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Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard

Upgrade from Mac OS X Leopard with Snow Leopard, a simpler, more powerful, and more refined version of Mac OS X. It delivers a wide range of enhancements, next-generation technologies, out-of-the-box support for Microsoft Exchange Server, and new accessibility features. It's the world's most advanced operating system, finely tuned from installation to shutdown.

Snow Leopard is an upgrade for Leopard users and requires a Mac with an Intel processor.

Upgrade your Mac experience.

With Snow Leopard, iLife ’09, and iWork ’09 all in one box, the Mac Box Set is the best way to upgrade your Mac experience, especially if you’re still using Mac OS X Tiger.

Find out which version you’re using

Buy the Mac Box Set

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Questions & Answers

569 Questions + 533 Answers

3.0

Based on 335 reviews

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Purchase Information

$29.00

Ships: Within 24hrs

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Overview

Better, faster, easier Updated

Snow Leopard enhances your entire Mac experience. In ways big and small, it gets faster, more reliable, and easier to use.

  • Activate Exposé right from the Dock.
  • Wake from sleep and shut down your Mac faster than before.
  • Install it more quickly and get back 7GB of disk space.
  • Enjoy dozens more refinements for everything from iChat to Preview and more.

Learn more about refinements

Next-generation technologies New

New core technologies in Snow Leopard unleash the power of today’s advanced hardware and prepare Mac OS X for future innovation.

  • 64-bit support, the next big step for the Mac. All key system applications are now 64-bit so they can take advantage of all the memory in your Mac.
  • Grand Central Dispatch, a revolutionary new way for software to get the most from multicore processors.
  • OpenCL, a new technology that unleashes the power of graphics processors to accelerate application performance.

Learn more about the new technologies

QuickTime X New

As the next generation of media players, it’s built on new core technologies and advances modern media and Internet standards.

  • Watch your videos in a clean, uncluttered interface with the new QuickTime Player.
  • Record audio or video using the built-in iSight camera and microphone in your Mac.
  • Trim your media to the perfect length.
  • Easily publish your media to MobileMe or YouTube.

Learn more about QuickTime X

Out-of-the-box
support for Microsoft Exchange New

Mac OS X Snow Leopard delivers built-in support for the latest version of Microsoft Exchange Server, something even Windows PCs don’t have.

  • Use your Mac at home and at work and have all your messages, meetings, and contacts in one place.
  • Easily set it up using the Autodiscovery feature in Exchange.
  • Use Mail, iCal, and Address Book to access your work email, calendars, and the Global Address List alongside your personal accounts.
  • Take advantage of powerful Mac OS X features such as Spotlight, Quick Look, data detectors, and more.

Learn more about Exchange support

Safari 4 New

The latest version of Apple’s blazing-fast web browser delivers up to 50 percent faster JavaScript performance and is more resistant to crashes than ever.

  • Use Top Sites to view your favorite websites at a glance, see which ones have been updated, and visit them in a click.
  • Complete search queries as you type with built-in Google Suggest.
  • Flip through full-page previews of your browsing history in Cover Flow the same way you flip through album art in iTunes.

Learn more about Safari 4

Universal Access Updated

Every Mac comes with built-in technologies designed to help people with disabilities experience it. Innovations in Snow Leopard advance accessibility even further.

  • Control your Mac using gestures on your Multi-Touch trackpad. And when you drag your finger across the trackpad, VoiceOver speaks the items you touch so you know how they’re arranged on the screen.
  • Snow Leopard includes support for over 40 braille display models, including Bluetooth models.
  • New accessibility features make web browsing easier, faster, and more enjoyable.

Learn more about accessibility in Mac OS X Snow Leopard

Visit the Mac OS X Snow Leopard site

What's in the Box

  • Installation DVD
  • Printed and electronic documentation

System Requirements

  • Mac computer with an Intel processor
  • 1GB of memory
  • 5GB of available disk space
  • DVD drive for installation
  • Some features require a compatible Internet service provider; fees may apply.
  • Some features require Apple’s MobileMe service; fees and terms apply.

See all system requirements

Find out which OS and processor you have

Language Support

Mac OS X v10.6 Snow Leopard is available in English, Japanese, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Dutch, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Finnish, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, Korean, Brazilian Portuguese, Portuguese (Portugal), Russian, and Polish.

About the Family Pack

The Family Pack Software License Agreement allows you to install and use one copy of the Apple software on up to a maximum of five (5) Apple-labeled computers at a time as long as those computers are located in the same household and used by persons who occupy that household. By “household” we mean a person or persons who share the same housing unit such as a home, apartment, mobile home, or condominium, including students who are primary residents of that household but reside at a separate on-campus location. This license does not extend to business or commercial users.

  • Get Snow Leopard, iLife '09, and iWork '09 all in one box
  • Mac OS X Server Snow Leopard
 

Ratings & Reviews

3.0

Based on 335 reviews

Write a review

Most Useful Reviews

  • Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard

    3.0

    Two steps forward, one step back
    • Written by ML from Montreal
    • Sep 30, 2009

    The speed increases are significant, and probably worthwhile in the long run, but applications - Apple and non-Apple Intel applications included - crash fairly regularly. All the non-Apple applications have crashed several times since I started using Snow Leopard a few days ago, and Apple applications such as Mail, iPhoto, and Safari have also crashed. While the speed increase, and some of the layout improvements, make it overall a good product, the number of bugs means it's probably worth waiting for some updates before buying it. …More

    1378 of 1577 people found this useful

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  • Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard

    2.0

    Too many issues to bother with now
    • Written by AK from Kansas City
    • Oct 1, 2009

    Luckily I had only had my computer for two months before I attempted this, because it was utter ____. I've lost a couple of things because I had to revert back to leopard, and Firefox was one of the main ones. My office 2008 is buggy now and I've tried to fix it, but I think its even past my help. My advice is to wait a few months, and back up your computer first if you do attempt it. Luckily I did. …More

    961 of 1192 people found this useful

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  • Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard

    2.0

    Playing nice with other software
    • Written by EH from Minster
    • Oct 1, 2009

    Beware. If you are using Adobe Products such as CS4 or Nikon products such as Capture NX2. Snow leopard does NOT play real well. locks up (Beach ball of death) alot. Also Snow Leopard will cause your legit copy of Lightroom 2.5 to expire.

