Apple delivered the release candidate of macOS Tahoe 26.5 to its developer community on Monday, a week after seeding the fourth beta. The build lets engineers run the near‑final OS and verify stability before the public launch, public testing. By pushing the candidate now, Apple aims to catch any lingering issues that could affect the broader user base.

Developers install the update via System Settings → General → Software Update, with Beta Updates toggled on and a free developer account logged in. Early testing shows no new features compared with the prior betas, suggesting the RC concentrates on bug squashes and performance tweaks. Apple typically reserves UI changes for the next major release.

The timing matters because this will likely be the final macOS version to receive full‑feature updates on Intel‑based Macs, echoing the 2009 transition from Leopard. Subsequent releases—26.6 in July and 26.7 in September—are expected to focus solely on security patches. This shift highlights Apple’s move away from legacy hardware.