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List of recommended macOS software: Difference between revisions

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<!-- See discussion page for todo list-->
This page is for good quality software on [[macOS]], based on the contributions of /g/ users. This page is not for solidifying preferences or ideology; it is considered to be "value-free" and thus permitting of both reference to open source software and closed source software, for-profit and not-for-profit. This is not your soapbox, your ballot box, or pulpit. Stay constructive and avoid politics and arguments.
{{TOCright}}
 
== Package manager ==
== Package manager ==
*[http://brew.sh/ Homebrew] — Free, written in Ruby
*[http://brew.sh/ Homebrew], written in Ruby — Free
*[https://www.cakebrew.com/ Cakebrew] is a graphical client for managing Homebrew.
*[https://www.cakebrew.com/ Cakebrew] is a free graphical client for managing Homebrew.
*[http://www.macports.org/ MacPorts] — Free
*[http://www.macports.org/ MacPorts] — Free
*[http://www.gentoo.org/proj/en/gentoo-alt/prefix/ Portage] — Originally for Gentoo Linux, but will work on macOS with hacks.
*[https://nixos.org Nix], the declarative package manager — Free


== Terminal emulator ==
== Terminal emulator ==
*Terminal.app, the default macOS Terminal
*[http://www.iterm2.com/#/section/home iTerm 2] — Free
*[http://www.iterm2.com/#/section/home iTerm 2] — Free
*[http://totalterminal.binaryage.com/ TotalTerminal] — No longer under active development
*[https://alacritty.org/ Alacritty] - Free
 
For a more complete collection of terminal applications, be sure to check the [[List of recommended GNU/Linux software|GNU/Linux applications]] page.
For a more complete collection of terminal applications, be sure to check the [[List of recommended GNU/Linux software|GNU/Linux applications]] page.


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For more detailed information see [[Web browsers]].
For more detailed information see [[Web browsers]].


[https://www.apple.com/safari/ Safari] is the default web browser in Apple's Mac OS X. It is based on Apple's Webkit layout engine, a KHTML fork.
[https://www.apple.com/safari/ Safari] is the default web browser in macOS.
*[http://nightly.webkit.org/ Webkit Nightly]
*[http://nightly.webkit.org/ Webkit Nightly]


[[Firefox]] is free software developed by Mozilla. It is highly extensible via addons and included as the default browser in many Linux distributions. It is often criticized on /g/ and /tech/ as "SJWfox" because of some Mozilla developers outspoken campaigns on social and political issues.
[[Firefox]] is free software developed by Mozilla. It is highly extensible via addons and included as the default browser in many Linux distributions. It is often criticized on /g/ and /tech/ as "SJWfox" because of some Mozilla developers outspoken campaigns on social and political issue.
*[https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/beta/ Firefox Beta]
*[https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/channel/#aurora Firefox Aurora]
*[http://nightly.mozilla.org/ Firefox Nightly]
 
[http://www.qupzilla.com/download QupZilla] is a FOSS web browser, built on the Qt and QtWebEngine (based on Chromium's rendering engine) frameworks. It supports extensions, ships out of the box with AdBlock, Mouse Gestures, GreaseMonkey, Speed Dial, Click2Flash, and more. It provides seamless integration with most desktop environments, and has several other distinguishing features. QupZilla is licensed under GPLv3.
 
[http://www.opera.com/ Opera] is a proprietary web browser that has pioneered open web standards for over two decades. It is notable for being the first web browser to sport a tabbed interface. It is developed and maintained by Opera Software.


[https://www.chromium.org/getting-involved/download-chromium Chromium] is the developer version of Google Chrome. Its tracking features can be easily disabled. Although it is free and open source software, its code is not as well audited as Firefox.
[https://www.chromium.org/getting-involved/download-chromium Chromium] is the developer version of Google Chrome. Its tracking features can be easily disabled. Although it is free and open source software, its code is not as well audited as Firefox.
*[https://www.google.com/intl/no/chrome/browser/ Google Chrome]
*[http://www.google.com/intl/en/chrome/browser/canary.html Google Chrome Canary]


[http://otter-browser.org/ Otter Browser] is a FOSS web browser that aims to recreate the best aspects of the classic Opera (12.x) UI using Qt5.
[https://www.torproject.org/projects/torbrowser.html.en Tor Browser] is a package of a modified Firefox extended support release, NoScript, Tor, TorButton and TorLauncher. It automatically routes traffic through the Tor network and deletes history and cookies when closed.
 
[http://www.seamonkey-project.org/ SeaMonkey] is a continuation of the Mozilla suite. Unlike most modern web browsers, it is an Internet suite, complete with bundled programs for email, IRC, and web design. It is compatible with most Firefox add-ons.
 
[https://www.torproject.org/projects/torbrowser.html.en Tor Browser] (formerly known as Tor Browser Bundle) is a package of a modified Firefox extended support release, NoScript, HTTPS-Everywhere, Tor, TorButton and TorLauncher. It automatically routes traffic through the Tor network and deletes history and cookies when closed.


=== E-mail client ===
=== E-mail client ===
*[https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204093 Mail.app] - Comes default with Mac, supports iCloud mail drop for large attachments. Pretty neat.
*[https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/thunderbird Thunderbird]
*[https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/thunderbird Thunderbird]
*[http://airmailapp.com/ Airmail] — $10, Cross platform with iDevices
*[http://airmailapp.com/ Airmail] — $10, Cross platform with iDevices
*[http://www.opera.com/computer/mail Opera Mail]


=== Instant Messenger (IM) ===
=== Instant Messenger (IM) ===
*[https://www.adium.im/ Adium] is a customizable chat client with loads of themes, sound packs and other plugins.
*[https://beagle.im/ Beagle] is a Jabber client with optional end-to-end encryption.
*[https://ricochet.im/ Ricochet IM] is and end-to-end encrypted instant messages which uses [[Tor]] hidden services.
*[https://element.io Element] is an open source, end-to-end encrypted, federated instant messaging client which uses the Matrix protocol.
*[https://desktop.telegram.org/ Telegram] is a cloud-based mobile and desktop messaging app with a focus on security and speed.
*[http://www.skype.com/en/ Skype] owned by Microsoft, your privacy won't mean anything.
*[http://retroshare.sourceforge.net/ RetroShare] is an open source decentralized communication platform. It provides secure chat, photo and video sharing using OpenPGP to authenticate peers and OpenSSL to encrypt all communication.


