Apple computers use an operating system that is considered efficient. However, like others, you may feel that macOS is annoyingly incomplete, yet Apple is not ready to improve its features to make Mac easier to use like other brands such as HP. Even as you anticipate the next major macOS update, it’s important to remember that some omissions might not disappear soon.
So then, how can you address the lack of a lot of functionality in your computer? The good news is that there are plenty of downloadable programs that you can use to solve these challenges. While the internet provides a huge list of the best Mac apps to help you continue working on your computer, some of them aren’t free.
However, some have free trials that you can use to evaluate their features and decide whether you’re going to buy them or not. Others help you sync your Mac with other Apple products such as iPhone, Apple Watch, and more. You can get most of these apps from App Store or other developer websites.
Let’s get started.
Best Mac’s Apps
AdGuard: The stand-alone app allows you to choose or customize a variety of filters in order to block pop-up ads, social media extensions, URL redirects, etc. The tool works on installed apps and those available on your browser. AdGuard offers a two-week trial and a paid plan starting at $2.49 a month. Three devices can simultaneously use the service once you pay for the license.
Affinity Photo: The Mac app is a perfect choice for editing photos. Initially, many Apple lovers turned to Adobe Photoshop whenever they wanted to edit their photos; however, this is expensive compared to Affinity Photo’s one-off fee of $35. But now, the Photoshop alternative updated its popular content creation apps to boost their performance in Mac.
Alfred: This productivity supercharged alternative app for Mac helps users complete a lot in less time. The tool provides keywords, hotkeys, actions and allows you to create custom shortcuts to file folders and programs. It also allows you to create custom workflows from scratch or download prebuilt ones from the internet. Further, you can use Alfred to manage clipboard history, link actions together, and complete them using a single command. The app has a free basic version with fewer features and a paid-for feature-rich version. The single-user license allows you to access Alfred version 4.0 and its exclusive feature at around $40 or free lifetime upgrades to future Alfred versions at $67.
Amphetamine: The app performs tasks such as keeping the screen on, performing the auto-dim function, and starting the screensaver. That means you don’t have to keep on wiggling your finger on the touchpad during a long download or as you watch movies or streams. Amphetamine keeps the screen on as you perform certain tasks enabling you to change screensaver as well as other hard disk shutdown settings without tapping on the system preferences of your computer now and then.
ApolloOne: The App gives serious photographers a better viewing experience. It allows you to automate processes that involve sorting and classifying photos, editing and viewing metadata, and much more. ApolloOne is the best app to install on your Mac if you take and organize a lot of pictures. You can begin with the free version before switching to the paid version starting at $20.
Bear: The productivity app offers a seamless writing experience to writers using multiple devices to create content. The markdown editor gives a smooth writing experience, a lot of versatility as well as a pleasant minimalist design that reduces distractions.
BetterSnapTool: The app allows you to view two applications simultaneously. This eliminates the need to resize or manually move windows as you work on your computer. BetterSnapTool enables you to drag the windows to the left, the right, the top, or the bottom side of your screen in order to maximize the screen. Additionally, you can set custom keyboard shortcuts that help you move or resize your windows, thus enhancing your productivity. You can also customize what happens when you double-click a window’s titlebar or right-click a button on the top left of the window. This tool works well with nearly all applications apart from the non-standard windows.
DaisyDisk: Storage is one of the pains users experience when using MacOS. Getting software that tracks your storage and clears disk space can ease this pain. DaisyDisk was designed to monitor the storage on your device and highlight your files with a color-coded wheel. This helps you easily preview them and delete the unnecessary files, thus clearing more disk space on your computer. The app is available at $10 and promises to eliminate the disk storage problem.
Dark Noise: The ambient noise tool allows you to create a perfect audio illusion by customizing its 50 built-in sounds. The smooth background noise will boost concentration as you write compared to working in a dead-quiet or noisy environment. You don’t have to play a predetermined playlist because you can customize this app’s sounds, intensity, and ambiance. In fact, Dark Noise puts total control of what you listen to in your hands.
Deliveries: Users with many packages or subscriptions find it stressful to manage them successfully. Because of this confusion, you might miss an important email, the delivery date might change, or your package might land in the wrong hands. The app tracks the statuses of your deliveries as well as your package due dates because it’s automatically updated. You pay $5 for deliveries every year because it’s now a subscription-based app.
Dropbox: The app offers a fantastic cloud storage solution because it quickly syncs files, access files and folders as well as uploads videos, photos, and other documents to your desktop. Dropbox gives you 2GB of free storage when you sign up and much more when you invite your family and friends to follow the brand on social media. Further, you can get up to 2TB when you move to the paid version starting at $10 a month per user.
DropZone: The productivity app enables you to quickly launch apps, drag and drop files or upload content on Facebook, Flickr, or other services. Alternatively, you can upload files using Amazon S3, FTP, and much more.
Epic Games Launcher: The Epic Games Store Library offers games compatible with Mac, such as Amnesia: Disco Elysium, Borderlands 3, The Dark Descent, Tacoma, and much more. Further, the tool offers free games every month and good discounts on Borderlands 3.
Evernote: The leading note-taking app is not only simple but is organized intuitively and syncs with any web-based service. Evernote is one of the popular apps in existence has browser extensions and add-ons as well. Its free version offers basic functionality, sync two machines, and 60MB of uploads. You can upgrade to the premium version starting at $8 a month.
