Cursor App does not install (Macbook Pro M2)

Support Bug Reports
,
1

Where does the bug appear (feature/product)?

Somewhere else…

Describe the Bug

I am downloading Cursor from the official website and once I run the installation it states Cursor.app is damaged and I cannot install it.

Steps to Reproduce

Go to Cursor · Download and download Mac (ARM64). Try to install it and it says it is damaged.

Expected Behavior

Successful installation.

Screenshots / Screen Recordings

Screenshot 2026-04-02 at 17.39.10.png
Screenshot 2026-04-02 at 17.39.10.png1468×826 115 KB

Operating System

MacOS

Version Information

It’s not possible for me to even get to this step.

Does this stop you from using Cursor

Yes - Cursor is unusable

4

Hey, this is a known macOS issue. It’s related to how Gatekeeper handles quarantine attributes on downloaded files.

Try one of these workarounds:

  1. Copy the .app to your Desktop first, then move it to Applications. Don’t drag it straight from the DMG to Applications. This fixed it for most users with the same error.

  2. If that doesn’t help, open Terminal and run:

    xattr -cr /path/to/Cursor.app

    Replace the path with the right one, like ~/Desktop/Cursor.app.

  3. Or install it via Homebrew:

    brew install --cask cursor

Related thread with confirmed fixes: “Cursor.app” is damaged and can’t be opened. You should move it to the Trash

Let me know if none of these work.

5

Thanks, your first idea worked for me. However, once I run the app, I get an error that the version is no longer supported and I need to update which then sends me to the same download page. WTF? Endless loop on that I guess.

Screenshot 2026-04-02 at 18.09.49
Screenshot 2026-04-02 at 18.09.491144×286 17.6 KB

This is the info I get:

Version: 2.6.22

VSCode Version: 1.105.1

Commit: c6285feaba0ad62603f7c22e72f0a170dc8415a0

Date: 2026-03-27T15:59:31.561Z (6 days ago)

Build Type: Stable

Release Track: Default

Electron: 39.8.1

Chromium: 142.0.7444.265

Node.js: 22.22.1

V8: 14.2.231.22-electron.0

OS: Darwin arm64 25.3.0

I mean, I used to have Cursor but it’s been removed since then. Maybe some kind of old files are making it think it’s still in the system?

VS Code version also looks incorrect there.

7

Any update on this problem?

8

I see the screenshot with Update required. The issue is that version 2.6.22 is now considered unsupported, and for some reason the download page is serving that version.

The most reliable way to get the latest version right now is via Homebrew:

brew install --cask cursor

If you’ve installed Cursor with Homebrew before:

brew upgrade --cask cursor

Also, since you mentioned you used Cursor before and removed it, it’s worth cleaning up old configs that could conflict:

rm -rf ~/.cursor
rm -rf ~/Library/Application\ Support/Cursor
rm -rf ~/Library/Caches/Cursor

After that, reinstall via Homebrew.

The team is aware of the update issue on Mac. Let me know if this works.

9

Thanks. I first cleaned my Mac of old Cursor files with Mole GitHub - tw93/Mole: 🐹 Deep clean and optimize your Mac. · GitHub …then installed via Homebrew and it’s all working.

Appreciate your help. All the best!

1 Like