Mac Software update not showing in App Store: You can check if there is a new update for you by going to System Preferences > Software Update. A common problem, though, is that Software Update may say “Your Mac is up to date” even when you know there is a big update available. You might be wondering why the update isn’t showing up. I’ll tell you how to fix this common problem in this short article.
I was having the same trouble. Even though I knew that macOS Monterey 12.3 had been released, my Mac said there was no new update. You might want to install the latest updates as soon as possible, since they often add new features and make things better. You won’t be able to update your Mac until you figure out what’s wrong.
Restart your Mac
People know that restarting can fix many problems. First, let’s look at this one. Just turn your Mac back on. You can do that by choosing Apple > Restart from the menu. Try updating your Mac again after you restart it. See the next step if this still doesn’t work.
Mac users should try to reload the Software Update service
To do this, we will open Activity Monitor. How to do it:
- You can find Activity Monitor in the Applications > Utilities folder on your Mac. You can also open it with Spotlight.
- Use Activity Monitor’s Search field in the top right corner to look for softwareupdate. No spaces, just one word.
- Choose “com.apple.preferencs.softwareupdate.removeservice (System Preferences)” from the list of results.
- Click the “X” to quit and then choose “Force Quit.”
- Then, like usual, go to System Preferences > Software Update.
- Now, the new update should show up. If not, keep reading.
If you see a message that says “Preferences Error. Just press OK to get rid of it. This will make Software Update start up again.
Use the Mac App Store to update
- On your Mac, open the App Store.
- Type macOS into the search box and press the Enter key.
- Find macOS Monterey in the list (or whatever the current macOS version). Choose View. Click Get then.
By clicking Get, the Software Update window will open again. This time, though, you’ll see the update. For example, mine now says, “Are you sure you want to download macOS Monterey 12.3?” Select Download.
The Software Update section will say Finding Update. You might have to wait a couple of minutes. The software download will then begin. Follow the instructions on the screen to update your Mac to the latest version of the macOS software. Please keep in mind that this step may not work at first. If it doesn’t work, reboot your Mac and try again.
If none of the steps worked for you, I’ve included three more articles about macOS update problems in the section below. You might also want to look at what they have to say.