Fix 'An error occurred while installing the selected updates.' on Mac

You may run into an error notification that says, "An error occurred while installing the selected updates." when downloading or installing macOS Ventura, macOS Monterey, macOS Big Sur, or a prior release from the Software Update pane.

Its full message may read as follows:

Like "An error occurred while preparing the installation," many users have reported experiencing "An error occurred while installing the selected updates." on Mac, especially with the latest macOS Ventura. We've gathered the proven fixes to the installation error to help you update your Mac successfully. Now, let's look at the reasons behind it.

Why does Mac say 'An error occurred while installing the selected updates.'?

A variety of reasons can lead to "An error occurred while installing the selected updates." on Mac. Here's a quick summary:

Which one do you suspect? Click the button below to share the information.

How to fix 'An error occurred while installing the selected updates.' on Mac?

If you keep receiving "An error occurred while installing the selected updates." on macOS Ventura, Monterey, or other macOS versions when downloading the installer from the Software Update pane, you can try the following solutions to resolve it.

• Wait, delete, reboot, and try it again
• Try basic troubleshooting steps
• Check internet connection
• Download from App Store or a direct link
• Install in Safe Mode
• Check your available storage
• Unenroll from the beta program
• Repair your Mac with First Aid
• Create a macOS bootable installer
• Install from the original SSD

Wait, delete, reboot, and try it again

An overloaded Apple server can sometimes result in failures to download and install a macOS update, especially if you are upgrading to a major software release like macOS 13 Ventura. To verify if it's a server issue, you can visit Apple's System Status page and ensure the server for "macOS Software Update" is available.

If the server is having issues, you can install the update at a different time. If the server is working properly, it's still helpful to wait a bit. When you are ready to retry the installation, it's advisable to delete the partially-downloaded software in the Applications folder and reboot your Mac. It's worth noting that many users tried several times before the installer decided to work.

Suppose the error "An error occurred while installing the selected updates." won't go away; then you need to keep reading other solutions below.

Try basic troubleshooting steps

Chances are that certain software or peripherals are affecting the macOS update. Since the culprit is unknown, you can rule out the suspects with the following tips:

Suppose you still get "An error occurred while installing the selected updates." on macOS Monterey or Vetnura. It's recommended to reduce the chance of being interrupted in an installation by temporarily avoiding letting your Mac go to sleep, show screen saver, and turn off the display when inactive. Here's how to do it:

After the interruption is lowered, proceed to the next solution.

Check internet connection

Dropped internet, DNS issues, and other network-related problems will also prevent a software update from being installed. Therefore, it's necessary that you run some checks to make sure your internet connection is working as expected, as guided below.

Download from App Store or a direct link

If clicking the "Update Now" button in Software Update repeatedly gets you stuck on "An error occurred while installing the selected updates," try downloading the full installer from App Store by following the steps below.

If installing from App Store yields the same results, try downloading the installer directly from the following links.

After the InstallAssistant.pkg file is downloaded, you can locate it in your Downloads folder. Double-click it to install the installer into your Applications folder. Then you can open the installer and follow the instructions to install macOS. 

Install in Safe Mode

Upgrading macOS from Safe Mode has been proven as a valid solution to fix all kinds of installation errors on Mac. It can bypass third-party login items, extensions, or apps not necessary for your Mac to run and clear caches. Note that the way to boot into Safe Mode differs between Intel and Apple Silicon Macs.

Boot into Safe Mode on Intel Mac:

Boot into Safe Mode on Apple Silicon Mac:

Once in Safe Mode, you can install the update in the Software Update pane or through the App Store.

Check your available storage

Not having enough free space is a known factor that may result in "An error occurred while installing the selected updates," as well. Take macOS Ventura as an example. Its installation package is 12.15 GB, but you will need more space to install it on your Mac.