=== Internet Relay Chat (IRC) ===
=== Internet Relay Chat (IRC) ===
*[http://hexchat.github.io/ HexChat] is a popular replacement for the XChat IRC client, a client which offered a free binary for Linux but charges money for the Windows version. HexChat is a continuation of XChat and makes both its source code and binaries available to users of all platforms it's created for. Like its parent software, HexChat is licensed under the GNU GPL. It includes all the basic features one would need, and can be ideal both for new users and IRC veterans.
*[http://hexchat.github.io/ HexChat] is a continuation of XChat and makes both its source code and binaries available to users of all platforms it's created for. Like its parent software, HexChat is licensed under the GNU GPL. It includes all the basic features one would need, and can be ideal both for new users and IRC veterans.
*[http://limechat.net/mac/ LimeChat] user friendly and free as in freedom.
*[http://limechat.net/mac/ LimeChat] is user friendly and free as in freedom.
*[https://www.codeux.com/textual/ Textual] –$8
*[https://www.codeux.com/textual/ Textual] –$9


=== BitTorrent (BT) ===
=== BitTorrent (BT) ===


*[http://www.transmissionbt.com/ Transmission] is a lightweight torrent client with support for blocklists.
*[http://www.transmissionbt.com/ Transmission] is a lightweight torrent client with support for block lists.
*[http://sourceforge.net/projects/qbittorrent/ qBittorrent] is a libtorrent-based BitTorrent client. According to its developers, the aim of the client is to provide a free software alternative to µTorrent. There's also a daemon version called Qbittorrent-nox.
*[https://www.qbittorrent.org/ qBittorrent] is a libtorrent-based BitTorrent client. According to its developers, the aim of the client is to provide a free software alternative to µTorrent. There's also a daemon version called Qbittorrent-nox.
*[http://deluge-torrent.org/ Deluge] is a libtorrent-based BitTorrent client. It is highly extensible via its plug-ins system. Deluge is notable for having originated the particular method of protocol encryption that is currently in use by every major BitTorrent client.
*[http://deluge-torrent.org/ Deluge] is a libtorrent-based BitTorrent client. It is highly extensible via its plug-ins system. Deluge is notable for having originated the particular method of protocol encryption that is currently in use by every major BitTorrent client.
'''Terminal'''
'''Terminal'''
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*[https://www.panic.com/transmit/ Transmit] — $45
*[https://www.panic.com/transmit/ Transmit] — $45
*[http://cyberduck.io/ Cyberduck] — $24
*[http://cyberduck.io/ Cyberduck] — $24
* [https://filezilla-project.org/ FileZilla] — Free
*[https://filezilla-project.org/ FileZilla] — Free
 
=== Other ===
*[https://sharedrop.io/ Sharedrop] is a peer-to-peer web app for file sharing.
*[http://www.kiwix.org/wiki/Main_Page Kiwix] Offline Wikipedia browser
*[https://netnewswire.com/ NetNewsWire] FOSS RSS reader
 


== Text ==
== Text ==
=== Word Processing ===
=== Word Processing ===
*[http://www.bean-osx.com/Bean.html Bean] is a small, easy-to-use word processor that is designed to make writing convenient, efficient and comfortable. Bean is lean, fast and uncluttered. It starts up quickly, has a live word count, and is easy on the eyes. Also, Bean is available free of charge.
*[https://www.apple.com/iwork/ Pages] Part of the iWork suite (competitor to Microsoft Office), now free! Works seamlessly with iDevices and very intuitive, quite powerful for casual use.
*[https://www.openoffice.org/download/index.html OpenOffice]
*[https://www.libreoffice.org LibreOffice], the free and open source office suite.
*[https://www.libreoffice.org/download/libreoffice-fresh/ LibreOffice]
*[https://www.onlyoffice.com OnlyOffice] is a FOSS Microsoft Office compatible document processing suite.
*[https://www.apple.com/iwork/ Pages] Part of the iWork suite (competitor to Microsoft Office), now free! Works seamlessly with iDevices and very intuitive, reasonable powerful for casual use.
*[http://www.bean-osx.com/Bean.html Bean] is a small, easy-to-use word processor designed to make writing convenient, efficient and comfortable.


=== Text editor ===
=== Text editor ===
*[https://code.visualstudio.com Visual Studio Code]
*[https://developer.apple.com/xcode/ Xcode]. Apple's default IDE. Supports C, C++, Objective-C and Swift.
*[http://www.barebones.com/products/bbedit/ BBEdit] - $50
*[http://www.barebones.com/products/bbedit/ BBEdit] - $50
*[http://www.barebones.com/products/textwrangler/ TextWrangler] - No longer under development, merged with BBEdit
*[http://macromates.com/ TextMate] - $55
*[http://macromates.com/ TextMate] - $55
*[http://macvim.org/ MacVim]
*[http://www.sublimetext.com/ Sublime Text] - $80
*[https://emacsformacosx.com/ Emacs] - Preinstalled with macOS
*[https://nova.app Nova] - $99
*[https://www.jetbrains.com/products.html Any of the JetBrains' IDEs] - $200 per year (they have different IDEs for different languages, very expensive)
'''Terminal'''
*Emacs, vim and nano come preinstalled with macOS
*[https://neovim.io/ Neovim]
*[http://spacemacs.org/ Spacemacs]
*[http://spacemacs.org/ Spacemacs]
*[https://www.panic.com/coda/ Coda] - $99
*[http://www.sublimetext.com/ Sublime Text] - $80
*[https://www.jetbrains.com/products.html Any of JetBrains' IDEs] - $200 per year (they have different IDEs for different languages, very expensive)
*[https://atom.io Atom]
*[http://brackets.io/ Brackets]
*[http://macrabbit.com/espresso/ Espresso] - $79
*[https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/xcode/id497799835?mt=12 Xcode] Apple's default IDE, if you want to start making money selling iPhone apps, this is where you start.


