Parallels
Desktop 12
For Mac
Mac
OEM Packaged | Serial Number Only
Parallels Desktop® 12 for Mac is the #1-selling, fastest, easiest, and most powerful solution for running Windows® applications on a Mac—without rebooting.
The Mac you Love. The Windows you Need.
Easily switch between Mac and Windows apps, launch Windows apps from the Mac Dock, and use Mac gestures in your Windows apps, and copy & paste or drag & drop between Windows and Mac apps. Powerful performance lets you run common Windows applications, like Internet Explorer® and Microsoft Office®, and the most demanding graphical apps, such as Visio® or Adobe Photoshop® without compromise. You can even extend Microsoft Cortana®, your virtual personal assistant, to your Mac.
Seamless Integration
If you're new to Mac, you can keep the familiar Windows experience, including using your desktop in full screen.
Versatile for Home, Work and School
Leverage Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, or other cloud services, seamlessly between Windows and Mac. Parallels Desktop 12 is ready for macOS® Sierra (10.12), and supports a variety of operating systems, including Windows 10, Ubuntu and other Linux distributions, Chrome, and older versions of Windows.
New in Desktop 12
- Optomized for macOS Sierra.
- Open Windows documents faster!
- Best performance ever - up to 50% faster and 15% longer battery life.
- Improved Battery Life - New "Travel Mode" temporarily shuts down resource intensive services in order to extend battery life while away from a power source.
- Always on Cortana®- Use Cortana, the Microsoft speech enabled virtual assistant, even when Windows 10 is not the forefront application.
Getting started is easy
In the Virtual Machine Wizard, select your primary usage scenario and Parallels Desktop will optimize performance for you. Travel Mode will optimize settings to extend battery life, as well. Now includes Parallels Toolbox, making it easy to perform dozens of essential daily tasks on your Mac—take screenshots, secure private files with password, convert Facebook or YouTube face videos, and much more. Parallels Desktop—the #1 choice of Mac users for over 10 years.
Mac OS X Yosemite, El Capitan, & MacOS Sierra Support
Run Windows applications like they were made for Mac. Experience El Capitan intuitive features like Dictionary, Dictation, Launchpad and Mission Control in your Windows applications
Fast performance
Work with graphic and resource hungry applications with lightning speed or play your favorite PC game on Mac.
A must-have in the Mac-based business
An office full of Macs can still run the business-critical Windows applications that you, your customers and your partners need.
Need More than Windows?
Run Google Chrome, Linux and many other operating systems simultaneously. With Parallels Desktop 12 for Mac, you've made the leap to anywhere, anytime, any platform computing. Unite your Mac and Windows world into one harmonious universe.
System Requirements
Minimum System Requirements (Mac)
- A Mac computer with an Intel Core 2 Duo, Core i3, Core i5, Core i7, Intel Core M or Xeon processor (Core Solo and Core Duo processors are no longer supported)
- 4 GB of memory (8 GB recommended)
- 850 MB of disk space on the boot volume (Macintosh HD) for Parallels Desktop installation
- Additional disk space for virtual machines (varies on operating system installed)
- Internet connection
- macOS Sierra 10.12, OS X El Capitan 10.11.5, OS X Yosemite 10.10.5, or newer
One of the following:
- A Windows installation disc, or other installation media for the operating systems you want to use alongside Mac OS X
- An Internet connection to download and install freely available operating system such as Ubuntu or Google Chrome.
Notes
If you're using OS X Yoesmite or later, you can setup a second copy of OS X to be used as a guest operating system alongside your main system, without having to purchase or download another copy of OS X.
Manufacturer provided specifications for Parallels p/n PDFM12L-OEM-1FP-NA UPC#: 846829005150
Customer Ratings
Write a Review
4.5 / 5
36 out of 42 (86%) reviewers would recommend this product
Verified Buyer
Reviewer: Reviewer2167047707
Rating: 5/5
Excellent product
July 29, 2024
Very fast ,great picture. I would recommend this item to a friend! This review is from Parallels Desktop for Mac Pro Edition - 1 Year Subscription.
Response from OWC, Support
July 29, 2024
Thank you so much for the positive feedback! We're thrilled to hear that you're enjoying the product and experiencing such great results with it. Your satisfaction is our top priority, and we're grateful for your support.
Verified Buyer
Reviewer: jondov
Rating: 5/5
I have used Parallels for many years. This was a good deal!
March 1, 2024
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx I would recommend this item to a friend! This review is from Parallels Desktop 18 Pro Edition for Mac - 1 Year License.
Response from OWC, Support
March 1, 2024
We are thrilled to hear that you had a great experience with Parallels and that you found our deal to be beneficial! Thank you so much for taking the time to share your positive feedback with us. We appreciate your support!
Verified Buyer
Reviewer: JoyousOx-80411
Rating: 1/5
Waste of time.
June 4, 2023
This software is a cheat. It does not have the ability to run Windows at it's full capacity. On a Apple it does not recognize the drives correctly. You can not ( or I never figured out how to) make the options work. It is like a partial widows with limited abilities. waste of time and DRIVE SPACE. This review is from Parallels Desktop 18 Pro Edition for Mac - 1 Year License.