    Other than that nice savings to the HD and noticeable speed increase.     …More

    882 of 1109 people found this useful

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Most Recent Reviews

  • Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard

    2.0

    Slow
    • Written by LC
    • Feb 9, 2010

    Many people have different views on this Snow Leopard. Some would say it works faster,some would say its slower. While others find it to be the same as their Leopard. This is quite irritating as my leopard was very slow in the first place. I wanted to increases the speed yet nothing happens. Sometimes it slows down also. …More

    2 of 3 people found this useful

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  • Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard

    4.0

    More than decent
    • Written by BP from Missouri City
    • Feb 9, 2010

    I ran a straight upgrade right after it came out, and I must've had an ideal performance, because I had NONE of the issues on my MBP that people have listed here.

    There are a few eccentricities in Expose and Spaces, and a few other strange formatting and performance choices, but on the whole the move was a good thing.     …More

    1 of 1 people found this useful

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  • Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard

    5.0

    Disregard Cranks
    • Written by MC from Albuquerque
    • Feb 7, 2010

    Having used a small mountain of OSes (since Commodore 64) including Mac's offerings since their inception, there's no question Snow Leopard is by far the strongest OS I've ever run. There were a couple of pain points in the initial switch from 10.5 to 10.6, all associated with vendors not doing a good or timely job managing their own products; but those are long behind me now and all of my Macs with Intel processors run Snow Leopard beautifully. I run CS4 and other apps that others have reported as "problematic" with no issues. I run a number of high performance apps, including Isadora, and their performance is first-rate. Frankly, my biggest headache was OKI's unwillingness to upgrade drivers from my wife's older 3200N; but like the complaints about other incompatibilities, anyone with half a brain has to recognize you always have to weigh tradeoffs with every technology leap. For heavens sake, even our great grandfathers had to do that when they exchanged their horses for Model T's! Before upgrading, I did what everyone should always do, but the complainers here refuse to do: I evaluated by research on the Internet what others were experiencing with each of my most critical apps. The reports were outstanding and I'm very pleased to say I run the fastest, smoothest, most stable OS I've ever owned. To the whiner reviewers here: get a life. …More

    10 of 13 people found this useful

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Questions & Answers

Most Interesting

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  • My Mac is still with the Mac OS X Tiger, can I upgrade to the snow?
    • Asked by FI
    • Sep 30, 2009
    Best Answer

    If you have an Intel based mac, you can upgrade to Snow Leopard by buying the "Snow Leopard Box set," which will also include a copy of iLife '09 and iWork '09. …More

    • Answered by NS from Santa Clara
    • Oct 6, 2009
    • 69 of 98 people found this useful
    • 3 more answers
  • My Imac is Mac OSX Version 10.5.8 Would I benefit by upgrading to Snow Leopard, or have I already got it.
    • Asked by CW
    • Sep 30, 2009
    Best Answer

    CW,

    If your iMac has 10.5.8, then you have Mac OS X Leopard. The .8 in 10.5.8 means there have been 8 updates applied to the base 10.5.0 version. Mac OS X Snow Leopard is version 10.6 which you do not currently own, but can be purchased for $29 from any Apple Store.

    As far as your question of benefits to upgrading, yes there are some new features and fixes in Mac OS X Snow Leopard† that many will find beneficial. You do need to be sure your iMac meets the system requirements, which mainly is that it contains an Intel processor.

    For your final question on Word, you have some options. Microsoft has released Microsoft Office for OS X, which can be purchased in an Apple Store. Also you can use OS X's Boot Camp feature if you would like to run Word natively in Windows. Finally, you can look into virtualization software. Some examples of these are VMWare Fusion, and Parallels.

    †Refinements in Mac OS X Snow Leopard are listed on Apple's Mac OS X Snow Leopard "What's New?"     …More

    • Answered by MY from Iowa City
    • Oct 16, 2009
    • 30 of 30 people found this useful
    • 11 more answers
  • Lots of bad reviews. Should I wait to upgrade?
    • Asked by AM from Hoffman Estates
    • Oct 11, 2009
    Best Answer

    In my opinion, research the programs you are going to use most frequently and see if there is any mention about them being upgraded for snow leopard, many applications have been upgraded already, and more are on their way. It's entirely possible that most, if not all of the applications you use have already been upgraded and are ready to use. If not, wait a little while, or find a replacement product from a company that responds faster.
    At the very least, the apps that have been upgraded already tell you a bit about the efficiency of the company you received the software from, and tells you if you can rely on them for speedy updates or not, which is often one of the most important parts of any software company.
    And with that said, many applications that worked for 10.5 (Leopard) will work fine on 10.6 (Snow Leopard) such as Firefox, VLC, and various messenger apps, so also look up if the application doesn't need to be upgraded at all, perhaps it works as it is.
    Hope this helps. =)     …More

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