How do I install and use MATLAB for native Apple Silicon and Intel on the same machine?

How can I get both the native Apple Silicon and the Intel versions of MATLAB R2023b to work on my Mac?

Answer 1

[MathWorks Support Team]

To do this, you'll need to note two things:

1. Both versions of MATLAB will need to be installed, but they will need to be installed in different directories. It is recommended to have separate folders in /Applications for each version. You can have the Apple Silicon version installed as default, and put the Intel version into a subfolder. For example:

/Applications/MATLAB_R2023b.app
/Applications/Intel MATLAB/MATLAB_R2023b.app

Having both .app files in the same directory can cause issues, and you will not be able to change the name of the .app through the installer. Thus, it is recommended to just separate the installations into separate directories. 

2. Filesystem access permission will only apply to one MATLAB at a time. Each time you open a different release of MATLAB, you'll be prompted to give permissions to the appropriate directory again. Note that this is not unique to this set up, and actually applies to having multiple releases of MATLAB on a Mac in general.