How to download and install Rancher Desktop on Mac

Which file to download

The download button on rancherdesktop.io leads to Rancher Desktop’s releases page on GitHub, its official download place. Under Assets of the latest release, take the .dmg for your chip:

1. Choose Apple menu › About This Mac.
2. If you see Chip with Apple M1, M2 or later, take Rancher.Desktop-<version>.aarch64.dmg. If you see Processor with Intel, take Rancher.Desktop-<version>.x86_64.dmg.

Rancher Desktop needs macOS 13 Ventura or later and a steady internet connection. 8 GB of memory and 4 CPU cores are recommended. The .dmg weighs over half a gigabyte.

How to install Rancher Desktop

1. Open the downloaded .dmg in your Downloads folder.
2. In the window that opens, drag Rancher Desktop to the Applications folder.

3. Open Rancher Desktop from Applications and click Open when macOS asks about an app downloaded from the internet.
4. On the first start, choose whether to turn on Kubernetes, which container engine to use and whether Rancher Desktop sets up PATH for you, then confirm. All of it can be changed later in Preferences.
5. Wait while Rancher Desktop downloads what it needs: the first start takes a few minutes.

Rancher Desktop offers two container engines, and only one works at a time:

• dockerd (moby) gives the Docker API and the usual docker command. Pick it if you use Docker tools.
• containerd gives namespaces for containers and the nerdctl command.

What to set up after the first launch

• Check that it works. With dockerd (moby), run in Terminal: docker run hello-world It downloads a tiny image and prints a greeting.
• Kubernetes. It is on by default. If you need only containers, turn it off in Preferences › Kubernetes to use less memory.
• Opening at login. Rancher Desktop can start when you log in. Set it in Preferences › Application › Behavior.
• Disk usage. Images, containers and the virtual machine take space that grows with your work. Troubleshooting › Factory Reset removes the virtual machine and settings when you want to start over.
• The installer. Move the .dmg from Downloads to the Trash once Rancher Desktop runs.

If Rancher Desktop won’t install or start

• «Rancher Desktop is damaged and can’t be opened». The download was incomplete. Delete the file and download it again from the GitHub releases page.
• Rancher Desktop doesn’t start on an older Mac. Check your macOS version in About This Mac: Rancher Desktop needs macOS 13 or later.
• It hangs while starting. Open Troubleshooting in Rancher Desktop and click Factory Reset: it removes the virtual machine and settings, and the first-start setup runs again.
• Nothing helps. Remove Rancher Desktop completely, its data included, and install it again: see how to uninstall Rancher Desktop on Mac.

Alternatives to Rancher Desktop

• DockerDocker’s own app, the most common choice.
• OrbStackA light, fast way to run containers on a Mac.
• Podman DesktopContainers without a background daemon.