Like the idea of running macOS and Windows 10 simultaneously on your Mac? If yes, follow this quick guide to install Windows 10 on your Mac using Parallels Desktop 13—a smart virtual machine. The best thing about it is that you won't need to partition the hard drive and it functions pretty neatly!

• How Much Does Parallels For Mac Cost
• How Does Parallels For Mac Work
• Parallel Program For Mac
• Parallels For Mac Activation Key

Powerful virtualization solutions like Parallels 11 Desktop make it possible for Mac users to run both OS X and Windows 10 at the same time. But even more impressive, Parallels let you run Windows. That's because Parallels 11 was the only version to support Windows 10 in Coherence Mode, which lets Windows applications run on a Mac in their own windows and integrate with the Mac's.

Recently, I thought of using Windows 10 but without having to switch my loyalty. I tried Apple’s Boot Camp software to install Windows on my Mac. But I didn’t find the software much user-friendly as I had to partition the hard drive to make space for the new operating system. Hence, I thought of giving a chance to an efficient virtual machine like Parallels Desktop 13. Much to my surprise, running Windows 10 on Mac using Parallels Desktop 13 is a lot easier, and you will really like using it!

For those unfamiliar, a virtual machine is basically a virtual simulation of a real machine, which allows you to run a full-fledged operating system on your computer without needing to partition the hard drive. More significantly, you are able to run both the macOS and Windows on your Mac at one go. More after the jump:

How to Install Windows 10 on Mac Using Parallels Desktop 13

Want to have a go at Parallels Desktop? Great! But before jumping ahead with the process, you need to ensure your Mac meets the requirements. As always, make sure to back up your computer so that you remain on the safer side of the fence in case of any untoward incident.

How Much Does Parallels For Mac Cost

Your Mac Must…

• Your Mac must have 850 MB of disk space on the boot volume.
• It must have an Intel Core 2 Duo, Core i3, Core i5, Core i7, Intel Core M or Xeon processor.
• It must have minimum 4GB of memory; though 8GB would a preferable option.
• It needs to have an additional disk space.
• SSD drive would come very handy especially for boosting performance.
• Your Mac must be running OS X Yosemite 10.10.5 or later.

Ensure your Mac is compatible with Windows 10

• MacBook Pro (2012 and later)
• MacBook Air (2012 and later)
• MacBook (2015 and later)
• iMac (2012 and later)
• iMac Pro (2017 and later)
• Mac mini (2012 and later)
• Mac mini Server (Late 2012)
• Mac Pro (Late 2013)

More About the Software…

• Parallels Desktop comes at $79.99 for a standard license. Its Pro Edition and Business Edition are priced at $99.99 per year.
• The company offers a free two-week trial. Hence, I would suggest you to first try out the free version of the software to ensure it ideally meets your needs before upgrading to the premium version.
• Make sure you have a copy of Windows 10. If you don’t have Windows 10, you can get its copy from within Parallels Desktop.

Once you have checked all the requirements, head over with the process:

Step #1. First off, you have to download Parallels Desktop 13 on your Mac.

After the program has been downloaded, double-click on the ParallelsDesktop.dmg file to open it.

Step #2. Now, double-click on Install in the Parallels Desktop window.

Click Open to confirm that you want to install Parallels Desktop.

Step #3. Next, you need to accept the License Agreement.

Step #4. Next up, enter Administrator Name and Password for your Mac.

After you have successfully installed Parallels Desktop installed, you will be directed to a page where you will get the option to download Windows 10.

Just in case you already have a copy of Windows 10, you have the option to skip the step. Just in case you don’t have it, click Install Windows.

Click Skip, if you have it.

Next, you have to click New from the Parallels Desktop drop-down menu. Then, choose your copy of Windows 10 from the available options.

Step #5. Now, you need to sign into your Parallels Desktop account. You get the option to create one if you don’t have an account. Once you have signed up for Parallels Desktop account, Windows 10 will appear in a new window.

