I just retired my 2015 MacBook Pro, after 10 years, due to serious battery issues, and just bought a 2026 M5 MacBook Air, so I just transitioned straight from Big Sir to Tahoe. Running under Big Sir, I was stuck at Numbers version 12. When I got my new MacBook, it had Numbers version 14 installed and I updated to version 15. In both versions 14 and 15, when editing large Numbers files, when I enter data into a cell, I will often get "Numbers not responding" for a few seconds, before the data actually begins to appear in the cell. I don't know if this is an issue with Tahoe or if it's because I'm now using a newer version of Numbers. This did not happen with Numbers 12 running under Big Sir, when working on the same files. My M5 Mac should be much faster, which generally it is, so this new lagginess in Numbers makes no sense. Any suggestions concerning this would be appreciated.
Comments
Does it have a screen?
I haven't tested this yet, my Mac Mini seems to work fine without one, but on the May 4 2026 Double Tap podcast, a Mac user insisted you still need either a screen or an HDMI adapter that makes your Mac think it has a screen, because it really wants a screen.
I think the only consistent "not responding" things I get are when loading Ableton Live, this happened with lite and now with Intro, and occasionally an "X is not responding" once on boot. Once Ableton loads it seems to be fine, it just says "not responding" a few times while it's loading. This is on a base M2 Mac Mini, so with 8 GB memory.
But to be fair, I haven't messed around with Numbers much, and certainly not with any large files. I'll see if I have anything laying around I can test with. I'm planning to borrow a monitor to hook up soonish, so if I can find something, it would be a good comparison.
How large is large?
I just tested with a file with 532 rows and put some text and numbers in some cells of the last row. It was fine. In case it matters, it wasn't a native Numbers file, it was an imported Excel file. But I'd think that would make it worse, if anything. This is in Numbers 14.5, under Mac OS 26.5.2.
Response to Khomus
It does have a screen. It's a M5 MacBook Air. The large file that I'm having issues with is just under 12,000 rows. I'm working with smaller files (100 to 1,000 rows) with no issues.
Ah ha!
Yeah, that would be pretty different then. I don't think I've got anything that big for testing, sorry. Although i guess I could duplicate the thing I already have and just copy and paste it to get the row count up.
Related issue?
Hi friend,
I've been making quite a bit of noise recently about what I believe is a closely related issue.
In my case, the infamous "Not Responding" bug shows up in Visual Studio Code . When navigating or editing moderately large source code files, VoiceOver responsiveness degrades dramatically. It has become so severe that VS Code is no longer a practical development environment for me on macOS.
I also see the same behaviour in Safari, particularly when browsing very long ChatGPT conversations or other complex web pages with a lot of dynamic content. Again, VoiceOver slows down to the point where it becomes extremely difficult to use.
On top of that, "Not Responding" has become a regular companion in many other situations. I often hear it when launching applications, exporting Logic Pro projects, and during other everyday tasks. In those cases it usually doesn't break accessibility completely—it just leaves me sitting in front of a $3000 brick waiting for it to decide that it's ready to respond again.
My suspicion is that these problems are all connected. They don't seem to be isolated to a single application but rather point to a deeper issue affecting accessibility across modern versions of macOS, especially in applications built around large amounts of accessible content.
I've already contacted the Apple Accessibility team. They requested additional information, I've provided everything I can, and the case is currently open and supposedly under investigation.
It would be really helpful if you—and anyone else experiencing similar issues—could also report them to Apple Accessibility. If enough of us keep reporting these long-standing accessibility problems, there's a much better chance they'll receive the attention they deserve. This has been discussed within the blind community for years, and it really shouldn't still be happening.
The instructions for reporting accessibility bugs to Apple are explained elsewhere on this forum, and the process is actually quite straightforward.
Thanks everyone.
And good luck to all my fellow members of the Apple Resistance... the ones who still shed a small tear every time someone suggests going back to Windows. 😄
Response to DPC
I certainly will report it to Apple. So far, I'm only having the not responding issue when working in very large Numbers files but I haven't done anything in other apps that involves large files in the last few days, sense I've had the new MacBook and been using Tahoe. I'm curious, when, as Voice Over users, we hear "not responding", what is going on visually? Is it the spinning beach ball? I'm wondering if this is an accessibility issue or just a general Mac OS issue.
I suppose I am a member of what you called the "Apple Resistance". Before coming to Mac OS, about 10 years ago, I used Windows and JAWS for about 20 years. I had just as many frustrations there as I do with Mac OS and Voice Over and, for me, Mac OS and the overall Apple ecosystem is still the better place to be. I am not one of the people who will argue the point though. Everyone must do what they feel is best for them concerning their tech needs. I, personally, am still firmly planted in the Apple ecosystem. Enough said there because I don't want to cause this thread to degenerate into yet another Windows vs Mac debate.