Here is a list of all the Mac and iPad models which are compatible to work with macOS Catalina's Sidecar feature.
Sidecar Works with Certain Mac and iPad Models Only - See if Yours is On the List
While many of you have already decided to dig right in, I'm pretty certain some users are playing it safe at this point. I'm talking about those who are somewhat reluctant to upgrade to macOS Catalina, and maybe wondering whether or not a certain feature would work right out of the box. One of those features is Sidecar, which turns your iPad into a secondary display for your Mac running macOS Catalina.
Now, the thing is, you can't just immediately use Sidecar. Both your Mac and iPad should be compatible to work with each other. Even if one device is incompatible then you are out of luck.
In order to run Sidecar, you should have one of the following Macs. Pay close attention to the year.
- 12-inch MacBook (Early 2016 or newer)
- MacBook Air (2018 or newer)
- MacBook Pro (2016 or newer)
- iMac (Late 2015 or newer)
- Mac mini (2018)
- iMac Pro (2017)
- Mac Pro (2019)
Note: If you want to find out the model of your Mac, click on the Apple logo in the Mac menu bar, then click on About This Mac.
Is your iPad compatible to work with Sidecar? These are the supported models:
- 9.7-inch iPad 5 and iPad 6
- 10.2-inch iPad 7
- iPad mini 5
- iPad Pro 12.9-inch first, second and third-generation
- 10.5-inch iPad Pro
- 9.7-inch iPad Pro
- 11-inch iPad Pro
Note: Sidecar supports both Apple Pencil 1 and 2.
We sincerely hope that you have a Mac that works just fine with Sidecar otherwise it's a huge pain to learn that one of the most sough-after features just might not work for you. Still, it gives you a chance to upgrade your device too, if that is something which you always wanted to do but were looking for a solid reason.
If you are interested in installing macOS Catalina right now, then be sure to check out the following:
- Download macOS Catalina Final with Apple Arcade, Sidecar, New Apps & More
- How to Clean Install macOS Catalina Without USB Using Internet Recovery [Tutorial]
- How to download macOS Catalina installer without Mac App Store
- How to create a macOS Catalina bootable USB installer
- How to clean install macOS Catalina 10.15 on your Mac
- 7 Top macOS Catalina Features You Should Try Out Today
About the author: Uzair has been writing about tech for a little under 10 years. Started off in the Symbian days, migrated to Android, eventually settling on iOS and Mac to make a living. Loves photography, drones, talking about the latest tech, and firmly believes that iPad is the future of computing. Served as Editor-in-Chief with Redmond Pie for five years, author at The Readers Eye and many other freelance gigs. Wccftech is now his current home.
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