GameMaker has a separate "Beta" programme for people who want bug fixes or new features sooner and in exchange are willing to risk encountering bugs or issues associated with a version which has had far less internal testing time.
The Beta version is a completely separate installation of GameMaker and does not require you to modify your current GameMaker monthly or LTS setup.
We release a series of betas in the lead-up to each major release and your Beta install will notify each time a new update is available, so you typically only need to get the installer one time using either method documented below.
Steam users: Beta releases are not offered on Steam. However, your purchase is still valid for the non-Steam version as well. If you want to use the Betas and you haven't linked your Steam account already, follow Using Your YoYo Account With Steam and then you can carry on with installing the Beta.
Be Aware Before You Begin
Betas may contain bugs which could corrupt your projects and may also introduce legitimate project format changes which stop you opening the project again in other versions. Accordingly, we would therefore strongly suggest that you use source control with all your projects before trying them on a beta.
If you use a Beta it's very important that you do report issues as soon as you see them, so that by the time the "Monthly" release is made these issues have hopefully all been fixed.
Download The Installer And Read The Release Notes
If you open https://releases.gamemaker.io you will see the section for Beta releases at the bottom of this page and its clickable link will be at the bottom of this section (in the image below it's the "2024.1300 - Q1 2025" link):
After clicking the current release notes, the download links for all 3 operating systems are at the top of that page:
Simply click the relevant download link for your computer's operating system.
While you're here, read the release notes so you know what the release is going to add/change and how you may need to change your projects accordingly. (Seriously - the release notes are extremely important, tell you about a lot of important information that could save you loads of time and frustration, and so we spend a lot of time writing them for you every release!)
Downloading Just The Installer From The GameMaker Website
Whilst we would always say to use the release notes page above in order to get the information about a release at the same time as downloading it's installer, be aware you can also find the installer for download at https://gamemaker.io/en/download
Visit that page, then click the dropdown arrow next to the Betas entry to find the links:
Simply click the relevant download link for your computer's operating system.
Review Your SDKs For The New Install
As you have just changed to a different version of GameMaker, it's now essential that you review your external tools are suitable for use in that version otherwise you may have issues building your projects.
See our Required SDKs FAQ and the setup guides it links to for all target platforms relevant to you.
Please don't use newer tools than what we say on that FAQ, as it might cause your builds to fail.
Submitting Bug Reports
The process for filing bug reports is no different to the regular release: please use the bug-reporter tool inside GameMaker, as shown below.
Make sure you check the known issues link on the bug-reporter form and search for an existing report before sending any new bug reports - you may not need to send us anything!
For lots more on how to send bugs and what happens with them, please see this guide: https://help.gamemaker.io/hc/en-us/articles/13150754375453-Submitting-a-Bug-Report-What-Does-It-Contain