Response from OWC, Support
June 6, 2023
It is appreciated that you provided us with honest feedback. We apologize that Parallels did not meet your expectations and performed poorly. In light of the fact that we are only a certified reseller of Parallels, we recommend that you contact Parallels directly in order to get the system up and running. Don't hesitate to contact us with further questions, comments, or concerns. https://eshop.macsales.com/Service/
Verified Buyer
Reviewer: angelicablue1986
Rating: 5/5
Great programs thank you customer
March 9, 2023
I await see item shipping. Not yet start up. This review is from Parallels Desktop 18 Pro Edition for Mac - 1 Year License.
Response from OWC, Support
March 10, 2023
Thanks for the 5 star review! We really appreciate it and always do our best to help out our customers.
Verified Buyer
Reviewer: Wirehead56
Rating: 5/5
Seamless!
December 28, 2022
Excellent product, well designed to make the transition from one OS to another. This allows me to consolidate resources onto a single platform and is highly mobile. I would recommend this item to a friend! This review is from Parallels Desktop 18 Pro Edition for Mac - 1 Year License.
Response from OWC, Support
January 4, 2023
Thank you so much Wirehead56 for taking the time to leave your review. We're glad to hear that the parallels software was exactly what you expected. Please feel free to contact us if you have any further questions, comments, or concerns. https://eshop.macsales.com/Service/
Verified Buyer
Reviewer: Olli
Rating: 1/5
Watch out! You can't extend an existing account by 12 months
March 30, 2022
I bought Parallels Desktop Pro to extend my current, active subscription by 12 months, but received only 3 months more. Watch out! This review is from Parallels Desktop 10 for Mac - Use Windows Applications alongside your Mac Apps!.
Response from OWC, Support
April 5, 2022
I'm sorry to hear you have had issues with getting the Parallels subscription to work properly. Please know that we do value you and want to do what we can to help so a member of our team will be reaching out. Anytime you ever have any issues, please let us know directly as we can best help and determine what is going on. Thanks for reaching out.
Verified Buyer
Reviewer: lloydirwin
Rating: 5/5
Purchase of Parallels Pro
November 16, 2021
The purchase process was great. No issues at all and the team at MacSales was super. I haven't installed the package yet as I'm working on getting my Mac mini fully operational. I would recommend this item to a friend! This review is from Parallels Desktop Pro Edition for Mac - 1 Year License. SPECIAL PURCHASE.
Response from OWC, Support
November 18, 2021
Thank you for providing us with your feedback. We are delighted to hear your experience with OWC MacSales has been great! Please feel free to reach out to our support team if further assistance is needed.
Verified Buyer
Reviewer: mvaone
Rating: 5/5
works great cut my luggage in half
September 9, 2021
works great cut my luggage in half! I would recommend this item to a friend! This review is from Parallels Desktop Pro Edition for Mac - 1 Year License. SPECIAL PURCHASE.
Response from OWC, Support
September 10, 2021
Thank you for your feedback!. This great to hear!
Verified Buyer
Reviewer: CrowdedSquirrel-92783
Rating: 5/5
Working wonderfully so far
May 1, 2021
I have not fully used Parallels, yet on my Mac computer. From what has happened so far, it is nice to see the product working and the changes, that have been made, to make it work better with Big Sur. I would recommend this item to a friend! This review is from Parallels Desktop Pro Edition for Mac - 1 Year License. SPECIAL PURCHASE.
Verified Buyer
Reviewer: JJMcDonald
Location: Richmond Virginia
Age: Over 65
Experience Level: IT Professional
Owned Product: less than a month
Rating: 5/5
A great way to make sure you have Office and others
December 3, 2019
The hardware for the Mac is rock solid. The software is also Rock solid. But the enterprise of America (and other places) lives by MS Office. and the Windows version integrates more seamlessly then the Mac Version.
To get to Microsoft you either do Boot Camp, or some intermediate layer. I have used VMWare in the past and it is more complex to configure. Parallels just loads and works. and So does the MS Office set of Visio and MS Project (Which Every IT professional needs.)
SO for the use of 2 programs, you have to do Microsoft. And this is the way to get it.
I would recommend this item to a friend! This review is from Parallels Desktop 18 Pro Edition for Mac - 1 Year License.
Verified Buyer
Reviewer: Salinet
Location: Brasil
Age: 45-54
Experience Level: Home User
Owned Product: less than a month
Rating: 5/5
The best
May 30, 2017
I always used Parallels. No more to say but IT IS THE BEST. I would recommend this item to a friend!
Verified Buyer
Reviewer: Sad2Say
Rating: 4/5
Good but 11 is better
October 8, 2016
I've gotten lot of good use out of this version of Parallels, but having recently upgraded to 11 (also through OWC), I can say that the latter is a huge improvement. 10 has some fairly evident bugs -- I've never been able to suspend or shut down a virtual machine successfully, for example, and always have to go through a painful boot process after force-quitting the app -- but all appear to have been resolved in 11. As always, however, OWC customer service has been terrific. This review is from Parallels Desktop 10 for Mac - Use Windows Applications alongside your Mac Apps!.
