Ssms On Mac Jun 2026

SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) is a Windows-only desktop application from Microsoft. There is no native macOS version and no official support for running it on Mac.

| Need | Recommendation | |------|----------------| | Must run SSMS exactly | Use a Windows VM on Mac or Remote Desktop | | Just need to manage SQL Server from Mac | Use or DBeaver | | Light query editing | VS Code + mssql extension | | Run SQL Server locally | Docker container | ssms on mac

Tools like Parallels Desktop or VMware Fusion allow you to run a full Windows environment inside your Mac. This is the closest experience to a native app. You get the full SSMS feature set, but it requires a significant amount of RAM and processing power. SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) is a Windows-only

One of the most common questions I see from new Mac users is how to access the SQL Server ecosystem. Since SSMS is Windows-only, here is the workflow I use on my MacBook Pro to stay productive. This is the closest experience to a native app