Developers can get a security certificate from Apple through the Apple Developer program. Apple set the default to help protect users from Malware or to lock down computers depending on which explanation you prefer.Īpple created Gatekeeper, a program to protect users from Malware. In other words, they want to help protect us from our own mistakes.Īpple offers three setting options in the Security & Privacy Settings in System Preferences. They take the 30% cut to cover the cost of hosting the Mac App Store and testing apps to keep malware out of the store. The developer gets the entire $10 if the app is sold directly.Īpple says they set things blocking third-party apps because they want to protect users who might install downloaded apps with malware or viruses. A $10 app nets Apple $3 and the developer gets only $7. Here’s why Apple sets OS X to disallow 3rd-party apps by default, for those who like to understand why things work as they do.Ĭynics will say that Apple does this because they don’t get a 30% cut from applications bought directly from third-party apps instead of their curated app store.
If you don’t care about why this works, skip to the next section.
Why Can’t I Install 3rd-Party Apps By Default?
#Download mac apps without app store how to#
We’ll show users how to set the security settings in Security & Privacy section of the OS X System Preferences using any version of OS X after Mountain Lion so they can install downloaded apps from outside the Mac App Store. When someone downloads an app from somewhere other than the Mac App Store they will get one of a few warning messages depending on what security settings they’ve set in System Preferences. Starting with OS X Mountain Lion, Apple introduced Gatekeeper so users couldn’t easily install downloaded apps from outside the Mac App Store.