Verified Buyer Top 250 Contributor
Reviewer: Anonymous
Location: Kankakee, IL
Age: 45-54
Experience Level: Power User
Owned Product: over 6 months
Rating: 4/5
Easy, robust
July 8, 2016
I have been using Parallels since version 7. I like the ease of setting up most VM's, though Windoze Upgrades can be tricky. It allows me to run those occasional use Windoze or Linux software without having to keep a dedicated machine. The only drawback that drops it to a 4 star from a 5 is that it restricts the versions of OS X that you can setup. Currently, you can't go any further back that Mavericks. My first Mac Mini was a Snow Leopard machine and sometimes I find that even in a VM, I can get certain tasks accomplished quicker than with all of the bells and whistles of newer versions. I would recommend this item to a friend! This review is from Parallels Desktop 11 for Mac - OWC Customer Exclusive New Version Special.
Verified Buyer
Reviewer: Anonymous
Location: Austin, TX
Age: 35-44
Experience Level: IT Professional
Owned Product: 1-3 months
Rating: 5/5
Superior product for running Windows/Linux in OS X
February 23, 2016
I enjoy tinkering with multiple operating systems and was looking for a good way to do this in OS X. Although VirtualBox is free and a good alternative, I was able to get Parallels bundled with my order from OWC. I also like physical media so this was win-win.
I was really impressed with the Coherence mode and enjoyed the easy printer and file sharing - I literally had to configure NOTHING in my guest operating systems to access my desktop printer.
If you want a professional product which provides fantastic integration between OS X and the guest operating systems you want to run, this is for you!
I would recommend this item to a friend! This review is from Parallels Desktop 11 for Mac - Use Windows Applications alongside your Mac Apps! *Free V12 Upgrade*.
Verified Buyer
Reviewer: Anonymous
Location: Australia
Age: 55-65
Experience Level: Power User
Owned Product: 1-3 months
Rating: 5/5
Long Time Supporter
November 20, 2015
It works well. The only downside is the constant upgrades with OS versions. Do we really have to pay every single time the OS changes? Surely they could throw a free upgrade for loyal customers. Of course this is a Paralles issue. What great about OWC, the cost of purchasing is discounted when picking up some great hardware. Thats a really good deal.
Thanks OWC.
I would recommend this item to a friend! This review is from Parallels Desktop 11 for Mac - Use Windows Applications alongside your Mac Apps! *Free V12 Upgrade*.
Verified Buyer Top 250 Contributor
Reviewer: Anonymous
Location: Genoa, Italy
Age: 45-54
Experience Level: IT Professional
Owned Product: less than a month
Rating: 5/5
Happy Virtualization
September 19, 2015
Need to use Windows or Linux on Apple hardware? You can virtualize a PC into Mac OS X with Parallels Desktop to forget you are using applications for other systems. I would recommend this item to a friend! This review is from Parallels Desktop 10 for Mac - Use Windows Applications alongside your Mac Apps!.
Verified Buyer
Reviewer: Anonymous
Location: Indonesia
Age: 45-54
Experience Level: Home User
Owned Product: over 6 months
Rating: 5/5
Better than the previous edition
August 26, 2015
Easy to install and have better interface than previous edition... Love to use dual os OX & Wind in all of my mac computers... I would recommend this item to a friend! This review is from Parallels Desktop 10 for Mac - Use Windows Applications alongside your Mac Apps!.
Verified Buyer
Reviewer: Anonymous
Location: Kankakee, IL
Age: 45-54
Experience Level: Power User
Owned Product: less than a month
Rating: 4/5
Very good solution if you NEED to run Win
April 27, 2015
I have been using Parallels almost as long as I have been using a Mac. (~ 5 years) My big concern when switching to the Mac was....would I need to rebuy a lot of the software that I was using. With Parallels the issue was moot. Most of the applications I use are either supplied within OSX or I was able to find cost-effective equivalents. But for the things that I just couldn't afford to replace, Parallels allow me to run them in a Win VM without a hitch.
When Yosemite was released I held off upgrading because I didn't want to pay the full upgrade price. But then I had a HD that was failing so I decided to replace it with an SSD. OWC was offering a hefty discount when purchasing Parallels with an SSD so I opted to upgrade after all.
I currently maintain VM's for WinXP, Win7, Snow Leopard, Mavericks and Linux. Mostly for sandboxing and testing, but the XP VM I have to keep running for some legacy software. On a conventional HD the performance is rather good. But when coupled with an SSD the performance increases dramatically.
The only issue that I have had is that sometimes after upgrading from a previous version, you will need to "re-authorize" your copy of Windows. For XP it worked easily. Win7 was a bit more troublesome.
I would recommend this item to a friend! This review is from Parallels Desktop 10 for Mac - Use Windows Applications alongside your Mac Apps!.