'''Plaintext/richtext editor'''
'''Plaintext/richtext editor'''
*[https://support.apple.com/en-us/guide/textedit/welcome/mac TextEdit], the default Mac text editor. Comprehensively featured and easy to use. Can edit in either rich text or plain text mode.
*[https://obsidian.md/ Obsidian]
*[https://apps.apple.com/us/app/writeroom/id417967324 WriteRoom] - $5
*[https://bywordapp.com/ Byword] - $11
*[https://bywordapp.com/ Byword] - $11
*[http://www.hogbaysoftware.com/products/writeroom WriteRoom] - $10
*[http://www.acqualia.com/soulver/ Soulver] - $12
*[https://ia.net/writer/mac/ iA Writer] - $30
*[https://ia.net/writer/mac/ iA Writer] - $30
*[https://71squared.com/focused Focused] - $20
*[https://www.peterborgapps.com/smultron/ Smultron] - $14
*[http://www.ulyssesapp.com/mac/ Ulysses] - $5 per month
*[https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/itext-express/id416550249?mt=12 iText Express]
*[http://www.codealchemists.com/jdarkroom/ JDarkRoom]
*[http://www.acqualia.com/soulver/ Soulver] - $12
*[http://getxpad.com/ xPad] Very good for rich-text documents. No longer maintained.


=== To-do manager ===
=== To-do manager ===
*[http://brettterpstra.com/projects/nvalt/ nvALT] is a modified version of the lightweight note taking app [http://notational.net/ Notational Velocity]. It has the option to save notes as plain text files.
*[https://support.apple.com/en-us/guide/reminders/welcome/mac Reminders] is the built-in to-do list managing app.
*[https://mjdescy.github.io/TodoTxtMac/ TodoTxtMac] is an open source to-do manager for mac using the todo.txt format.
*[https://mjdescy.github.io/TodoTxtMac/ TodoTxtMac] is an open source to-do manager for mac using the todo.txt format.
*[http://www.taskpaper.com/ TaskPaper] is a plain text to-do list that’s surprisingly adept.


=== Document Reader ===
=== Document Reader ===
*[http://skim-app.sourceforge.net/ Skim]
*Preview, the stock document reader and editor.
*[https://www.kitabu.me Kitabu]
*[http://skim-app.sourceforge.net/ Skim] a scientific document reader.
*[https://okular.kde.org/ Okular]


== Images and graphics ==
== Images and graphics ==
=== Viewing ===
=== Viewing ===
*[https://xee.c3.cx/old Xee (v2.2)] open-source, lightweight, highly customisable.
*[https://apps.apple.com/us/app/photostickies/id447313635 PhotoStickies] can stick photos to your desktop.
*[http://www.tucows.com/preview/1103787/Simple-EXIF-Viewer-For-Mac-OS-X EXIF Viewer] view image meta-data.
*[http://www.devontechnologies.com/products/freeware.html PhotoStickies] can stick photos to your desktop.


=== Editing ===
=== Editing ===
*[https://support.apple.com/en-ca/HT201740 Preview] is the default image viewing and editing app. It is a lightweight and functional alternative for simple edits.
*[https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201740 Preview] is the default image and document viewer and editor. It is lightweight and functional.
*[https://evernote.com/skitch/ Skitch] is a simple editing program for adding anotations to images.
*[https://photopea.com Photopea] is a web image editor that runs locally on your machine. It has an interface similar to Photoshop CS6. Free with unobtrusive sidebar ads. There is also [https://vectorpea.com a vector image editor] too
*[http://www.pixelmator.com/ Pixelmator Pro] The successor to Pixelmator higher price of ($60), great alternative to Photoshop.
*[https://affinity.serif.com/en-us/photo/ Affinity Photo] is another great alternative to Photoshop - $35
*[https://affinity.serif.com/en-gb/photo/ Affinity Photo] is a good and affordable ($35) alternative to photoshop.
*[http://www.pixelmator.com/ Pixelmator Pro] is so good, Apple bought the company - $50
*[http://flyingmeat.com/acorn/ Acorn] is similar to Pixelmator.
*[http://flyingmeat.com/acorn/ Acorn] is similar to Pixelmator.
*[http://bohemiancoding.com/sketch/ Sketch] is another alternative to Pixelmator.
*[http://bohemiancoding.com/sketch/ Sketch] is another alternative to Pixelmator.
*[https://duckduckgo.com/?q=gimp+site:www.gimp.org GIMP] is the GNU Image Manipulation Program. It is a free and open source image editing program.
*[http://www.nevercenter.com/camerabag/desktop/ Camerabag] is an easy-to-use photo editing tool.
*[http://www.nevercenter.com/camerabag/desktop/ Camerabag] is an easy-to-use photo editing tool.
*[http://www.inkscape.org/en/ InkScape] is a FOSS vector graphic editor.
*[http://www.inkscape.org/en/ InkScape] is a FOSS vector graphic editor.
*[https://www.fotor.com/mac/ Fotor]
*[http://imageoptim.com/ ImageOptim] is software for compressing images.
*[https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/image-tools/id493949693?mt=12 iMage Tools]
*[http://colorsnapper.com/ ColourSnapper] Simple colour picker app.
*[http://theolabrothers.com/ Sip] Simple colour picker app.
*[http://pngmini.com/ ImageAlpha] is a program for reducing the file size of PNG files.
*[http://imageoptim.com/ ImageOptim] is software for reducing the size of JPG and PNG files.


