macOS Sonoma vs macOS Ventura: 8 Major Differences

Cassie Xie
Last updated: Sep 25, 2023
Summary: This post mainly tells the difference between macOS Sonoma and Ventura to help you decide whether to upgrade to Sonoma or not. Check the new features in macOS Sonoma.

Should I upgrade to macOS Sonoma? macOS Sonoma vs Ventura, what’s new in macOS Sonoma and how does it differ from macOS Ventura? You can check the 8 major differences between macOS Sonoma and macOS Ventura below.

macOS Sonoma vs Ventura

macOS Sonoma vs Ventura – Main Differences

Compared with macOS Ventura, some of macOS Sonoma’s new features are listed below.

1. Desktop Widgets

New macOS 14 allows users to place widgets on the desktop from the new widget gallery, for instance, Weather, Clock, Photos, Reminders, etc. Once you open an app or window, the widgets will fade into the background to let you concentrate on your current task. Besides, the new macOS Sonoma allows you to add your iPhone widgets to your Mac desktop without installing them on your Mac. macOS Ventura doesn’t have this feature.

2. Screensavers

Compared to macOS Ventura, macOS Sonoma offers new slow-motion screen savers of breathtaking locations. When you log in, the stunning slow-motion screen saver becomes your desktop wallpaper. When your computer is idle, it will display the screen saver in slow motion on your display. There are many screensavers you can choose from, e.g., landscapes, cityscapes, underwater footage, etc.

3. Improved Safari Browser

The new Safari browser in macOS Sonoma lets you create profiles and keep your browsing separate for different topics. You can freely switch between profiles when you browse. Search in Safari browser responds faster than before and it will show more relevant answers. Still, web apps can come to your Dock and you can use any website like an app.

4. Video Conferencing Features

macOS Sonoma vs macOS Ventura, macOS Sonoma adds more new features to video conferencing. The new Presenter Overlay feature keeps you part of the conversation when sharing your screen, offering large and small overlays. You can put yourself front and center or float over your shared screen.

5. Game Mode

macOS Sonoma vs Ventura, macOS Sonoma adds a new Game Mode feature to optimize gaming performance on your Mac. It can prioritize gaming tasks and release more CPU and GPU resources for the game. The gaming experience on macOS Sonoma is superior to macOS Ventura.

6. Privacy and Security

Compared with Ventura, the Communication Safety feature in macOS Sonoma now contains protection for sensitive videos and photos. You can choose to blur sensitive photos and videos before viewing them in Messages and third-party apps. Still, the improved Lockdown Mode increases security to protect you from cyber-attacks.

7. Messages

The new Messages app in macOS Sonoma combines search filters. All your stickers are in one place and synced across your Apple devices with iCloud. You can jump to the first message with a new catch-up arrow.

8. PDFs and Notes

macOS Ventura vs Sonoma, you can fill out documents faster with the enhanced AutoFill feature. You can view a full-width PDF right in Notes and keep more than one PDF in the same note. You can also send your work from a note to the Pages app for editing.

Should You Upgrade to macOS Sonoma?

The main differences between macOS Sonoma and Ventura are introduced above. As you can see, macOS Sonoma adds some new features and performs better than Ventura. If your Mac is compatible with Sonoma, you may upgrade to macOS Sonoma to experience the new features. The official version of macOS Sonoma was released on September 26, 2023.

However, if you like macOS Ventura and want to stay with it, you can choose to keep it.

Free Up Space on Mac for macOS Sonoma Upgrade

If your Mac doesn’t have enough space to install macOS Sonoma, you can use BuhoCleaner to free up space on your Mac.

BuhoCleaner helps you scan and remove junk files, system data and cache, browser cache, etc. You can also use this program to completely uninstall apps, find and delete large files, delete duplicate files, manage startup items, free up RAM, flush DNS, and more.

Download and install BuhoCleaner on your Mac and use it to free up space for macOS Sonoma install or upgrade.

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Bottom Line

macOS Sonoma vs Ventura, now you should the main differences between macOS Sonoma and macOS Ventura. If your Mac is running out of space and can’t install macOS Sonoma, you can use BuhoCleaner to release a large amount of free space. For more Mac or iPhone tips, you may visit Dr.Buho’s official website.

Cassie has been writing about technology for her entire career life - over 5 years. She enjoys diving into how Apple products work and then breaking it down in a way anyone can understand.