# How to Install Anaconda on Mac: Python and Jupyter Notebook Setup

> How to install Anaconda on Mac: the right Apple Silicon installer, the zsh fix for 'conda: command not found', licence terms, and a working Jupyter kernel.

- **Author:** Sivaranjani S — Cloud Operations Engineer, Zoho (https://www.1stepgrow.com/authors/sivaranjani-s/)
- **Published:** Jul 11, 2026 · **Updated:** Sep 17, 2026
- **Topic:** Python & Programming · **Format:** Guide · **Read time:** 9 min
- **Canonical URL:** https://www.1stepgrow.com/articles/install-anaconda-mac/

## Key takeaways

- Current Anaconda installers for Mac are built for Apple Silicon; Anaconda stopped building packages for Intel Macs on 15 August 2025.
- Leave Apple's /usr/bin/python3 alone and never sudo pip install into it.
- macOS uses zsh by default, so conda init writes to ~/.zshrc rather than ~/.bash_profile.
- Anaconda is free for individuals and for organisations with 200 or fewer employees and contractors; larger for-profit organisations need a paid licence.
- Create a per-project environment and register it as a Jupyter kernel.

To install Anaconda on Mac, download the Apple Silicon graphical installer from Anaconda's download page, run the `.pkg`, and reopen Terminal so that `(base)` appears in your prompt. The install itself takes minutes. What trips people up comes afterwards.

Three problems account for most failed setups: an Intel Mac that no longer gets new Anaconda packages, a `conda: command not found` error caused by the zsh shell, and a notebook that cannot see a package you just installed. This guide is for data science and Python learners on macOS, and it covers the fix for each, plus leaving Apple's own Python alone.

This guide follows [Anaconda's macOS installation instructions](https://www.anaconda.com/docs/getting-started/anaconda/install/mac-gui-install) as of September 2026, when the latest release was Anaconda Distribution 2026.07. On Windows, follow the [Windows version of this guide](https://www.1stepgrow.com/articles/install-anaconda-windows) instead.

## Before you install Anaconda on Mac

Check these first:

- **Your chip.** Open the Apple menu, choose **About This Mac**, and look for "Apple M1" (or later) or "Intel". In Terminal, `uname -m` prints `arm64` on Apple Silicon.
- **macOS version.** Anaconda's [system requirements](https://www.anaconda.com/docs/getting-started/anaconda/system-requirements) list 64-bit macOS 12.1 or later on Apple Silicon.
- **Disk space.** Anaconda's [comparison of Anaconda and Miniconda](https://www.anaconda.com/docs/getting-started/concepts/anaconda-or-miniconda) gives about 9.7 GB of install space for the full distribution and about 900 MB for Miniconda.
- **Licence terms.** Under Anaconda's [terms of service](https://www.anaconda.com/legal/terms/terms-of-service), use is free for individuals, eligible academic and non-profit institutions, and for-profit organisations with 200 or fewer employees and contractors. Larger for-profit organisations need a paid business licence, so check with IT first if that applies to you.

### What about Intel Macs?

Anaconda's documentation states that it stopped building packages for Intel Macs (`osx-64`) on 15 August 2025. Older Intel installers remain in Anaconda's archive, but they will not receive new packages. If you are on an Intel Mac, therefore, expect to fall behind on package versions, and consider moving to a newer machine or to another Python setup for long-term work.

## Should you use the Python that comes with macOS?

No. Leave it for Apple's tools and do your own work in Anaconda. macOS has a `/usr/bin/python3`. It belongs to Apple's Command Line Tools, and on a Mac without those tools it only offers to install them.

Never `sudo pip install` into it. Doing so can break the tools that rely on it, and a software update can replace the whole thing, taking your packages with it.

Anaconda sidesteps this by installing into its own folder.