=== Drawing/Painting ===
=== Drawing/Painting ===
*[http://paintbrush.sourceforge.net/ Paintbrush] Basic paint application.
*Preview, believe it or not, also works as a basic paint application.
*[http://www.frykholm.se/rita.html Rita]
*[https://krita.org/en/ Krita] is a free and open source painting program.  
*[http://www.eazydraw.com/ EazyDraw]
*[http://pinta-project.com/ Pinta] is a free, open source program for drawing and image editing.
*[http://pinta-project.com/ Pinta] is a free, open source program for drawing and image editing.
*[http://mypaint.org/about/ MyPaint]
*[https://www.madewithmischief.com/ Procreate] is a paid drawing application available for both iPad and Mac - $25
*[https://www.madewithmischief.com/ Mischief]


=== Animation ===
=== Animation ===
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=== 3D Modeling ===
=== 3D Modeling ===
*[http://www.autodesk.com/products/autodesk-maya/overview Maya] offers a comprehensive creative feature set for 3D computer animation, modeling, simulation, rendering, and compositing on a highly extensible production platform. Maya now has next-generation display technology, accelerated modeling workflows, and new tools for handling complex data.
*[http://www.blender.org/ Blender] is a 3D animation suite. It supports the entirety of the 3D pipeline—modeling, rigging, animation, simulation, rendering, compositing and motion tracking, even video editing and game creation.
*[http://www.blender.org/ Blender] is a 3D animation suite. It supports the entirety of the 3D pipeline—modeling, rigging, animation, simulation, rendering, compositing and motion tracking, even video editing and game creation.


== Video ==
== Video ==
=== Viewing ===
=== Viewing ===
*[https://github.com/mpv-player/mpv-build mpv] is a fork of MPlayer/Mplayer2 with cleaner code, less bloat, better video scaling, color management, and other high quality video rendering algorithms.
*[https://support.apple.com/en-us/guide/quicktime-player/welcome/mac QuickTime] is the stock video player and also offers basic editing and screen recording functionality.
*[http://mplayerosx.ch Mplayer OSX Extended]
*[https://mpv.io/ mpv] is a fork of MPlayer/Mplayer2 with cleaner code, less bloat, better video scaling, color management, and other high quality video rendering algorithms.
*[http://mplayerx.org/ MPlayerX]
*[https://iina.io/ IINA] User friendly mpv front-end. FOSS.
*[https://code.google.com/archive/p/movist/downloads Movist (v0.6.8)]
*[https://www.videolan.org/vlc/ VLC]. It's VLC!
*[https://www.videolan.org/vlc/ VLC]
*[https://www.macblurayplayer.com/ Macgo Blu-ray Player Pro/Standard] Excellent program to watch Blu-ray and DVD discs. Paid, but offers free trials.


=== Editing ===
=== Editing ===
*[https://www.shotcut.org/bin/view/Shotcut/Download Shotcut] is a free, open source, cross-platform video editor.
*[https://pikimov.com/ Pikimov] is a free, web app video and motion graphics editor. A good alternative to After Effects.
*[http://www.videoblend.org/mac/ VideoBlend] Very basic video editor.
*[https://kdenlive.org/ Kdenlive] is a free and open source video editing solution.
*[http://videospec.free.fr/english/ VideoSpec] View video meta-data.
*[https://www.apple.com/us/imovie/ iMovie] is the free, proprietary video editor included with macOS. Easy to use and great for hobbyists and dilettantes.
*[http://www.apple.com/final-cut-pro/ Final Cut Pro X] Expensive, but powerful and easy to use. (Still cheaper than Adobe though)
*[https://www.apple.com/final-cut-pro/ Final Cut Pro] Expensive, but powerful and easy to use.
[https://www.telestream.net/screenflow/ ScreenFlow] Includes a capable video editor — $99
*[https://www.blackmagicdesign.com/products/davinciresolve Davinci Resolve] is a professional grade colour grading tool and video editor. Free, with paid version available.


=== Conversion/Ripping ===
=== Conversion/Ripping ===
*[http://handbrake.fr/ Handbrake] is a free and open source video transcoder with an easy to use GUI. It can rip and convert a variety of video formats, but can not break DVD or Blu-ray copyright protection.
*[http://handbrake.fr/ Handbrake] is a free and open source video transcoder with an easy to use GUI. It can rip and convert a variety of video formats, but can not break DVD or Blu-ray copyright protection.
*[https://ffmpeg.org FFMPEG] is the gold standard for video encoding and editing, command line based.
*[https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp yt-dlp] is a command line program for downloading videos from YouTube and similar sites.
*[http://www.makemkv.com/ MakeMKV] can convert video from proprietary (and usually encrypted) discs into a set of MKV files, preserving most information but not changing it in any way. It can instantly stream decrypt video without intermediate conversion and decrypt Blu-rays and protected DVDs.
*[http://www.makemkv.com/ MakeMKV] can convert video from proprietary (and usually encrypted) discs into a set of MKV files, preserving most information but not changing it in any way. It can instantly stream decrypt video without intermediate conversion and decrypt Blu-rays and protected DVDs.
*[http://project-x.sourceforge.net/ ProjectX] can resync DVB (Digital TV broadcasts) ready for encoding.
*[https://rg3.github.io/youtube-dl/ Youtube-dl] is a command line program for downloading videos from Youtube and similar sites.
*[https://ffmpeg.org FFmpeg] the gold standard for video encoding, command line based.
=== Screencasting ===
*[https://www.telestream.net/screenflow/ ScreenFlow] Includes a capable video editor — $99
*[http://www.getcloudapp.com/ CloudApp] — Free


== Audio ==
== Audio ==
=== Playing ===
=== Playing ===
*[http://mamburu.net/cog/ Cog] Functional, lightweight, customisable.
*[https://apps.apple.com/us/app/apple-music/id1108187390 Music] is the stock audio player. It railroads you to pay for their subscription service but is otherwise quite good.
*[http://swinsian.com/ Swinsian] iTunes clone - but more lightweight with less bullshit.
*[https://cog.losno.co/ Cog is a lightweight, free and open source audio player.]
*[http://www.audiofile-engineering.com/fidelia/ Fidelia] Posh UI.
*[https://mpv.io/ mpv] is also a good audio player, too.
*[http://www.pixiapps.com/home/ Ecoute]
*[https://www.foobar2000.org/ foobar2000] is a venerable freeware audio player also available on Windows.
*[http://mac.filehorse.com/download-vox/2239/ Vox (0.2.7.1)] Older version of Vox. Less features, barebones UI, but much more lightweight.
*[https://apps.apple.com/us/app/colibri/id1178295426 Colibri] is a proprietary lossless audio player with deep macOS integration - $20
 
