Steam users have until October 15th before the software no longer runs on macOS 11 Big Sur
Valve’s popular Steam game launcher will soon end support for the aging macOS 11 Big Sur, joining a decision made by Google to stop supporting macOS 11 Big Sur with its Chrome web browser going forward.
And that’s no coincidence… the public Steam client build depends on an embedded version of Google Chrome despite the fact that a beta build now runs natively on newer versions of macOS.
In an announcement shared on Steam Support, Valve said that Steam will officially end support for macOS 11 Big Sur beginning on October 15th, 2025, which gives users just over two months before it will stop running on that particular version of macOS.
The full announcement below:
On October 15th, 2025, Steam will officially stop supporting macOS version 11 (“Big Sur”). After that date, the Steam Client will no longer run on this version of macOS. In order to continue running Steam and any games or other products purchased through Steam, users will need to update to a more recent version of macOS.
This change is required as core features in Steam rely on an embedded version of Google Chrome, which no longer functions on older versions of macOS. In addition, future versions of Steam will require macOS feature and security updates only present in macOS 12 and above.
We strongly encourage all macOS 11 users to update sooner rather than later. Apple ended security updates and technical support for macOS 11 in 2023. Computers running these operating systems, when connected to the internet, are susceptible to new malware and other exploits which will not be patched. That malware can cause your computer, Steam and games to perform poorly or crash. That malware can also be used to steal the credentials for your Steam account or other services.
Users of macOS version 11 can find more information on upgrading macOS here.
If you’re a macOS 11 Big Sur user and you rely on Steam for any of your gaming or software downloads, then you’ll want to upgrade to a newer version before October 15th, or the app will simply stop working on your machine. There will unfortunately not be a grandfathered build that continues to operate without updates.
Since Valve is beginning to test native builds of Steam for macOS that runs with better speed and performance on Apple Silicon, this is probably the right move. Software companies can only keep supporting outdated software for so long before it starts to hold back progress, and in this case, that’s exactly what it’s doing.
Most devices that are being forced to run older versions of macOS are doing so because they’re being managed by an enterprise, which probably isn’t the target audience of most Steam users on macOS anyway.
Source link: https://www.idownloadblog.com/2025/08/05/steam-ending-macos-11-big-sur-support/
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