I usually download the lates macos to a bootable usb and do a clean install. But, I cant seem to find Tahoe in the app store, other than an «upgrade». Is there a way to download it to the application folder and do as you could with the previous?
Not right now. Apple may offer this way via the App Store, but currently it does not do so. The long story:
Apple wants you to use Software Update.
It’s the fastest and easiest way to upgrade, it can use less storage space than other methods, and it shows only software that is compatible with your Mac.
If that fails (it shouldn’t), Apple’s way for “clean” installs is the recovery installation:
It won’t delete apps or personal data, unless you decide to erase your disk via Disk Utility beforehand:
If you have erased your disk, Apple may provide you with an older OS (depending on the Mac) that needs to be updated to Tahoe afterwards via Software Update.
If you want to create a bootable USB drive, you can still do it:
But there is a caveat right now: Before Tahoe, you could download the OS from the App Store. This is not possible right now.
There are 3rd party websites that point to the images needed on Apple’s servers (!) like
I have not done a clean install for several years now, with no issues. If I had an issue, I would erase my disk and use the recovery option these days.
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