'''Command line players'''
'''Command line players'''
*[http://moc.daper.net/ moc]
*[http://moc.daper.net/ moc]
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=== Editing ===
=== Editing ===
*[http://audacity.sourceforge.net/ Audacity] is an easy-to-use, multi-track audio editor and recorder. It has support for LADSPA, Nyquist, VST, Audio Unit effect and VAMP analysis plug-ins.
*[https://codeberg.org/tenacityteam/tenacity Tenacity] is an easy-to-use, multi-track audio editor and recorder made as a replacement to Audacity which now includes telemetry. It has support for LADSPA, Nyquist, VST, Audio Unit effect and VAMP analysis plug-ins.  
*[http://all2mp3.en.softonic.com/mac All2MP3]
*[https://ffmpeg.org FFMPEG] is ''also'' the gold standard for audio encoding and editing, command line based.  
*[https://software.com/mac/apps/tagr Tagr] Audio metadata tagger.
*[https://software.com/mac/apps/tagr Tagr] Audio metadata tagger.
*[http://2manyrobots.com/yate/ Yate] Audio metadata tagger (more advanced).
*[http://2manyrobots.com/yate/ Yate] Audio metadata tagger (more advanced).
*[http://sourceforge.net/projects/xld/ XLD] is the preferred Mac audio disc ripper of what.cd. It can output cue sheets and log files via a plugin. It also supports tagging with MusicBrainz and FreeDB.
*[http://sourceforge.net/projects/xld/ XLD] is the preferred Mac audio disc ripper of what.cd. It can output cue sheets and log files via a plugin. It also supports tagging with MusicBrainz and FreeDB.
=== Tools ===
*[https://github.com/kyleneideck/BackgroundMusic BackgroundMusic] FOSS audio utility with features such as per-application volume control and recording system audio.


== Utilities ==
== Utilities ==
=== Archiving ===
=== Archiving ===
*[https://www.keka.io/en/ Keka], a FOSS archiving tool.
*[http://unarchiver.c3.cx/unarchiver The Unarchiver] or the [http://unarchiver.c3.cx/commandline CLI version]
*[http://unarchiver.c3.cx/unarchiver The Unarchiver] or the [http://unarchiver.c3.cx/commandline CLI version]
*[http://archivebrowser.c3.cx/ The Archive Browser] — $4
*p7zip can be installed via [https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/p7zip brew].
*[http://www.7-zip.org/ 7zip] is a free and open source file archiver developed in C++ by Igor Pavlov. Its primary feature is lossless compression in the 7z format, based upon the [[Wikipedia:Lempel%E2%80%93Ziv%E2%80%93Markov_chain_algorithm |Lempel–Ziv–Markov chain algorithm]]. In addition to the handful of formats it is capable of creating new archives in, 7zip can retrieve files from archives in virtually any format that one is likely to encounter. Only Windows binaries are provided on the site, but OS X and Linux binaries are available.
 
*[http://www.kekaosx.com/en/ Keka]
*[http://www.eigenlogik.com/entropy/ Entropy]
*[http://macitbetter.com/ BetterZip 3]


=== Application launchers ===
=== Application launchers ===
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*[https://manytricks.com/namemangler/ Name Mangler]
*[https://manytricks.com/namemangler/ Name Mangler]
*[http://www.publicspace.net/ABetterFinderRename/ A Better Find Rename]
*[http://www.publicspace.net/ABetterFinderRename/ A Better Find Rename]
*[https://www.hardcoded.net/dupeguru/ DupeGuru] Free duplicate finder.
*[http://macpaw.com/gemini Gemini] is an intelligent duplicate remover.
*[http://macpaw.com/gemini Gemini] is an intelligent duplicate remover.
*[http://www.hyperbolicsoftware.com/TidyUp.html TidyUp]
*[http://www.hyperbolicsoftware.com/TidyUp.html TidyUp]
*[https://www.piriform.com/ccleaner/download CCleaner]
*[http://www.freemacsoft.net/appcleaner/ Appcleaner] is a free and good way to uninstall software.
*[http://www.freemacsoft.net/appcleaner/ Appcleaner] is a free and good way to uninstall software.
*[http://www.cleverfiles.com/ Disk Drill] Recover deleted files.
*[http://www.cleverfiles.com/ Disk Drill] Recover deleted files.
*[http://overmacs.com/ PhotoSweeper]
*[http://www.bresink.com/osx/TinkerTool.html TinkerTool] Access to additional preference settings.


=== Virtualization/Emulation ===
=== Virtualization/Emulation ===
*[https://www.virtualbox.org/ VirtualBox] is free and open source GPL software. It was first developed by Innotek GmbH, then bought by Sun Microsystems and now continually developed by Oracle.
*[https://mac.getutm.app/ UTM] is a FOSS and user-friendly frontend for QEMU. Typically much faster than VirtualBox.
*[http://qemu.org Qemu]
*[[VirtualBox]] is a free and open source virtual machine manager. It is owned by Oracle, though.
*[http://www.rodsbooks.com/refind/ rEFInd] Boot manager.
*[https://www.parallels.com/ Parallels] is the easiest way to run Windows on ARM Macs — $80
*[https://www.parallels.com/ca/ Parellels] Advanced virtualization software — $80
*[https://www.libretro.com/index.php/retroarch-2/ RetroArch], a FOSS emulation program which will emulate over 9000 platforms for you with little tinkering. It doesn't emulate anything itself but provides a big library of "cores" which do the job.
*[https://www.libretro.com/index.php/retroarch-2/ RetroArch], a FOSS emulation program which will emulate over 9000 platforms for you with little tinkering. It doesn't emulate anytging itself but provides a big library of "cores" which do the job.
*[http://openemu.org/ OpenEmu] does the same thing with less core and platform choices but comes with a sexy GUI instead.
*[http://openemu.org/ OpenEmu] does the similar thing with less core and platform choice but sexy GUI instead.
*[https://ares-emu.net/ ares] is the spiritual successor to bsnes, a multi-system emulator focusing on cycle accuracy. Many of the ares emulators are available as libretro cores.
*[http://www.bannister.org/software/kigb.htm KiGB] Gameboy/Gameboy Colour emulator.
*[http://www.bannister.org/software/ba.htm Boycott Advance] Gameboy Advance emulator.
*[http://www.bannister.org/software/bsnes.htm BSNES] SNES emulator.
*[https://dolphin-emu.org/ Dolphin] GameCube/Wii emulator. Open-source.
*[http://joystickmapper.com/ Joystick Mapper] Not free to purchase.