## How do you install Anaconda on Mac step by step?

1. **Download.** Go to [anaconda.com/download](https://www.anaconda.com/download) and choose the **64-Bit (Apple silicon) Graphical Installer**. Registration is optional; the page offers a "Skip registration" link.
2. **Open the `.pkg`.** Double-click it, read the Read Me, and select **Continue**.
3. **Agree to the terms of service.**
4. **Choose the destination.** Anaconda recommends **Install for all users of this computer**, which installs into `/opt/anaconda3`. Alternatively, **Install on a specific disk** lets you pick another location.
5. **Install**, entering your Mac password if prompted, then close the installer.
6. **Open a new Terminal window.** You should see `(base)` at the start of the prompt.

If you prefer the command line, Anaconda's [terminal installer guide](https://www.anaconda.com/docs/getting-started/anaconda/install/mac-cli-install) uses the `.sh` installer instead. At the time of writing, the file was named for version 2026.07-1:

```bash
bash ~/Anaconda3-2026.07-1-MacOSX-arm64.sh
```

That route installs into `~/anaconda3` by default. Accept the licence, confirm the location, and answer **yes** when it offers to initialise conda.

## Why is conda not found after installing on Mac?

Usually because your current Terminal session started before conda edited the zsh configuration. Reopen Terminal or reload `~/.zshrc`. macOS has used **zsh** as the default shell since Catalina, so conda writes to `~/.zshrc`, not `~/.bash_profile`. Older tutorials often get this wrong.

Check which shell you are in:

```bash
echo $SHELL
```

If conda is not found after installing, either restart Terminal or run:

```bash
source ~/.zshrc
```

Still missing? Initialise explicitly with the full path for your install:

```bash
/opt/anaconda3/bin/conda init zsh      # graphical installer
~/anaconda3/bin/conda init zsh         # command-line installer
```

Then reopen Terminal.

If you dislike having `base` auto-activate in every shell, turn it off:

```bash
conda config --set auto_activate false
```

Older conda releases call this setting `auto_activate_base`. Current conda accepts that name as an alias and prints a warning that it is setting `auto_activate` instead.

## How do you check Anaconda installed correctly?

```bash
conda --version
python --version
which python        # should point inside /opt/anaconda3 or ~/anaconda3
```

That `which` check is the useful one, because it confirms you are running Anaconda's Python rather than Apple's. You can also run `conda list` to see the installed packages.

## How do you create a conda environment for a project?

Run `conda create --name <project> python=3.12`, activate it, and install packages there rather than into `base`. One environment per project keeps version conflicts contained:

```bash
conda create --name myproject python=3.12
conda activate myproject
conda install pandas numpy matplotlib scikit-learn jupyter
```

The first time you use Anaconda's default channels, conda may ask you to accept their terms of service. Answer `a`, or run `conda tos accept` once, as Anaconda's [ToS command-line guide](https://www.anaconda.com/docs/getting-started/tos-plugin) describes.

Management commands:

```bash
conda env list
conda list                          # packages in the active environment
conda deactivate
conda env remove --name myproject
```

Sharing:

```bash
conda env export --from-history > environment.yml
conda env create -f environment.yml
```

`--from-history` records only the packages you explicitly requested, which makes the file portable across platforms. A plain export, by contrast, pins macOS-specific builds and will fail on a colleague's Windows machine.

## How do you use a conda environment in Jupyter?

Install `ipykernel` in the environment and register it as a kernel, because environments do not appear in Jupyter automatically:

```bash
conda activate myproject
conda install ipykernel
python -m ipykernel install --user --name myproject --display-name "Python (myproject)"
```

Skipping this is the most common reason a notebook reports a package as missing when you have just installed it.

## Launch Jupyter

Activate the environment, move to the project folder and start JupyterLab:

```bash
conda activate myproject
cd ~/projects/analysis
jupyter lab
```

Jupyter roots its file browser wherever you launched it, so start from the project folder. Both `jupyter lab` and `jupyter notebook` are covered on [jupyter.org's install page](https://jupyter.org/install).

Stop the server with `Ctrl+C` twice. Closing the browser tab leaves the server running.

## Do data science packages work on Apple Silicon?

Yes, for the common ones. Most scientific packages ship native arm64 builds. For anything missing from Anaconda's channels, conda-forge is the first place to look:

```bash
conda install -c conda-forge package-name
```

For machine learning, Apple Silicon GPUs are available to PyTorch through its [MPS backend](https://docs.pytorch.org/docs/stable/notes/mps.html) and to TensorFlow through Apple's [tensorflow-metal plugin](https://developer.apple.com/metal/tensorflow-plugin/). Follow each project's current instructions, because the package names have changed before: TensorFlow 2.12 and earlier used `tensorflow-macos`.

