How to install Microsoft Copilot on a Mac

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If you've heard of Microsoft Copilot and want to use it on your Mac, there are a few ways you can do so. While you don't quite get the system-level integration that Windows users enjoy, you can get pretty close and make the program a part of your system rather than just a tab in your browser.




Read on to learn how to integrate Microsoft Copilot with your macOS computer.


How to install Microsoft Copilot on a Mac

Option 1: App Store

Microsoft Copilot Mac app appears in App Store

If you have an Apple Silicon Mac, the Arm architecture allows you to run iPad and iPhone apps, including Microsoft Copilot, natively on your Mac. All you need to do is download the program:

  1. Open the apple AppStore on your Mac.
  2. Search for Microsoft Copilot.
  3. On the Microsoft Copilot Shop page, click on the Receive Button.


Microsoft Copilot should be installed like any other app. Once the process is complete, you can access it from your Applications folder and then interact with Copilot in its own window.

Microsoft Copilot app running on a Mac

As you can see from the image above, Microsoft Copilot on Mac is pretty basic, but it gets the job done. If you want an integration with Copilot that's more similar to the Windows experience, where you can launch the app by pressing a keyboard shortcut, you can set that up through Automator and the Settings menu. Here's how:


  1. Open Automator.
  2. Choose fileThen Newand then select Fast action.
    Microsoft Copilot is added to Automator Step 1, select “Quick Action”

  3. Create an automation to Start applicationand change the workflow in No input.
  4. You may need to select Other in the Start application Drop-down menu of the field and then navigate to Microsoft Copilot in your Applications Folder.
    Create a zero-touch Automator that launches Copilot on a Mac

  5. Save automation.
    Saving the automation on a Mac that starts Copilot

  6. Open Settings and scroll down to Keyboard.
  7. Click Keyboard shortcuts (make sure to activate the switch) and select Services on the left.
    Microsoft Copilot will be added to Automator. Step 4: Go to Keyboard settings.

  8. Expand Generally and double-click None next to Open Copilot. Set the combination as you like and make sure that there are no conflicts with other applications. For this example, we set it to layer + command + M.
    Microsoft Copilot is added to Automator Step 5, select services and add a shortcut to open Copilot


Once you're done, you can call Copilot anytime from anywhere on your Mac.

Copilot app

Microsoft Copilot

Copilot is an artificial intelligence chatbot available for iOS and Android, using the DALL-E 3 and GPT-4 models. The software is also integrated into Windows and can be accessed via the web.

Option 2: Safari Web Apps

Add Microsoft Copilot Safari option to Dock

If you want to use Microsoft Copilot but don't want to mess with Automator or applications, you can easily add Microsoft Copilot as a shortcut to your Safari Dock.

  1. Navigate to Microsoft Copilot Website in Safari.
  2. Click file at the top, followed by Add to Dock.
  3. Rename the app if necessary and then click Add.


Microsoft Copilot Mac app in the dock

If all goes well, you should see Microsoft Copilot in your Dock for easy access. This is essentially just a wrapper for a Safari tab in an application, but it's virtually indistinguishable from a regular program. While adding Copilot to Safari is significantly easier than the previous method, the program doesn't run locally and you can't launch it at any time with a key press.


Which option is the best and are there others?

Since Microsoft doesn't have any official Mac applications, you'll have to rely on these two methods if you want to have Microsoft Copilot on a macOS computer. The iPad app is the best native solution for the Mac, but if you don't care about that, the Safari Dock option works well too. If you want to use OpenAI's latest GPT-4 models on your Mac, there's also the option of using the official ChatGPT Mac app. You can also use virtualization software to get Windows 11, and with it Copilot, on any of the best Macs.

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