I am running arch on a 2011 MacBook pro. so, probably. Even if you don’t plan on using arch, the wiki has all the info to get you started.

Checking in with a 2014 27” iMac. It’s still running the original 3TB Fusion Drive, and I stuffed 32gb ram in there too.

I’ve been doing a bit of distro hopping with it. Have run Ubuntu and Linux Mint with no issues and currently running the latest Kde Neon beautifully.

Others here with old Macs seem to have had a much smoother run than me!

You can absolutely run Linux like a champ on that machine, but for reasons I’m not advanced enough to know/understand I’ve struggled with even booting the live USB for multiple distros on my Mid-2012 15" Retina. Maybe it’s the version of the hybrid Intel/Nvidia graphics on the model, I can’t really say.

I’m currently writing this from Linux Mint on said Mac, and all is well; but I’ve experienced the following:

• OpenSuse installer couldn’t even be seen at startup manager
• MX Linux would freeze during boot to the installer
• Elementary OS wouldn’t boot following install
• Pop! OS installed the wrong Nvidia driver for the computer, and with the open source drivers stopped booting after running a few updates
• Nitrux would freeze during boot to the installer
• Ubuntu stopped booting a few days in after an update
• Debian might have worked but wouldn’t detect my trackpad, wifi or USB ethernet adaptor so I couldn’t properly get it installed
• Manjaro worked for a while but eventually failed after an update
• ArcoLinux wouldn’t wake from sleep running the live USB

I totally recommend Linux Mint overall. I’ve decided I like Cinnamon best, “it just works” far more than anything else I’ve tried. I consider it the closest to macOS in terms of being thought about from every angle and set up and ready to go as a beginner or as a more advanced user.

Linux fan here. I run Linux on and old 2008 iMac, a 2009 MacBook Pro, a 2012 MacBook Pro, and a 2017 MacBook Pro. EndeavourOS mostly.

Linux works amazingly on this hardware. Old Apple stuff is great gear and still looks pretty good too.

I have upgraded RAM and storage as much as possible which makes a huge difference. I actually found the 2009 unit sitting on the intake shelf at my local recycling centre. It needed a new battery but has been awesome. I keep it downstairs at home as my other computers are upstairs. I take it with me on trips where I would worry about wrecking a computer ( camping road trips for example ). I can access my Proxmox server to hit a few remote desktops and the beautiful screen and awesome keyboard make it a joy to use.

Where is macOS bette? If we are being honest, any serious macOS user will have accumulated use cases that are not as well met by Linux. Media related especially like photo and video editing. I cannot even find programs like “subler” for Linux which you would think Linux would have. Niche proprietary tools as more common on macOS. So even reading a PDF signed with a certificate can be annoying on Linux ( without Adobe Acrobat or Reader ).

If you are a developer, I would argue Linux is better.

I am a Linux user though so I am the opposite. If you give me a machine running macOS, I want to get Linux on it. For me, Linux is so much better and 10 minutes on a Mac and I will be frustrated with what it cannot do.

Even for a Mac user, Mac hardware becomes much less usable after it falls of support for thee latest macOS as so many apps will quickly become incompatible after. As I run Arch on my 2009 Mac, it has all the software I use totally up-to-date and current with the latest releases available. You just cannot compete with Linux for that.

If it’s free gift then yes, Linux will work but with a few compromises. Mainly driver support for Apple’s proprietary hardware can be patchy out of the box and need manually fixing. Mainly peripherals like cameras (which may not work at all) and thunderbolt connectors (thunderbolt is supported but can need problem solving and may work better with different distros by default). The WiFi drivers are the classic issue - fixable but obviously painful to do offline.

But if you’re paying beware those limitations.

The good thing is it’s a Core i5 so you can use any AMD64 distribution and software (rather than the ARM distros needed for the proprietary apple chips; although on a quick search it seems those chips are now well supported by Linux distros).

Best approach may be to find a video/tutorial for your specific machine, and pick a distro they use. I imagine that’d be an Ubuntu derivative just due to shear popularity. But if you’re then feeling adventurous you could try and get your preferred distro set up - just may need to know how to fix drivers.

I personally wouldn’t stick with Mac OS - it’s notorious for slowing down older systems as the focus is on the new. A 10 year old laptop will likely run better with a well set up Linux distro.