How to Run iPhone and iPad Apps on Mac Devices

If you have a Mac device powered by Apple Silicon, you no longer need to use your iPhone or iPad to run some of your favorite mobile apps. As long as you’re using macOS 11Big Sur or later, you can download and install iPhone and iPad apps on your Mac.

Before you can run an iPhone or iPad app on your Mac or MacBook, you’ll first need to download it from Apple’s App Store.

Start by clicking the Launchpad icon located on your computer’s dock.

Then click the “App Store” button. If you can’t find it, use the search bar at the top to locate the app.

Alternatively, you can use Apple’s built-in Spotlight search to open the app. The easiest way to do this is by pressing Cmd+Space Bar on your keyboard. The search dialog box will appear in the center of your screen. Type “App Store” and select the first listing.

Now you can enter the name of the iPhone or iPad app in the search bar located in the upper-left corner of the window.

You won’t immediately see the app you’re looking for, as the App Store by default only displays Mac apps. Click the “iPhone and iPad apps” list to switch views.

If the iPhone or iPad app developer chooses to have their mobile app available on a Mac, you’ll see it now on the results page.

Click the “Download” button to start the download process.

• Apple won court order about iPhone tightness
• MacBook Pro and iPad Pro with new OLED technology

Once the iPhone or iPad app is installed on your Mac, select the “Open” button. The app will open in its own window and run like any other application developed for your Mac.

Later, after closing the App Store, you can open and run the iPhone or iPad app on your Mac by finding it on Launchpad or using spotlight search as above.

Unfortunately, at the given time, there are no Macs with touch screens. You’ll need to interact with the apps or games you download with your trackpad, mouse, or keyboard.

[via]