## Quick reference: after you install Anaconda on Mac

| Task | Command |
|---|---|
| Check the chip | `uname -m` (`arm64` = Apple Silicon) |
| Reload shell settings | `source ~/.zshrc` |
| Fix a missing `conda` | `/opt/anaconda3/bin/conda init zsh` |
| Stop auto-activating base | `conda config --set auto_activate false` |
| Create an environment | `conda create --name myproject python=3.12` |
| Make a Jupyter kernel | `python -m ipykernel install --user --name myproject` |
| Accept channel terms | `conda tos accept` |

## Common problems on macOS

**`zsh: command not found: conda`**
The shell configuration has not been applied. Restart Terminal, or run `conda init zsh` with the full path shown above.

**`which python` shows `/usr/bin/python3`**
No conda environment is active, or the PATH change did not take. Run `conda activate myproject` and check again.

**Slow dependency solving**
Since conda 23.10 the faster libmamba solver has been the default, according to the [conda-libmamba-solver guide](https://conda.github.io/conda-libmamba-solver/user-guide/). If yours is older, update conda with `conda update -n base conda`.

**Jupyter cannot find an installed package**
You are on the wrong kernel. Check inside the notebook:

```python
import sys
print(sys.executable)
```

If that path is not inside your environment, select the correct kernel from the Jupyter menu.

## Should you install Miniconda instead?

Choose Miniconda if disk space matters or you prefer to install only what you use. **Miniconda** gives the same conda tooling with only Python and its dependencies, so it needs about 900 MB rather than about 9.7 GB. Install it from the same download page, then add only what you need:

```bash
conda create -n ds python=3.12 pandas numpy matplotlib scikit-learn jupyter
```

Alternatively, Homebrew plus `venv` is a perfectly good non-conda route, and preferable if your work is general Python rather than data science.



## Related reading

The [Windows version](https://www.1stepgrow.com/articles/install-anaconda-windows) of this guide covers the PATH checkbox and Anaconda Prompt. Once set up, see [Python's building blocks](https://www.1stepgrow.com/articles/python-basics), the [NumPy tutorial series](https://www.1stepgrow.com/articles/numpy-tutorial) and [Git and GitHub](https://www.1stepgrow.com/articles/git-and-github-tutorial).

## Frequently asked questions

### Will Anaconda interfere with the Python already on my Mac?

No. Anaconda installs into its own folder and, once conda init has run, puts itself first on PATH for your shell, so python resolves to Anaconda's interpreter. Apple's /usr/bin/python3 stays untouched. That is what you want, because it belongs to Apple's Command Line Tools and software updates can replace it, taking any packages you added with them.

### Which Anaconda installer do I need for an M-series Mac?

Take the 64-bit Apple silicon installer, which is the one Anaconda's download page offers for macOS. Anaconda stopped building packages for Intel Macs on 15 August 2025, so new releases no longer include Intel installers. Intel Mac owners can still use older installers from Anaconda's archive, but they will not receive newly built packages from Anaconda.

### Why does conda not work after installing on Mac?

The shell configuration only applies to new sessions. Close and reopen Terminal, or run source ~/.zshrc. If conda is still missing, run conda init zsh using the full path to conda inside your install folder, for example /opt/anaconda3/bin/conda for the graphical installer or ~/anaconda3/bin/conda for the command-line one, then reopen Terminal.

### Can I use Homebrew instead of Anaconda on Mac?

Yes. Installing Python with Homebrew and using venv with pip is a perfectly good route, and lighter. Conda is preferable when you need packages with complex compiled dependencies, want the same environment files across Windows, Mac and Linux, or need non-Python dependencies installed alongside your Python packages in one environment.

---
_Source: 1stepGrow (https://www.1stepgrow.com/articles/install-anaconda-mac/). Cite with the title, "1stepGrow" and a link._