

sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Monterey.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume

Big Sur 

sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Big\ Sur.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume

Catalina

sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Catalina.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume

Mojave

sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Mojave.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume

High Sierra

sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ High\ Sierra.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume

Sierra

sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Sierra.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume --applicationpath /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Sierra.app

El Capitan

sudo /Applications/Install\ OS\ X\ El\ Capitan.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume --applicationpath /Applications/Install\ OS\ X\ El\ Capitan.app

Yosemite

sudo /Applications/Install\ OS\ X\ Yosemite.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume --applicationpath /Applications/Install\ OS\ X\ Yosemite.app