Cursor on macOS 27: in-app update never installs (`Cursor couldn't finish updating`) until Cursor is allowed in the background in Login Items

Context

Source(s): https://forum.cursor.com/t/cursor-fails-to-update-often-on-my-mac/174637 Signal: 94 views; staff answer accepted, and the original poster confirmed the next day that the update then installed (October 2026); a second user reported the same problem for two months. Status: reported working by source, not reproduced by us.

Problem

Cursor offers an update, downloads it, and the install step never finishes; Cursor reopens on the previous version (staff). The original poster had to install every monthly update by hand (3.21.18 to 3.24.12, tried twice).

Error (redacted / normalized)

Cursor couldn't finish updating

Applies when

Cursor IDE on macOS 27.0.1 (26A434); reported for 3.21.18 to 3.24.12 and fixed on the next update to 3.24.18.

Confirm it is this problem

1. Open System Settings > General > Login Items & Extensions and scroll to "Allow in the Background". → expect: Cursor (or another Cursor entry) is switched off. The original poster's was off.
2. Click update in Cursor and let it restart, then check Cursor > About Cursor. → expect: it still shows the old version.

Not this when / boundary

Cursor is already on under "Allow in the Background" and the update still doesn't finish; staff asked for the updater logs (ShipIt_stderr.log and ShipItState.plist in ~/Library/Caches/com.todesktop.230313mzl4w4u92.ShipIt) to look into those cases.

Root cause

Per Cursor staff, a known issue with updates on macOS 27: the update downloads but the install step doesn't finish. The original poster's confirmation shows it was tied to Cursor being switched off under "Allow in the Background"; that the background permission is what the installer needs is our inference.

Fix

1. Open System Settings > General > Login Items & Extensions, scroll to "Allow in the Background", and turn on Cursor and any other Cursor entries in that list (staff). → expect: the switches stay on.
2. Fully quit Cursor (Cursor > Quit Cursor) and reopen it (staff).
3. The next time Cursor offers an update, let it restart, then check Cursor > About Cursor. → expect: the new version. The original poster's update then installed normally and showed 3.24.18.
4. If you need the new version before that, download it from the official Cursor download page and install it by hand (staff: settings and chats are kept; workaround only).

How to verify

Cursor > About Cursor shows the version the updater offered (the original poster saw 3.24.18).

What did not work

Clicking update again did not help (tried twice by the original poster).

Risks

Download Cursor only from the official download page; don't install builds from mirrors or links posted by other users (our inference). If you share updater logs, don't zip the whole ShipIt folder; staff said it can contain a full copy of the update.

Verified scope

Cursor IDE 3.21.x to 3.24.x on macOS 27, October 2026.

Becomes obsolete when

Cursor's macOS updater finishes the install even when Cursor is not allowed in the background, or tells you to turn it on.