Should I update?
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Should I update Lightroom Classic?

to 16.0.0 · out 3 daysWindows and macOS

Update

No known problem stands in the way for most users. It’s safe to update.

Your update:5 fixes · 2 new issues, none affect the verdictDetails

Not updating?

Three things that help while you wait.

  • So the app doesn’t update on its own.
  • If you have already updated.
  • Why there isn’t one answer, and what comes closest.

Go back to an earlier Lightroom Classic version

In the Creative Cloud desktop app, on macOS and Windows.

  1. To keep your settings: first uninstall the current Lightroom Classic (⋯ › Uninstall) and choose Keep when asked about your preferences.
  2. Open the Creative Cloud desktop app and find Lightroom Classic in your apps.
  3. Select ⋯ (More actions) next to Lightroom Classic, then Other versions.
  4. Choose the version you want and select Install.

Your catalog: when an update needs a newer catalog format, Lightroom Classic upgrades a copy of your catalog and works on that copy from then on. The earlier version opens the original, so edits made since the upgrade are not in it.

So it doesn’t update again: Apps tab › ⋯ (More actions) › Manage auto-updates, and turn off Auto-update for Lightroom Classic.

Adobe lists previous major versions there, so not every release may be offered. With a school or work account, your organisation may have hidden some of these options.

Adobe’s instructions

Which version should I install?

There isn’t one answer, and here is why.

There is no one version that is safe for everyone: which of the open issues affect you depends on how you work. A bug on Windows says nothing to a Mac, and a bug in a tool you never open says nothing to you. Naming one version for everyone would mean pretending that difference away.

So read the issues behind the verdict and see whether they touch your work. Each one says how bad it is, how many people it affects, which system it happens on, and whether there is a workaround.

If the current release doesn’t work for you: .

Turn off automatic updates for Lightroom Classic

In the Creative Cloud desktop app, on macOS and Windows.

  1. Open the Creative Cloud desktop app.
  2. In the Apps tab, select ⋯ (More actions) in the Installed apps panel, then Manage auto-updates. If it says Enable auto-updates instead, they are already off.
  3. Turn off Auto-update for all apps, or leave it on and turn off only the switch next to Lightroom Classic.
  4. Select Done.

To update later: check the verdict here, then in the Home tab select Updates and Update next to Lightroom Classic.

Keeping auto-update on for other apps? Under Advanced options, leave Remove older versions unchecked, so you can still go back.

If the Auto-update switch is locked or missing, your organisation manages updates for you.

Adobe’s instructions

Tracked by Adobe

MajorSpecific featureAdobe: Investigating
Reported November 10, 2026DetailsRead the report
Not tracked yet

MajorCommon workflowWindows onlyNot tracked by Adobe yet
Workaround: Install Media Encoder 26.5.2, open Export Settings source preview on a clip to let Adobe install the HEVC 4.3 decoder, then restart Lightroom.
Reported November 11, 2026DetailsRead the report

Fixes · 5

From Adobe’s release notes.

  • In Lightroom Classic, syncing photos to the cloud gets stuck in the uploading state.
  • (macOS) Memory usage continues to increase, eventually causing Lightroom Classic to crash.
  • Lightroom Classic becomes unresponsive when updating location metadata in the Map module.
  • After restarting Lightroom Classic, when you open a photo, its GPS badge displays an incorrect location in the Map module.
  • Previews for certain photos with Content Credentials fail to render or remain stuck while loading.

New issues · 2

First reported after 15.6. None of them affects the verdict. See them with the known issues.

Fixes are Adobe’s own list; issues are what users reported, listed under the version the report names.

MajorCommon workflowWindows onlysince 15.5Adobe: Acknowledged
Reported August 5, 2026DetailsRead the report

MinorSpecific featureWindows onlysince 15.4Adobe: Investigating
Reported July 9, 2026DetailsRead the report

MinorSpecific featureWindows onlysince 15.3Adobe: Investigating
Reported June 16, 2026DetailsRead the report

MinorSpecific featureWindows onlysince 15.4Adobe: Investigating
Workaround: Press Tab once after opening the floating dialog to establish keyboard focus.
Reported July 9, 2026DetailsRead the report

MajorCommon workflowmacOS onlysince 15.5Adobe: Needs More Info
Workaround: In Import, set Apply During Import Develop Settings and Metadata to None.
Reported August 10, 2026DetailsRead the report

MinorSpecific featuresince 15.4Reported on 15.4.1Adobe: Investigating
Reported June 29, 2026DetailsRead the report

MajorSpecific featuremacOS onlysince 15.4Reported on 15.4.1Adobe: Investigating
Workaround: Uncheck Include Available Previews, or export to an internal APFS drive and copy with Finder.
Reported July 25, 2026DetailsRead the report

MinorSpecific featuresince 15.5Adobe: Investigating
Workaround: Click empty map area to deselect and refresh pin counts after zooming.
Reported August 16, 2026DetailsRead the report

MajorCommon workflowsince 15.2Adobe: Investigating
Workaround: In Grid view, use View > Show Filter Bar, open the filter bar drop-down, and choose Filters Off to restore Cmd/Ctrl+L toggling.
Reported February 21, 2026DetailsRead the report

Known issues in Lightroom Classic 16.0Earlier releases: 15.6, 15.5, 15.4, 15.3

How we decide

Based on public bug reports, not Adobe statements. Small numbers, read as a trend.

Every night we read the Lightroom Classic bug reports on the Adobe Community board. An issue is listed once Adobe tracks it (sets a status such as “Investigating” or “Acknowledged”), or once it has 3 votes. Tracked doesn’t mean Adobe has reproduced it, only that someone at Adobe has taken it up. Issues Adobe isn’t tracking yet only count toward the verdict from 10 votes, so a handful of reports can’t swing it.

The verdict covers the whole 16.0 release, including its updates: an issue reported on an earlier build still counts until Adobe marks it fixed, since an update only fixes what it says it fixes.

Each issue is rated for how bad it is and how many people it affects, with AI assistance following a published rubric and checked by hand where it matters. The worst open issue decides the verdict: a problem practically everyone runs into means “Don’t update”, a problem in a common workflow means “Check known issues”.

Windows and macOS get their own verdict: the same rule over the issues that happen on that system. They are shown side by side when they differ, and as one box when they agree. Which system an issue affects is counted from its thread: an AI reads every reply that names Windows or macOS and decides whether it is a report of the bug. Instructions, questions and “works fine on my Mac” don’t count. If the reports come from Windows users and at most one person reports it on macOS, it counts as a Windows issue.

“Not marked fixed from earlier versions” lists issues from the previous 5 releases with 3 or more votes that Adobe tracks and hasn’t marked fixed: they are most likely in the current release too. Issues Adobe marks as released are fixed in a later update.

The line under the verdict is about your own update. It starts from the release before the current one, which is also the view the verdict takes, and you can pick the version you have. The fixes it counts are Adobe’s own list from its release notes; the new issues are the reports first made after your version that are worth a check.

What we don’t do is name one version to install instead. There is no one version that is safe for everyone: which of the open issues affect you depends on how you work. A bug on Windows says nothing to a Mac, and a bug in a tool you never open says nothing to you. That is why every issue is listed with who it affects, and why the verdict is a starting point rather than an instruction.

Something look wrong, or missing? Write to shouldiupdate@pixelsucht.net.