Requirements move. Operating systems reach end of life, releases drop support for older versions, and a figure that was accurate last year can quietly become wrong. Everything below was taken from the developer's own support documentation and reviewed on 30 September 2026; treat it as a starting point and confirm the current values in the official documentation before you install.
System requirements may change between application releases. Always confirm current compatibility in Ledger's official documentation before installation.
Comparison table
| Requirement | Windows | macOS |
|---|---|---|
| Operating system | Windows 10 (64-bit) or later | macOS 12.0 (Monterey) or later, including Ventura and Sonoma |
| Recommended OS state | Fully patched, with Windows Update completed | A macOS release still receiving Apple security updates |
| CPU / architecture | x64 only. Windows on ARM (arm64) is not supported | Intel and Apple Silicon are both supported by the current release |
| RAM | Not published by the developer — verify current requirements | Not published by the developer — verify current requirements |
| Storage | Not published as a fixed figure; allow sufficient free space on the system drive | Not published as a fixed figure; allow sufficient free space on the startup disk |
| Display | Minimum resolution 1024 × 768 | Minimum resolution 1024 × 768 |
| Internet | Required for online functions such as portfolio data, prices and provider services | Required for online functions such as portfolio data, prices and provider services |
| USB | Required to connect compatible hardware wallets on desktop | Required to connect compatible hardware wallets on desktop |
| Virtual machines | Not supported | Not supported |
| Unsupported hardware | Surface Pro devices are documented as incompatible | iPad and tablet models are unsupported |
| Account on desktop | None: the desktop application stores its data locally | None: the desktop application stores its data locally |
How to read this table honestly
Two entries deserve an explanation, because they are the ones most often invented by third-party guides.
RAM and storage are not published. Ledger's system-requirements article lists operating-system minimums and a minimum screen resolution, and it does not state a RAM figure or a fixed disk-size figure for the desktop application. Any site quoting "4 GB of RAM and 200 MB of disk space" as if it came from the developer is quoting something the developer does not say. The responsible advice is therefore: meet the operating-system minimum, keep a comfortable margin of free space, and verify against current official documentation.
"Windows 10 or later" is not the whole story. The same documentation notes that on Windows, only x64 is supported, and that Windows on ARM (arm64) is not. A modern ARM Windows device is therefore outside the supported set even though its version number satisfies "Windows 10 or later".
Windows: what is supported, and what is not
| Item | Documented position |
|---|---|
| Windows 10, 64-bit | Supported minimum |
| Windows 11, 64-bit | Supported (later than the minimum) |
| Windows on ARM (arm64) | Not supported |
| 32-bit Windows | Not supported |
| Surface Pro devices | Documented as incompatible with the desktop application |
| Virtual machines | Not supported |
| Minimum resolution | 1024 × 768 |
macOS: what is supported, and what is not
| Item | Documented position |
|---|---|
| macOS 12.0 Monterey | Supported minimum |
| macOS Ventura, Sonoma and later | Supported |
| macOS 11 Big Sur and earlier | Below the documented minimum |
| Apple Silicon (M-series) | Supported natively |
| Intel Macs | Supported |
| iPad and tablet models | Not supported |
| Virtual machines | Not supported |
| Minimum resolution | 1024 × 768 |
Other platforms, briefly
The desktop application is also published for Linux, where the documented minimum is Ubuntu 20.04 (64-bit) or later on x86_64 only; Ubuntu on arm64/AArch64 is not supported. Mobile versions are documented as requiring iOS 15 or later and Android 10 or later, and some regions are excluded from the mobile application for regulatory reasons. This publication concentrates on Windows and macOS because those are the platforms where installation prompts most often confuse first-time users.
How to check your own computer
Windows: read the version and architecture
Open Settings → System → About. Note the edition and version under Windows specifications, and the System type line, which tells you whether Windows is 64-bit (x64) or ARM-based.
Windows: read the free space
Open Settings → System → Storage and look at the free space on the system drive. Clear space if the drive is close to full; installations need room to unpack as well as to install.
macOS: read the version, chip and memory
Open the Apple menu → About This Mac. The window shows the macOS name and version, the chip or processor, and the installed memory.
macOS: read the free space
Open System Settings → General → Storage. Free space appears at the top of the panel.
Compare against the official documentation
Open the developer's current system-requirements page and compare it with what you just noted. If your machine is below the minimum, do not look for an unofficial build: consider updating the operating system, using a supported computer, or using the mobile application.
Record what you found
Write the version, architecture and free space down before you download anything. If an installation later fails, those three facts are the first things a support engineer will ask for.
The honest answer is that you should not install the desktop application on an unsupported system. Third-party sites sometimes publish "compatible" or "lite" builds for older systems; those builds are outside the developer's control, cannot be verified against published signatures, and are exactly the kind of file that carries unwanted changes. Use a supported machine, or the mobile application.
Requirements change quietly: an operating-system release reaches end of life, a new application release raises the minimum, or a distribution channel changes. Before installing, spend thirty seconds on the developer's own requirements page. That is a shorter investment than diagnosing a failed installation afterwards.