Fix severe lag and freezing after updating Mac to macOS Tahoe

Go through these 10 troubleshooting tips if your Apple silicon or Intel Mac is lagging, freezing, and not working smoothly after updating it to macOS Tahoe 26.

The problem

First off, if you’re facing this problem, then you’re not alone. Reddit, Apple Community, and other similar sites and forums have numerous complaints from Mac users with an Intel machine to ones with an M4 Max MacBook Pro, and those with 8 GB RAM to 64 GB RAM! In other words, this issue is related to macOS Tahoe itself and not a particular Mac model.

Usually, the apps and the entire machine in general lag; the rotating rainbow beachball comes up frequently on the screen; the mouse pointer stutters; and so forth. This affects native apps, Electron apps, games, and even core Apple apps like FaceTime, Messages, Notes, Safari, etc.

Now, to be fair, not all Mac users are facing this issue. I have not noticed any considerable slowdown on my M1 MacBook Pro, M2 Mac mini, or M4 MacBook Air. However, after reviewing numerous user posts, it’s clear that people have issues with macOS Tahoe, and I’ve compiled all the solutions that have worked for others below.

Restart your Mac

Simply turning your Mac off and back on can fix this issue, albeit temporarily. So, do it to regain normal performance, and follow the remaining tips below.

Free up a few GBs of local space

If you don’t have at least 4 GB of free space on your computer, delete large apps, photos, files, etc., that you don’t need. Then restart your Mac, and it should feel snappier.

Update to the most recent version of macOS 26

Most Mac lags, freezes, and unresponsiveness were reported with initial builds of macOS 26. If you haven’t updated since, just go to System Settings > General > Software Update and install the most recent version of macOS Tahoe 26 beta or non-beta. There is a huge chance that this will solve your issue, and you won’t have to read the remaining solutions below.

Make sure Mac isn’t too hot or cold

All smartphones and computers slow down and start to work poorly in extreme temperatures, whether too hot or too cold. Shut down your computer for 5 minutes or move it to a room with normal temperature to restore regular performance.

Boot in safe mode

Restart your Mac in safe mode, and if it works fine, that means the slow laggy issue is because of apps or extensions. If you recently installed a new app and started experiencing slow computer performance, restart your Mac in normal mode and delete that app.

Turn off autofill

I can attest that, although autofill is helpful in certain situations, it can slow down Safari and other text fields, as well as contact forms, on both iOS and macOS. If Safari feels slow, try turning off autofill from its settings, as shown in the screenshot below. You can also check out this Reddit post for a Terminal command to turn off autofill.

Consider removing anti-virus, cleaner, or other optimization apps

If you have installed such apps, delete them and see if the user experience improves. In multiple cases, an anti-virus or cleaner app, when left running, can slow down your Mac.

Have macOS reindex Spotlight

Multiple Apple Community users, such as AppleUsedToBeMyFriend (interesting username), atomicvibe, and TonyMattheys, have shared that macOS Tahoe feels slow if your Mac is still indexing Spotlight files and has not finished it, even though it has been a few days since you updated. The issue is linked to corespotlightd, which you can see in the Activity Monitor app.

To address this, go to ~/Library/Metadata/CoreSpotlight/ and delete all files there. Then restart your Mac, and it should reindex the files in a day or two. You can also use erase and rebuild Spotlight using sudo mdutil -E / in Terminal.

Reinstall macOS

If nothing helps, wait for a new macOS Tahoe 26 update or reinstall macOS without deleting personal data.

Additionally, go through these resources to read suggestions by people who have faced the problem of a slow and laggy Mac after updating to macOS Tahoe: Reddit | Apple Community

Install macOS Sequoia on a partition

Unless this issue isn’t happening on your new M5 MacBook, you can install macOS Sequoia or an older macOS version on a different partition of your Mac, effectively having both macOS Tahoe and the other macOS version on the same computer. If the lag and slowdown in macOS Tahoe are unbearable, consider using macOS Sequoia in the meantime and wait for a new macOS Tahoe 26 update to resolve the issue.

Source link: https://www.idownloadblog.com/2025/11/11/fix-mac-lag-freeze-after-updating/