=== Maps ===
=== Maps ===
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=== Ricing ===
=== Ricing ===
*[http://www.macbartender.com/ Bartender] is a utility to clean up and manage your menu bar.
*[http://www.macbartender.com/ Bartender] is a utility to clean up and manage your menu bar.
*[http://projects.tynsoe.org/en/geektool/ Geektool] can add shell scripts and images to your desktop.
*[http://tracesof.net/uebersicht/ Übersicht] can add widgets to your desktop using CoffeeScript, bash, and CSS.
*[http://tracesof.net/uebersicht/ Übersicht] can add widgets to your desktop using coffee script, bash, and CSS.
*[http://bowtieapp.com/ Bowtie] is a customizable display for the music you're listening to.
*[http://namedfork.net/bootxchanger BootXChanger] Change the boot image. For OSX 10.4 to 10.6.


=== Window management ===
=== Window management ===
*[http://spectacleapp.com/ Spectacle] is an Open Source window managment tool.
*[https://rectangleapp.com/ Rectangle] Better window snapping for macOS. FOSS.
*[https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/bettersnaptool/id417375580?mt=12 BetterSnapTool] - $2.99
*[https://github.com/koekeishiya/yabai yabai] FOSS tiling WM for Mac based on binary space partitioning.  
*[http://www.blazingtools.com/right_zoom_mac.html Right Zoom for Mac] changes the behavior of the zoom button. <!-- Actually very useful. -->
*[http://manytricks.com/moom/ Moom] <!-- Haven't had opportunity to check Moom out personally, but I've heard that it's pretty good] -->


=== Network Monitering ===
=== Network Monitoring ===
*[http://www.obdev.at/products/littlesnitch/index.html Little Snitch] — $45
*[https://objective-see.com/products/lulu.html LuLu]. The FOSS macOS firewall.
*[https://www.wireshark.org/ Wireshark] — Free
*[https://www.wireshark.org/ Wireshark] — Free
*[http://radiosilenceapp.com/private-eye/ Radio Silence] - $9
*[http://radiosilenceapp.com/private-eye/ Radio Silence] - $9
*[http://www.obdev.at/products/littlesnitch/index.html Little Snitch] — $45


=== Password managers ===
=== Password managers ===
*[https://www.keepassx.org/ KeePassX] is a light interface and cross platform password manager published under the GNU GPL.
*[https://keepassxc.org/ KeePassXC] Cross-platform community fork of KeePassX "with the goal to extend and improve it with new features and bugfixes to provide a feature-rich, fully cross-platform and modern open-source password manager."
*[https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/1password/id443987910?mt=12 1Password] can safely store all your passwords.
*[https://bitwarden.com/ Bitwarden] is a free and open source, self-hostable cloud password manager with cross-device sync.
*[https://psono.com/ Psono] is a good alternative to Bitwarden.
*[https://strongboxsafe.com/ Strongbox] is a free password manager for macOS and iOS. It supports the KeePass format and has a nice GUI. Additional features, like biometric authentication, are locked behind a paywall.  


=== Desktop environment (DE) mods===
=== Desktop environment (DE) mods===
*[http://www.bettertouchtool.net/ BetterTouchTool] trackpad modifications
*[http://www.jitouch.com/index.php?page=jitouch jitouch 2] trackpad modifications
*[http://www.jitouch.com/index.php?page=jitouch jitouch 2] trackpad modifications
*[https://pqrs.org/osx/karabiner/seil.html Seil] can change the functionality of the "Caps Lock" key.
*[https://pqrs.org/osx/karabiner/ Karabiner] can remap the keys on your keyboard and change the key repeat settings.
*[https://pqrs.org/osx/karabiner/ Karabinier] can remap the keys on your keyboard and change the key repeat settings.


=== Clipboard manager/Virtual clipboard ===
=== Clipboard manager/Virtual clipboard ===
*[https://maccy.app/ Maccy] FOSS searchable clipboard manager.
*[https://www.pastebar.app/ Pastebar] FOSS, Cross-platform clipboard manager.
*[http://aptonic.com/ Dropzone] — $10
*[http://aptonic.com/ Dropzone] — $10
*[https://clipy-app.com Clipy] FOSS clipboard manager, only available in Japanese right now.


== System monitoring ==
=== System monitoring ===
*[https://support.apple.com/en-us/guide/activity-monitor/welcome/mac Activity Monitor] provides basic system resource analytics.
*[http://www.coconut-flavour.com/coconutbattery/ coconutBattery] is a utility for checking battery health.
*[http://www.coconut-flavour.com/coconutbattery/ coconutBattery] is a utility for checking battery health.
*[http://www.titanium.free.fr/downloadonyx.php Onyx] Additional system utilities.
*[https://github.com/exelban/stats stats] is a free, open source and highly configurable sensor readout utility.
*[http://www.bresink.com/osx/TinkerTool.html TinkerTool] Access to additional preference settings.
*[http://www.macdentro.com/MacDentro/Home.html IceClean] System maintenance and optimization tool.
*[http://overmacs.com/ PhotoSweeper]
*[http://www.ragingmenace.com/software/menumeters/ MenuMeters] — Free
*[http://bjango.com/mac/istatmenus/ iStat Menus] — $16
*[http://www.eidac.de/ smcFanControl]
*[http://www.daisydiskapp.com/ DaisyDisk] gives you a graphical overview of your file system.
*[http://www.derlien.com/downloads/index.html Disk Inventory X] is a free alternative to DaisyDisk.
*[https://www.omnigroup.com/more OmniDiskSweeper] shows you files on the disk in descending order of size.
*[http://www.crystalidea.com/macs-fan-control/ Macs Fan Control] Free and readily updated fan controller for Mac.