Talking about the functionality, it seems very much like you are using a web browser with a virtual simulation of Windows 10 on top. Go ahead and give it a long spin! And don’t forget to let us know your valuable feedback as well as whether or not you’d like to go for its premium version.

How Does Parallels For Mac Work

That’s pretty much it, folks!

Wrap up:

Yes, macOS is widely considered to be more secure and efficient than Windows. But the gap between the two most popular operating systems has shrunk thanks to the arrival of several imposing features in Windows 10. What do you think of the competition between the two?

You might want to read these posts as well:

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Parallels Desktop for Mac is a hardware virtualization solution for Mac computers with Intel processors. Developed by Parallels Inc., a privately held software company with offices in 15 countries, Parallels Desktop for Mac (referred to simply as Parallels from here on) allows Mac users to seamlessly switch between macOS and the Windows operating system.

The ability to do so is indispensable when your favorite software isn’t available for Mac. That could be an accounting software package such as TurboCASH, an easy-to-use email client like Mailbird, or, perhaps, Internet Explorer, which is still used by millions, so web developers have to optimize for it.

Because Parallels for Mac uses hypervisor technology to map the host computer’s hardware resources directly to the virtual machine’s resources, the performance of Parallels for Mac virtual machines closely matches the performance of the host operating system. Even graphic- and resource-hungry Windows applications run as they should, including Adobe Photoshop, Microsoft Office, Visual Studio, CorelDRAW, ArcGIS, Visio, and many others.

The latest version of Parallels for Mac works best on the latest version of macOS and requires a Mac with an Intel Core 2 Duo, Intel Core i3, Intel Core i5, Intel Core i7, or Intel Xeon processor.

Best Features of Parallels

Besides its performance, Parallels for Mac stands out with its seamless integration, allowing users to run Mac and Windows applications side-by-side without restarting. Parallels for Mac makes it possible to place Windows applications in the Dock, right next to Mac applications, and launch them with a single click. A piece of text copied from the Windows version of Microsoft Word can be pasted into Safari, which further blurs the line between Windows and Mac software.

Easy to Set Up

Parallels for Mac is so easy to set up that anyone can do it. You can either choose an existing Windows, Linux, Ubuntu, or Boot Camp installation or let Parallels for Mac download Windows 10 for you. Parallels for Mac will even help you optimize your VM settings and performance, allowing you to connect all your USB, Thunderbolt, and FireWire devices with Windows. If you want to, you can even add Windows applications to Touch Bar to instantly access them thanks to a handy tool known as Touch Bar Wizard.

Retina Support

Microsoft is still figuring out the best way how to scale Windows applications on high-resolution displays, but Parallels for Mac already features enhanced Retina support to ensure that all Windows application look just as sharp as their Mac neighbors.

Picture-in-Picture Mode

System administrators, developers, and even some power users sometimes run multiple virtual machines side-by-side, and keeping track of them can be a struggle. Parallels for Mac simplifies the monitoring of multiple virtual machines with its picture-in-picture mode, which conveniently displays all running virtual machines on a single screen, delivering a bird’s-eye view with a click of a button.

Extra Tools

Along these and other core features, Parallels for Mac also comes with over 30 tools to simplify everyday tasks on mac and windows. The tools give you the ability to easily create and customize animated GIFs from videos, prevent your computer from going to sleep and your display from dimming, optimize your home movie or television shows for iPad or iPhone, download your favorite videos from the Internet, record a video of a screen, immediately lock your screen to prevent unauthorized access to your computer, keep your Mac clutter-free and running at max speed, use your computer’s built-in microphone and record audio with a single click, and more.

Data Recovery

Unfortunately, the tools that come with Parallels for Mac free of charge don’t cover data recovery. The good news is that there’s at least one excellent data recovery solution for Mac that you can download for free and use it to recover lost or deleted files even if you don’t consider yourself to be a computer whizz. The name of this data recovery software is Disk Drill.

