Welcome to macOS Monterey
Not all Macs get the same new features, and you need an M1 to get the lot
As long as you’re already familiar with using Big Sur, with its new human interface, you’ll notice relatively little change in design, layout or controls in Monterey. If you’re coming from an older version of macOS, you may be shocked to discover what’s happened, particularly in the top of windows. Small windows with lots of tools can make it hard to find anywhere that’s safe to use to drag the window around, but you’ll develop that skill in time.
New features depend on the Mac model you’ve upgraded. M1 users do best of all, getting the whole set, but if your Intel Mac only just made the cut for macOS 12, you may not get Universal Control, and there’s uncertainty over support for AirPlay to Mac too. On Intel Macs, Object Capture is limited by installed memory and the graphics card: your Mac will need at least 16GB of RAM and a graphics card with at least 4GB of VRAM to be able to use this new feature. Continuous Dictation and its related features are also not available on any Intel models. If you’re unsure whether your Mac should support any given feature, check the fine print on Apple’s detailed list of features in Monterey before wondering why something doesn’t work.
Monterey doesn’t bring any major reorganisation of iCloud if you’re upgrading from Big Sur, and accessing documents in iCloud Drive should continue to work with older macOS too, even if you’ve put your Desktop & Documents folders into iCloud.
If your Mac was already backing up using Time Machine to APFS in Big Sur, then it should continue to do so, although its first backup after upgrading is likely to take its time. That isn’t because of the changes in your System volume, which isn’t backed up, but in those parts of macOS stored on the Data volume.
Remember that the version of macOS installed in Recovery mode will change once you’ve installed Monterey. You can’t use it as a way of downgrading macOS, as it’ll just install macOS 12 again.
Apple is almost certain to release a full set of updates to its apps from Pages to Final Cut Pro, which will await you in the App Store app once your upgrade has completed. Allow ample time for these to download and install, as in total they could exceed the size of the Monterey installer.
You should also find upgrades to iOS and iPadOS 15, watchOS and tvOS at about the same time. These may be required to ensure that integrations including Universal Control work properly, or to use your Watch to unlock your Mac reliably. Unless you have very good reason not to, ensure your iPhone and iPad are upgraded promptly, remembering to back them up thoroughly first.
If you have more than one Mac, the decision to upgrade that may be more difficult. Running an older version of macOS there could prove a lifeline in the event that one of your more important apps runs into trouble in Monterey, but it can also add friction between the two systems, although AirDrop should still work reliably across different versions.