=== Miscellanous ===
=== Miscellanous ===
*[http://mactracker.ca/ Mactracker] provides detailed information on every Apple Macintosh computer ever made.
*[http://mactracker.ca/ Mactracker] provides detailed information on every Apple Macintosh computer ever made.
*[http://growl.info/ Growl] is an alternative notification system with good customization features. It is best in combination with [http://growl.info/documentation/hardwaregrowler.php HardwareGrowler]. It costs $4 or can be built from source.
*[https://sveinbjorn.org/sloth Sloth] FOSS application that displays all open files and sockets in use by all running processes on your system.
*[http://justgetflux.com/ f.lux] is a utility for changing the color tone of your display.
*[http://www.crystalidea.com/macs-fan-control/ Macs Fan Control] Free and readily updated fan controller for Mac.
*[http://code.google.com/p/eiskaltdc/ EiskaltDC++] is a direct connect client for file sharing.
*[https://github.com/FigBug/imguru imguru] and [https://github.com/zbuc/imgurBar imgurBar] — Free
*[http://www.rubicode.com/Software/RCDefaultApp/ RCDefaultApp] — easily configures what app opens what file type.
*[https://gfx.io/ gfxCard Status] — provides switching between dedicated/integrated GPU from statusbar. Free
*[http://www.kiwix.org/wiki/Main_Page Kiwix] Offline Wikipedia browser


== External links ==
== External links ==

Latest revision as of 10:13, 31 January 2025

This page is for good quality software on macOS, based on the contributions of /g/ users. This page is not for solidifying preferences or ideology; it is considered to be "value-free" and thus permitting of both reference to open source software and closed source software, for-profit and not-for-profit. This is not your soapbox, your ballot box, or pulpit. Stay constructive and avoid politics and arguments.

Package manager

  • Homebrew, written in Ruby — Free
  • Cakebrew is a free graphical client for managing Homebrew.
  • MacPorts — Free
  • Nix, the declarative package manager — Free

Terminal emulator

For a more complete collection of terminal applications, be sure to check the GNU/Linux applications page.

Internet

Web browser

For more detailed information see Web browsers.

Safari is the default web browser in macOS.

Firefox is free software developed by Mozilla. It is highly extensible via addons and included as the default browser in many Linux distributions. It is often criticized on /g/ and /tech/ as "SJWfox" because of some Mozilla developers outspoken campaigns on social and political issue.

Chromium is the developer version of Google Chrome. Its tracking features can be easily disabled. Although it is free and open source software, its code is not as well audited as Firefox.

Tor Browser is a package of a modified Firefox extended support release, NoScript, Tor, TorButton and TorLauncher. It automatically routes traffic through the Tor network and deletes history and cookies when closed.

E-mail client

  • Mail.app - Comes default with Mac, supports iCloud mail drop for large attachments. Pretty neat.
  • Thunderbird
  • Airmail — $10, Cross platform with iDevices

Instant Messenger (IM)

  • Beagle is a Jabber client with optional end-to-end encryption.
  • Element is an open source, end-to-end encrypted, federated instant messaging client which uses the Matrix protocol.

Internet Relay Chat (IRC)

  • HexChat is a continuation of XChat and makes both its source code and binaries available to users of all platforms it's created for. Like its parent software, HexChat is licensed under the GNU GPL. It includes all the basic features one would need, and can be ideal both for new users and IRC veterans.
  • LimeChat is user friendly and free as in freedom.
  • Textual –$9

BitTorrent (BT)

  • Transmission is a lightweight torrent client with support for block lists.
  • qBittorrent is a libtorrent-based BitTorrent client. According to its developers, the aim of the client is to provide a free software alternative to µTorrent. There's also a daemon version called Qbittorrent-nox.
  • Deluge is a libtorrent-based BitTorrent client. It is highly extensible via its plug-ins system. Deluge is notable for having originated the particular method of protocol encryption that is currently in use by every major BitTorrent client.

Terminal

  • qBittorrent-nox is an advanced command-line Bittorrent client written in C++ / Qt4, using the libtorrent-rasterbar library by Arvid Norberg. qBittorrent-nox aims to be a good alternative to other command line bittorrent clients and provides features similar to popular graphical clients. qBittorrent-nox is fast, stable, light and it supports unicode. It also comes with UPnP port forwarding / NAT-PMP, encryption (Vuze compatible), FAST extension (mainline) and PeX support (uTorrent compatible).
  • Deluge-Console is an ncurses interface for Deluge that generally comes bundled with the main GUI client.

File Transfer Protocol (FTP)

Other


Text

Word Processing

  • Pages Part of the iWork suite (competitor to Microsoft Office), now free! Works seamlessly with iDevices and very intuitive, quite powerful for casual use.
  • LibreOffice, the free and open source office suite.
  • OnlyOffice is a FOSS Microsoft Office compatible document processing suite.
  • Bean is a small, easy-to-use word processor designed to make writing convenient, efficient and comfortable.

Text editor

Terminal

Plaintext/richtext editor

To-do manager

  • Reminders is the built-in to-do list managing app.
  • TodoTxtMac is an open source to-do manager for mac using the todo.txt format.

Document Reader

  • Preview, the stock document reader and editor.
  • Skim a scientific document reader.
  • Okular

Images and graphics

Viewing

Editing

  • Preview is the default image and document viewer and editor. It is lightweight and functional.
  • Photopea is a web image editor that runs locally on your machine. It has an interface similar to Photoshop CS6. Free with unobtrusive sidebar ads. There is also a vector image editor too
  • Affinity Photo is another great alternative to Photoshop - $35
  • Pixelmator Pro is so good, Apple bought the company - $50
  • Acorn is similar to Pixelmator.
  • Sketch is another alternative to Pixelmator.
  • Camerabag is an easy-to-use photo editing tool.
  • InkScape is a FOSS vector graphic editor.
  • ImageOptim is software for compressing images.

