GRID Legends Now on Mac: Native support & Benchmarks

GRID Legends for Mac was first revealed in June 2022 during Apple’s WWDC conference. Needless to say, it was massive news for the entire Mac community as it is the first Mac racing game from Codemasters to come to macOS in years. Also, the reveal came on stage at WWDC. This shows how important gaming has become to Apple.

GRID Legends was released on December 12, 2023, and now that it’s here, we’ll tell you how it runs on macOS. Did Feral Interactive manage to secure another excellent macOS port?

Art	Genre	64-bit	API	M1 Support	Performance	Optimizations
	Adventure		Metal	Native	Poor	None
	Racing		Metal	Native	Excellent	MetalFX
	Action		Metal	Native	Good	MetalFX
	Action		Metal	Native	Excellent	MetalFX
	Adventure		Metal	Native	Good	MetalFX
	Simulation		Metal	Native	Good	None
	Simulation		OpenGL	Rosetta	Good	None
	RPG		Vulkan	Rosetta	Good	None

Can you play GRID Legends on Mac?

You can absolutely play GRID Legend on your Mac, provided you have an Apple Silicon Mac (M1, M2 or M3). Indeed, GRID Legends features native M1 support, which means better performance for ARM-based Macs but no support for legacy Intel-based Macs.

While M1 Macs have been available for years now, most developers end up porting the Intel versions of their games to macOS. Thanks to Rosetta 2, though, Apple Silicon Macs can handle Intel ports fine, but performance was left on the table. Feral Interactive is clearly prepared to say goodbye to Intel-based Macs and bet 100% on Apple’s M1 future.

GRID Legends Mac gameplay

GRID Legends Mac Requirements

These are the game’s official Mac requirements:

Can Your Mac Run GRID Legends? Benchmarks & Performance

These are the M# benchmarks we have gathered so far using the in-game benchmark tool:

As was expected from a Feral Interactive port, this is a fine macOS port. Testing on a base M1 MacBook Air and a 14-inch M1 Pro MacBook Pro, the game runs fluidly with good frames per second without a problem. We used a combination of different resolutions (1920×1200 and 1440×900) and settings (Low, Medium, and High) to see how both Macs performed under different conditions.

Overall, we always saw 30+ FPS, which is the minimum you want to ensure fluid gameplay. But in most cases, we saw 40+ FPS, which is particularly impressive on the base 2020 M1 MacBook Air (more on that below). The game also features MetalFX, which should improve frames per second even further.

Grid Legends M1 Pro MacBook (1200p + High settings)

GRID Legends on MacBook: Can it run on a base M1 MacBook Air?

As can be expected from an M1 MacBook Air, officially the oldest and weakest M1 machine available, you won’t be able to run this game at maximum resolution and settings. However, the game runs great if you’re willing to run it at a more modest 1440×900 resolution. With that resolution and Medium settings, the game runs at nearly 50 FPS (48.49), which is more than enough to enjoy the game without compromising performance.

You can of course push the envelope and either increase the resolution or settings (or both). At 1200p and Medium settings, the game still runs at 40.67, which is more than acceptable.

GRID Legends M1 Pro MacBook (1200p + High Results)

The Verdict: Should You Play GRID Legends On Your Mac?

Yes, GRID Legends runs well on all M-based Macs, including MacBook Airs. Even the weakest Mac will allow you to play at a reasonable resolution. Plus, the game’s support for native Apple APIs like Metal3 ensures that it’ll be a smooth adrenaline-pumping racing experience.

GRID Legends Mac gameplay

GRID Legends Mac Download

As confirmed by Feral Interactive, the game is only available on the Mac App Store (just like Resident Evil Village) and includes all DLC already available for the game for $39.99:

Featuring the GRID series’ biggest ever Career mode, a highly customisable Race Creator, a unique live-action Story, and all the DLC — GRID Legends: Deluxe Edition is stacked with action from the starting grid to the finishing line.

Before you go…

Looking for other recent macOS blockbusters? Don’t miss either Resident Evil 4 or No Man’s Sky, both also available on Mac.