5 Things to Know About the macOS Ventura 13.6.6 Update

Apple’s pushed a new macOS Ventura update to Mac users and macOS Ventura 13.6.6 is available to download right now.

Like its most recent predecessors, macOS Ventura 13.6.6 is a point upgrade. It doesn’t have any outward facing features on board, the software brings important changes to compatible Mac models.

With that in mind, we want to take you through everything there you need to know about the macOS Ventura 13.6.6 update for Mac.

Our guide covers the macOS Ventura 13.6.6 update’s changes, the current list of problems on board, the future of macOS Ventura, and macOS Ventura 13.6.6’s overall performance.

We’ll start out with thoughts about the firmware’s performance.

macOS Ventura 13.6.6 Review

If your Mac’s running macOS Ventura 13.6.5, you’ll see a fairly small download. It’s right around 470MB.

If your Mac is running older software, the macOS Ventura 13.6.6 download will be larger. That’s because the changes from updates you skipped are baked in.

After the download finishes, the installation should take 10 or so minutes to complete. If you rely on your Mac to get through the day, you’ll need to plan accordingly.

For more on the macOS Ventura 13.6.6 download and installation, take a look at our guide.

We’ve been using the macOS Ventura 13.6.6 update on a MacBook Pro (2017) for a very short time and we haven’t noticed any major issues with the firmware. That could obviously change down the road.

macOS Ventura 13.6.6 Battery Life & Connectivity

• Battery life is stable, we haven’t noticed any abnormal drain yet
• Wi-Fi connectivity is currently fast and reliable
• Bluetooth is working normally

App Performance

• Third-party apps, including Twitter, Slack, Chrome, and Spotify are working properly
• First party apps like Safari and Podcasts are also stable at the moment

Speed

• macOS Ventura 13.6.6 feels fast and we haven’t noticed any UI lag

If your Mac is struggling on macOS Ventura 13.6.5 or an older version of macOS Ventura, you might want to install macOS Ventura 13.6.6 on your Mac today.

If you’re feeling leery about a move to the software, we’ve put together a list of the best reasons to, and not to, install the latest version of macOS Ventura on your Mac right now.

macOS Ventura 13.6.6 Problems

We haven’t run into any issues with macOS Ventura 13.6.6 yet, but some Mac users have.

The current list of macOS Ventura 13.6.6 problems include abnormal battery drain, Wi-Fi issues, Bluetooth problems, and problems with various first and third-party applications.

If you run into one of these issues on your Mac, here are some resources that could help.

Before you get in touch with Apple’s customer support line, have a look at our list of fixes for the most common macOS Ventura problems.

If your Mac’s battery life is struggling after the upgrade, check out our fixes for macOS Ventura battery life problems.

If you can’t find what you’re looking for in our guides, head over to Apple’s discussion forums. If the users there can’t help you, you might want to get in touch Apple customer support via the company’s website.

If you still can’t fix your issue(s), you’ll probably want to schedule an appointment at your local Apple Store.

macOS Ventura 13.6.6 Features

macOS Ventura 13.6.6 is yet another maintenance update for Mac models lingering on the software. It’s small, but most users should download it.

According to Apple, the update provides important bug fixes and security updates and is recommended for all users.

Apple doesn’t call out the bug fixes in the release notes so we don’t know what it fixes exactly.

It has, however, revealed the security patches in detail and you can learn more about them over on Apple’s security site.

macOS Ventura 13.6.6 Downgrade

If you download macOS Ventura 13.6.6 and decide you want to move your Mac off of it, you can do so. Downgrading the software can be time consuming, but it’s an option.

If you’re interested, have a look at our downgrade guide. It will help you get familiar with the process and help you move to older macOS software.

What’s Next

If your Mac is struggling on macOS Ventura 13.6.6, you’ll be on your own for a bit.

macOS Ventura 13.6.6 won’t be the last version of macOS Ventura, but it’s unclear when the next version will roll out.

Our best guess is we’ll see a roll out happen in the spring alongside macOS Sonoma 14.5. macOS Sonoma 14.5 should arrive in  April or May.

We don’t expect Apple to bring new features to macOS Ventura down the line, but we do expect the company to continue offering security updates.

Install macOS Ventura 13.6.6 for Better Security

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If you want to protect your Mac and its data from harm, you'll want to download the latest version of macOS Ventura. macOS Ventura 13.6.6 has two security patches on board, both important, and that means most Mac users should download the software today.  As for older updates, macOS Ventura 13.6.5 brought 20+ security patches to Mac while macOS Ventura 13.6.4 delivered 10 security updates. macOS Ventura 13.6.3 also had several patches on board. If you're interested in the particulars, you can dig a little deeper on Apple's security site. macOS Ventura 13.6.1 patched up issues with FindMy, PassKeys, and more. You can learn more about these patches right here. Apple's macOS Ventura 13.6 update had a trio of security patches on board. Check out the company's security site for more info. macOS Ventura 13.5.2 brought one security patch with it and it was an important one. If you want more information about the fix, head over to Apple. macOS Ventura 13.5 brought 29 security patches to Mac. To learn more about these patches, head over to Apple's website.  macOS Ventura 13.4.1 had two essential security patches on board. If you want to learn more about them, head on over to Apple's website. Apple's macOS Security Response 13.4.1 (c) update also included a security update and you can learn more about it right here. macOS Ventura 13.4 had numerous security updates on board and you can read more about them on Apple's security site. macOS Ventura 13.3.1 patched up two actively exploited vulnerabilities which made it an important download. You can learn about the two patches right here. The macOS Ventura 13.3 update brought numerous security patches to Macs. If you want to learn more about these changes, check out Apple's guide. macOS Ventura 13.2.1 brought four security patches to compatible Mac models. You can read more about those over on Apple's security site. The macOS Ventura 13.2 update brought 25 security patches to Mac devices. You can read about those right here. In addition, the software came with support for physical security keys for Apple ID. These will beef up your account security by requiring a physical security key as part of the two factor authentication sign in process. Learn more about the change right here. macOS Ventura 13.1 delivered 35 security patches and it also brought upgrades to Advanced Data Protection for iCloud. macOS Ventura 13.0.1 brought two security patches and the first version of macOS Ventura, macOS Ventura 13.0, had a ton of patches on board.

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