Drawing/Painting

  • Preview, believe it or not, also works as a basic paint application.
  • Krita is a free and open source painting program.
  • Pinta is a free, open source program for drawing and image editing.
  • Procreate is a paid drawing application available for both iPad and Mac - $25

Animation

3D Modeling

  • Maya offers a comprehensive creative feature set for 3D computer animation, modeling, simulation, rendering, and compositing on a highly extensible production platform. Maya now has next-generation display technology, accelerated modeling workflows, and new tools for handling complex data.
  • Blender is a 3D animation suite. It supports the entirety of the 3D pipeline—modeling, rigging, animation, simulation, rendering, compositing and motion tracking, even video editing and game creation.

Video

Viewing

  • QuickTime is the stock video player and also offers basic editing and screen recording functionality.
  • mpv is a fork of MPlayer/Mplayer2 with cleaner code, less bloat, better video scaling, color management, and other high quality video rendering algorithms.
  • IINA User friendly mpv front-end. FOSS.
  • VLC. It's VLC!
  • Macgo Blu-ray Player Pro/Standard Excellent program to watch Blu-ray and DVD discs. Paid, but offers free trials.

Editing

  • Pikimov is a free, web app video and motion graphics editor. A good alternative to After Effects.
  • Kdenlive is a free and open source video editing solution.
  • iMovie is the free, proprietary video editor included with macOS. Easy to use and great for hobbyists and dilettantes.
  • Final Cut Pro Expensive, but powerful and easy to use.

ScreenFlow Includes a capable video editor — $99

  • Davinci Resolve is a professional grade colour grading tool and video editor. Free, with paid version available.

Conversion/Ripping

  • Handbrake is a free and open source video transcoder with an easy to use GUI. It can rip and convert a variety of video formats, but can not break DVD or Blu-ray copyright protection.
  • FFMPEG is the gold standard for video encoding and editing, command line based.
  • yt-dlp is a command line program for downloading videos from YouTube and similar sites.
  • MakeMKV can convert video from proprietary (and usually encrypted) discs into a set of MKV files, preserving most information but not changing it in any way. It can instantly stream decrypt video without intermediate conversion and decrypt Blu-rays and protected DVDs.

Audio

Playing

Command line players

Editing

  • Tenacity is an easy-to-use, multi-track audio editor and recorder made as a replacement to Audacity which now includes telemetry. It has support for LADSPA, Nyquist, VST, Audio Unit effect and VAMP analysis plug-ins.
  • FFMPEG is also the gold standard for audio encoding and editing, command line based.
  • Tagr Audio metadata tagger.
  • Yate Audio metadata tagger (more advanced).
  • XLD is the preferred Mac audio disc ripper of what.cd. It can output cue sheets and log files via a plugin. It also supports tagging with MusicBrainz and FreeDB.

Tools

  • BackgroundMusic FOSS audio utility with features such as per-application volume control and recording system audio.

Utilities

Archiving

Application launchers

  • Alfred is a simple but efficient application launcher. It is best in combination with the Powerpack.
  • Launchbar is a little more complicated than Alfred, but has a few convenient features that Alfred lacks.
  • Quicksilver

File management

Virtualization/Emulation

  • UTM is a FOSS and user-friendly frontend for QEMU. Typically much faster than VirtualBox.
  • VirtualBox is a free and open source virtual machine manager. It is owned by Oracle, though.
  • Parallels is the easiest way to run Windows on ARM Macs — $80
  • RetroArch, a FOSS emulation program which will emulate over 9000 platforms for you with little tinkering. It doesn't emulate anything itself but provides a big library of "cores" which do the job.
  • OpenEmu does the same thing with less core and platform choices but comes with a sexy GUI instead.
  • ares is the spiritual successor to bsnes, a multi-system emulator focusing on cycle accuracy. Many of the ares emulators are available as libretro cores.

Maps

  • Marble
  • Stellarium is a planetarium software that shows exactly what you see when you look up at the stars. It's easy to use, and free.

Ricing

  • Bartender is a utility to clean up and manage your menu bar.
  • Übersicht can add widgets to your desktop using CoffeeScript, bash, and CSS.

Window management

  • Rectangle Better window snapping for macOS. FOSS.
  • yabai FOSS tiling WM for Mac based on binary space partitioning.

Network Monitoring

Password managers

  • KeePassXC Cross-platform community fork of KeePassX "with the goal to extend and improve it with new features and bugfixes to provide a feature-rich, fully cross-platform and modern open-source password manager."
  • Bitwarden is a free and open source, self-hostable cloud password manager with cross-device sync.
  • Psono is a good alternative to Bitwarden.
  • Strongbox is a free password manager for macOS and iOS. It supports the KeePass format and has a nice GUI. Additional features, like biometric authentication, are locked behind a paywall.

Desktop environment (DE) mods

  • jitouch 2 trackpad modifications
  • Karabiner can remap the keys on your keyboard and change the key repeat settings.

Clipboard manager/Virtual clipboard

  • Maccy FOSS searchable clipboard manager.
  • Pastebar FOSS, Cross-platform clipboard manager.
  • Dropzone — $10

System monitoring

  • Activity Monitor provides basic system resource analytics.
  • coconutBattery is a utility for checking battery health.
  • stats is a free, open source and highly configurable sensor readout utility.

Miscellanous

  • Mactracker provides detailed information on every Apple Macintosh computer ever made.
  • Sloth FOSS application that displays all open files and sockets in use by all running processes on your system.
  • Macs Fan Control Free and readily updated fan controller for Mac.

External links

  • PRISM Break — Lists software for different platforms that respect your freedom (and points out those which do not). Maintained by the EFF.

See also

Retrieved from "https://igwiki.lyci.de/index.php?title=List_of_recommended_macOS_software&oldid=22136"