If you're upgrading from macOS Sierra or later, macOS Ventura needs at least 35GB of free space. However, if you're upgrading from a version earlier than macOS Sierra, it requires up to 44GB of free storage.

You can check whether your Mac's free storage meets the requirements with the following steps.

Regardless, it's best to clean your Mac regularly and free up space on Macintosh HD for better performance. To check and delete unnecessary files and hidden system junk on your hard drive, you can utilize the "Clean Junk" and "Clean Drive" features in iBoysoft DiskGeeker.

Clean Junk will scan your drive and help you clear caches, system logs, emails, and other junk files. Clean Drive presents all your files in a manageable way, so that you can quickly find large files you no longer need and delete them for good. 

You can click the button below to free download the disk cleaning tool.

Unenroll from the beta program

If the macOS update is failing with "An error occurred while installing the selected updates." on macOS Ventura or other releases, you may still be enrolled in the beta program. Users who experienced the same error have found unenrolling their devices from the beta program to be the solution.

Here's how to unenroll your Mac from the beta program on macOS Ventura:

Here's how to unenroll your Mac from the beta program on macOS Monterey or earlier:

After leaving the beta program, you can retry installing macOS Ventura or another version in Software Update. If the issue persists, move on to the next fix.

Repair your Mac with First Aid

Disk Utility has a First Aid feature that can check and repair disk issues on your internal and external disks. As these issues could be the cause behind the error that occurred when installing an update, you can initiate a scan on your startup disk by using First Aid in macOS Recovery Mode. If it finds issues, you need to fix them before carrying on with the upgrade.

Create a macOS bootable installer

Alternatively, you can install macOS via a bootable installer created with a USB flash drive, an external hard drive, or another storage device with at least 14GB of free storage. Although it won't erase your drive, you should still back up your Mac with Time Machine in case you encounter issues.

Ensure your Mac has an internet connection before getting started, as it's required to get firmware and other information specific to your Mac model. Then you can create a macOS bootable installer with the version you want to install, and follow the steps below to boot from it. 

Boot from an external bootable installer on Intel Mac:

Boot from an external bootable installer on Apple Silicon Mac:

If you can't install from the bootable installer, try erasing the startup disk and repeat the installation.

Install from the original SSD

Did you replace the internal Apple SSD with a new drive? If so, you will likely have a hard time updating your Mac, as it may keep popping up, "An error occurred while installing the selected updates." It appears that you need an Apple internal hard drive to update the firmware and OS bootloader.

In this case, you can put back the original Mac hard drive and install the updates on it, then boot from the new drive and update your Mac again.

Is the error gone? Share these solutions to help more people.

How to fix 'An error occurred while installing the selected updates.' when installing apps on Mac?

While the error "An error occurred while installing the selected updates." usually occurs when installing a Mac operating system, it can also happen when updating or opening apps, such as  Zoom, WhatsApp, Discord, Microsoft Teams, Steam, Roblox, Spotify, Origin, Safari, or Rosetta.

Here're three solutions you can try to get the impacted app to update or open.

Temporarily disable SIP

System Integrity Protection is a security feature on Mac designed to prevent malicious programs from modifying your files and folders. However, when it's turned on, it will restrict the root user account and sometimes cause troubles concerning software updates or access. To fix the issue, you can temporarily disable SIP on Mac and retry what you intend to do with the app.

Sign out your Apple ID and sign back in

Another solution to get rid of "An error occurred while installing the selected updates." is to sign out of your Apple ID and then sign back in. You can do this by clicking the Apple logo, selecting "Log Out (current account)," and then logging back into your account.

Uninstall and redownload

If you still can't update the app, you can uninstall it completely through its Uninstall menu or by following its official guide. This way, you can remove all the files and folders the app created on your Mac, which can't be done by simply moving the item to Trash. Then redownload the most recent version after the app is cleared from your Mac.

Hopefully, you have fixed the error that reads "An error occurred while installing the selected updates" on Mac. If so, please share this post to benefit more people.