How to Roll Back from macOS Sequoia Beta to macOS Sonoma Without Losing Data

As soon as Apple rolls out the first beta for developers, many users will be excited to install the macOS Sequoia Developer Beta on their MacBooks to test out the new MacOS 15 features. While macOS beta updates are rewarding for impatient tech-savvies, they may have some bugs and glitches that can make your Mac devices unreliable. If you are facing any stability issues, you can downgrade from macOS 15 Beta to macOS 14 for a more polished experience. In this article, we’ve mentioned all the details on how to roll back from macOS Sequoia beta to macOS 14 Sonoma.

Turn Off Beta Updates on your Mac

When you want to restore your MacBook from macOS 15 Beta to macOS 14 Sonoma, the first step is to turn off Beta updates on your Mac. When you do this, you will reverse your enrolment in the Apple Developer Beta Program. As a result, your Mac won’t receive any beta updates. Here’s how to remove the macOS 15 beta profile from your Mac:

• From the Dock, open System Settings on your Mac. You can also go to Apple logo -> System Settings.
• From the left sidebar, choose General -> Software Update.
• Now, click on the small “i” icon next to the Beta updates option.
• Choose Off from the list of available options.
• Finally, click on Done to save the changes.

Once you un-enroll your Mac from Apple’s Beta Program, your device will only receive stable macOS updates.

Backup Your MacBook to External Drive

Before you plan to uninstall the macOS 15 Sequoia beta and roll back to the stable macOS Sonoma version, you must back up your MacBook. That’s because when you uninstall macOS 15 beta, it will erase the entire Startup Disk. Using Time Machine, Apple’s built-in backup software is the best way to back up your MacBook. It lets you back up your whole MacBook data and you can easily restore your Mac to the previous date without much hassle.

Here’s how to back up your MacBook with Time Machine:

• Connect an external storage device like an SSD or HDD that’s twice the storage capacity of your MacBook. Make sure there are no other files on that drive.
• Go to System Settings -> General and choose Time Machine on the right.

• Next, click on Add Backup Disk.

• Now, select your connected storage device, and then click on the Set Up Disk option.
• Follow the on-screen instructions.
• Once you select the Time Machine backup drive, your MacBook will automatically start using the connected drive to make the backups. You can also hit the Back Up Now button to create manual backups.
• Once done, you can eject the backup drive.

For complete details, you can refer to our step-by-step guide on how to backup a MacBook.

How to Downgrade from macOS 15 Beta to macOS 14 Sonoma

Now that you’ve backed up your Mac, you’re ready to uninstall macOS 15 Sequoia Beta on your MacBook without losing any data.

Follow the below steps to roll back to macOS 14 Sonoma:

Step 1: Boot your Mac into Recovery Mode

• Shut down your Mac.
• Now, restart your MacBook by pressing the Power Key. On Intel-powered Macs, press the Power key and then hold Command + R.
• Hold the key until you see the system volume and the Options on the screen.
• When the screen appears, choose Options and click on Continue.
• When prompted, enter your Apple ID password.
• DO NOT choose the reinstall macOS option here.

Step 2: Erase the Disk Where macOS Beta Is Installed

• When you see Disk Utility, click on it and then click on Continue.
• Now, choose the startup disk and click Erase on the toolbar.
• Enter the name of your drive, choose a file system, and click on the Erase button.
• Again, click on the Erase option to confirm your decision.
• Now, click on Disk Utility -> Quit Disk Utility from the menu bar.

Step 3: Reinstall macOS Sonoma

• Now, you’re ready to reinstall macOS Sonoma on your device.
• When prompted, choose a Wi-Fi network you wish to join.
• After a moment, your Mac will activate and you can click on the Exit to Recovery option.
• Now, choose Reinstall macOS Sonoma from the list of available options.

This will download a copy of macOS Sonoma and install it on your Mac. Depending on your internet connection, this might take a few minutes to a couple of hours.

Another way to roll back from macOS 15 Sequoia Beta to macOS 14 is using a Time Machine backup. If you’ve got an older backup to date when you didn’t install macOS 15 Beta on your MacBook, you can use that backup to reinstall macOS Sonoma. For that, you first need to Factory Reset your MacBook and then restore your Mac device from that Time Machine backup.