This article will teach you how to reinstall macOS Monterey on both all Macs. Additionally, the article will provide information on when you should reinstall macOS Monterey.

What to Know

  • Intel Macs: Press power button and hold Command + R until Apple logo appears. Select Reinstall macOS Monterey.M1 Macs: Hold power button until Startup Options menu appears. Click the gear icon labeled Options, and then select Continue > Reinstall macOS Monterey.Completely new install of macOS Monterey: Recovery Mode > Disk Utility > Erase. Select the correct hard drive, then reinstall macOS.

How to Reinstall macOS Monterey

You don’t have to wipe your data if you need to reinstall macOS Monterey. If you are selling or trading your Mac, however, see the tip below or the next section. Here are the steps to reinstall the Mac’s operating system without erasing all your data.

  • Enter Recovery Mode by holding down the power button on M1-based Macs until the menu appears. On Intel-based Macs, press the power button and hold Command+R until the Apple logo appears.
  • Select Reinstall macOS Monterey.
  • There’s not a lot of interaction needed by you, so the system will lead you through the steps to reinstall the latest version of macOS Monterey.

How Do I Do a Clean Install of macOS Monterey?

To do a completely clean install of macOS Monterey, you’re going to need to wipe the disk on your Mac. To do this, launch the Recovery Mode menu on your Mac.

If you already have a new installation of macOS and are selling or trading in your Mac, you can just wipe your Mac clean of all your data.

Enter Recovery Mode by holding down the power button on M1-based Macs until the menu appears. On Intel-based Macs, press the power button and hold Command+R until the Apple logo appears.

Select Reinstall macOS Monterey.

There’s not a lot of interaction needed by you, so the system will lead you through the steps to reinstall the latest version of macOS Monterey.

  • On Intel-based Macs, press the power button and hold Command+R until the Apple logo appears. To enter Recovery Mode on M1-based Macs, hold the power button until the menu appears.
  • Once in Recovery Mode, select Disk Utility.
  • Click Erase and select the hard disk with your operating system installed. This will erase all data from the hard drive, including the operating system.

When Should You Reinstall macOS Monterey?

There are several reasons why you may want to reinstall macOS Monterey. The first, and most obvious reason is to remove any possibly corrupted files. Sometimes, when installing updates, files can become corrupted. If this happens, you may need to reinstall macOS Monterey to resolve those problems. 

Reinstalling an operating system takes a considerable amount of time. Don’t start this procedure unless you have plenty of time set aside.

On Intel-based Macs, press the power button and hold Command+R until the Apple logo appears. To enter Recovery Mode on M1-based Macs, hold the power button until the menu appears.

Once in Recovery Mode, select Disk Utility. 

Click Erase and select the hard disk with your operating system installed. This will erase all data from the hard drive, including the operating system.

Another reason you may choose to reinstall macOS Monterey is if you plan to sell or trade off your Mac. Completely deleting all your data and reinstalling the operating system can prepare the system for the next person, without risking the exposure of your personal data or apps.

  • How do you reinstall macOS from a USB drive?
  • You can create a bootable installer with a USB drive that will let you reinstall macOS even if you don’t have an internet connection. To do so, download the installer from Apple, and then place it in your Applications folder. Then, run this command in Terminal: sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ [macOS name].app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia –volume /Volumes/[USB name]. When you restart your computer in Recovery Mode, you’ll be able to choose the USB drive to install macOS. This method also lets you roll back your Mac to older versions of macOS.
  • How long does it take to reinstall macOS?
  • Reinstalling macOS shouldn’t take all day, but it is quicker if you’re doing an “install in place” rather than completely deleting your computer and starting over. You should expect it to take around 45 minutes at most.

You can create a bootable installer with a USB drive that will let you reinstall macOS even if you don’t have an internet connection. To do so, download the installer from Apple, and then place it in your Applications folder. Then, run this command in Terminal: sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ [macOS name].app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia –volume /Volumes/[USB name]. When you restart your computer in Recovery Mode, you’ll be able to choose the USB drive to install macOS. This method also lets you roll back your Mac to older versions of macOS.

Reinstalling macOS shouldn’t take all day, but it is quicker if you’re doing an “install in place” rather than completely deleting your computer and starting over. You should expect it to take around 45 minutes at most.

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