Just like Parallels for Mac, Disk Drill also comes with free extra tools. The tools that come with Disk Drill all focus on disk and data management, and they nicely complement the tools included with Parallels for Mac. Disk Drill’s Duplicate Finder allows you to easily find and remove duplicate files in multiple locations on your drive, Data Backup creates byte-to-byte disk and partition backups, and Disk Health is a free disk monitoring tool that alerts you to any potential disk issues.

How Much Does Parallels Cost?

It’s possible to download Parallels for Mac free of charge, but you will be able to use it only for 14 days unless you purchase the full version.

A single Parallels for Mac license for home and student use costs €79.99. Developers, testers, and power users are encouraged to pay €99.99 a year for Parallels Desktop Pro Edition, which comes with many additional features and capabilities, including the support for up to 16 virtual (v)CPUs and 64GB of vRAM, the addition of a Microsoft Visual Studio plug-in, bash completion for Parallels CLI tools, an enhanced network editor that allows you to test different connectivity issues, EFI Secure Boot, port forwarding, and a lot more.

There’s also Parallels Desktop Business Edition for use in work settings, which also costs €99.99 a year, and includes the same additional features and capabilities as Parallels Desktop Pro Edition.

If you search online, it’s easy to find various Parallels for Mac free. download full version links, but you should avoid them at all cost. Even if you managed to find one that doesn’t lead to dangerous malware, downloading the full version of Parallels for Mac from the internet is a crime punishable by fees much higher than what it costs to purchase Parallels for Mac.

Parallels Versus Alternatives

Parallel Program For Mac

Parallels isn’t the only virtualization solution for Mac. Before you click the purchase button and acquire your own copy of Parallels Desktop for Mac, we think it’s worth exploring some alternative options.

VMware Fusion

VMware Fusion is a powerful virtualization software solution that can run nearly any operating system on a Mac. While easy enough for home users to quickly learn how to use, VMware Fusion is more than capable enough to satisfy the needs of professionals who develop and test software for multiple operating systems and want to do so without having to constantly rebooting. The ability to run an entire virtual cloud stack on a single Mac gives solution architects the ability to demonstrate their entire software solution in real time. Just like Parallels for Mac, VMware Fusion blends the Windows experience seamlessly with macOS. Its Unity View Mode ides the Windows desktop so you can run Windows apps just like Mac apps, and its hardware accelerated 3D graphics engine allows you to utilize your hardware to its maximum capacity.

VirtualBox

VirtualBox is an open source alternative to Parallels for Mac and VMware Fusion. It was first released in 2007 and acquired by Oracle in 2010. It can be used to load multiple guest operating system under a single host operating system, and it supports both Intel’s VT-x and AMD’s AMD-V hardware virtualization. VirtualBox sometimes doesn’t reach quite the same level of polish as its paid counterparts, but it’s hard to complain considering that it’s free and open source. Apart from macOS, VirtualBox also runs on Windows, Linux, Macintosh, and Solaris hosts and supports all recent versions of Windows, Linux, Solaris and OpenSolaris, OS/2, and OpenBSD. VirtualBox is being developed by the entire open source community as well as Oracle, and anyone is welcome to submit their contributions to the vbox-dev mailing list or to the Developers Corner forum.

Wine

Unlike Parallels for Mac, VMware Fusion, and VirtualBox, Wine isn’t a virtualization software solution but a compatibility layer that makes it possible to install and run Windows applications just like you would in Windows. Running Windows applications using Wine eliminates the performance and memory penalties associated with virtualization. The only downside is the fact that not all Windows applications run flawlessly on Mac using Wine, and some don’t run at all.

Parallels For Mac Activation Key

Wine uses a rating system that allows you to see which applications work best in Wine. Platinum applications work as well as (or better than) on Windows out of the box, gold applications work as well as (or better than) on Windows with workarounds, silver applications work excellently for normal use but have some problems for which there are no workarounds, bronze applications work but have some problems for normal use, and garbage applications have problems that are severe enough that they cannot be used for their intended purpose.