System requirements
Tails works on most PC computers that are less than 10 years old.
Tails does not work on:
- Mac computers with an Apple processor (M1, M2, and so on)
- Smartphones or tablets
- Raspberry Pi
Tails might not work on some PC computers, for example, if their graphics card is incompatible with Linux. Nvidia or AMD Radeon cards often do not work in Tails.
See our list of known hardware compatibility issues.
Detailed hardware requirements
3 GB of RAM to work smoothly.
Tails can work with less than 3 GB RAM but might experience reduced performance, instability, or crashes.
The ability to start from a USB stick or a DVD reader.
A 64-bit x86-64 IBM PC compatible processor.
Recommended laptops
Laptop models evolve too rapidly for us to be able to provide an up-to-date list of recommended hardware. Below are some guidelines if you, or your organization, are considering acquiring a laptop dedicated to running Tails.
For PC
Avoid "gaming" models with Nvidia or AMD Radeon graphics cards.
Consider buying a refurbished laptop from a high-end (professional) series. These are cheaper and will last longer than new but lower-quality laptops.
For example, the Lenovo ThinkPad series work well with Tails, including the X250, X1 Carbon, T440, T480, and T490 models.
If you live in a part of the world where buying refurbished laptops is uncommon, look on eBay and Amazon. Amazon offers a 90-day Amazon Renewed Guarantee.
Consider buying a new laptop from vendors who guarantee the compatibility with Linux and Tails like ThinkPenguin.
For Mac
Tails still works on some older Mac computers with an Intel processor.
Unfortunately, we don't know of any Mac model that works well in Tails and can run the latest macOS version.
Recommended USB sticks
You need a USB stick of 8 GB minimum to use Tails.
All the data on this USB stick is lost when installing Tails.
The quality of your USB stick is crucial when using Tails. A bad USB stick will be slower and more likely to corrupt the files in your Persistent Storage.
We recommend that you:
Buy new USB sticks.
USB sticks become slower and less reliable over the years. Older USB sticks were also built with slower technology.
Buy USB sticks from well-known brands, such as Kingston, Samsung, and SanDisk.
Generic brands are more likely to be slower and less reliable.
Any modern USB stick from a well-known brand is fast enough to use Tails comfortably.
Buy your USB sticks from a reputable local store.
If you are in a place where counterfeit electronics are common, buy your USB stick from an international supermarket chain, which should have a more reliable supply chain.
Avoid buying USB sticks online or using USB sticks that were given to you, because they could contain malware.
In 2020, the FBI warned US companies to avoid USB sticks received by mail because some of them contained malicious software, such as BadUSB.
Consider buying faster USB sticks that support USB version 3.0 or later.
Check the specifications of your computer to determine whether your USB ports support USB 3.0 or later. USB 3.0 ports are sometimes blue.
USB 3.0 can be up to 10 times faster than USB 2.0. USB 2.0 has a maximum read speed of around 50 MB/s on USB sticks, while USB 3.0 has a maximum read speed of around 500 MB/s.
Most quality USB sticks nowadays have read speeds of at least 100 MB/s and are faster when used on USB 3.0 ports. Some USB sticks advertised for USB 3.0 have even greater speeds.
You can test the write speed of your different USB sticks by comparing the time it takes to clone Tails, for example.
How many USB sticks should I buy?
If you want to store personal files and configuration in an encrypted Persistent Storage, we recommend that you buy 2 USB sticks, ideally 3:
1 USB stick to be your primary Tails.
1 USB stick of the same size to be your backup Tails, if you use the Persistent Storage.
We recommend that you create a backup Tails by cloning your primary Tails, including its Persistent Storage.
1 USB stick to do manual upgrades on a few occasions when automatic upgrades are not available.
This USB stick can be of a smaller size and worse quality.