Fantastical: The paid-for calendar app grants users access to a full-screen calendar window and other powerful sets of tools. This calendar is practical and beautiful. The app allows you to create reminders by typing the message, and the tool completes the task by scheduling it and creating a reminder. The app has a free version with minimal features such as adding and deleting events and other features. The premium version starts at $3.33 per month, is accessible to individuals and families, and has a 10-day weather forecast.
Google Chrome: This is an excellent browser for Apple’s computer because it’s rich in features and has blazing speed. It can automatically sync open tabs, bookmarks, recent searches, and more across different devices. The app has robust customization capabilities and instant search abilities. The only downside of Google Chrome is that it has weak user privacy protections.
Google Drive: The tool allows you to work on your documents, presentations, and spreadsheets offline. Like its mobile app, the desktop one grants you access to files and folders, thus allocating you a dedicated folder to sync around 15GB of content for free. You can also back up your entire drive on Google drive and access 100GB at $20 per annum whenever you need more storage.
GoodTask: The app is superior to Apple’s Reminders app that has been undergoing tremendous improvement. You can create quick entries on GoodTask, add reminders, and tweak every function of this app to enable you to take advantage of its powerful features.
GIMP: The free image editor gives you access to shadow effects exposure, layer control, filters, vector-based paths, and more. That means you must abandon the monthly Photoshop subscription when you download GIMP because it’s a good alternative. Additionally, the app gives you similar auto functions to improve colors, equalize as well as correct white balance on the fly. Other source Adobe alternatives aside from GIMP are Inkscape and Scribus.
Hazel: The tool helps you sort files and tidy your folders as you continue to work on your computer. You can highlight the folders that it should watch, and it automatically sorts new files by name, type, date, source, and much more. Hazel will automatically move downloaded or created files to other locations. The license is a one-time purchase of $42.
Keyboard Maestro: The tool allows you to eliminate menial tasks in order to simplify your daily workload. Some of the tasks that you can automate using this app include waking your Mac at a specific time, running windows when you launch an app, triggering scripts, visiting a particular URL, and much more. Keyboard Maestro is endlessly customizable and has a one-time purchase starting at $36.
LibreOffice: Many users turn to this tool because it’s rich in features such as a word processor, spreadsheet editor, and much more. You don’t need G Suite from Google, Microsoft Office, or even the default office suite from Apple when you download this full-featured suite because it’s completely compatible with Microsoft legacy formats like doc and other file types. It’s free to use this tool for commercial and personal purposes because it’s open source. However, you can donate if you like using it.
Little Snitch: The permission blocker lets you control each incoming and outgoing connection. In fact, Little Snitch blocks all software that you don’t want to connect with when browsing the internet. It can block them either once until you exit the app or forever, especially if you usually use it regularly.
Magnet: The app gives you several options that allow you to organize multiple windows side by side, thus keeping your desktop organized. When you drag and snap windows, the app locks them into place on the screen’s corners and edges. The terrific tool has predefined keyboard shortcuts which enable you to copy content from one app to another.
Microsoft OneDrive: Users that work with both MacOs and Windows understand the pain of shifting files across the two systems. They can ease this challenge by installing OneDrive on their Mac and synchronizing files. From there, you can open your documents or images on either device without so much struggle. Subscribing to Microsoft 365 gives you an additional 6TB or 1TB of OneDrive per user. This eliminates the need for upgrading Apple iCloud when you need more storage beyond the free 5GB.
Microsoft 365: Apple offers Keynote, Numbers, and Pages, which helps you create presentations, spreadsheets, and documents. Microsoft 365 is a popular office suite that contains Microsoft OneDrive, OneNote, Outlook, PowerPoint, Excel, and Word. The 365 Personal goes for $7 per user, while 365 Family is $10 per month for six users. The web-based version is free and accessible without a subscription to allow Mac owners.
OneCast: The premium app allows Mac users to stream as long as they have an Xbox One. It’s also available in devices such as Apple TV, iPad, and iPhone; however, it’s through a separate purchase via App Store. You can get started by installing it on your computer and signing in to your Microsoft account. OneCast will search the local network and pair the device with an Xbox console, and you’re ready to play. Xbox wireless controller is available, too, thanks to MacOS.
PS4 Remote Play: The Sony-developed tool allows you to stream your gaming console to your device. The two devices pairs ups when you install PS4 Remote Play and sign in to the PlayStation Network account. You can also use PlayStation 4 controller using Bluetooth or stream to MacBook Air and MacBook Pro as long as you have an internet connection.
Spotify: The desktop app is a perfect alternative to Apple Music. Like the mobile counterpart, the app allows you to access the whole Spotify catalog. That means you can search and listen to music from any artist, track, or album for free.
The Unarchiver: Although MacOS has a lot of native apps, they can do everything, especially when dealing with archived or compressed files. This is where the Unarchiver comes in handy because it can work with any format, including RAR files, ARC, Stuffit, or Tar. Further, you can access the files by simply clicking on Finder instead of opening a separate app.
Ulysses: Apple lovers seeking a better writing experience can download Ulysses. Its clean interface and plain text make it ideal for writing shorter or longer stories, scripts, poetry, and novels. Further, the tool strips away buttons, icons, and settings that you don’t need to allow you to work smoothly. Additionally, you can use the free trial before switching to the paid version starting at $6 a month or $50 per annum.
Unclutter: The Mac app suits its name because it offers a convenient place to store recent files, store quick notes and clipboard information. You can now drag cards on top of desktop windows. Thanks to Dropbox, notes, and files can automatically sync across devices such as Mac, iPad, or iPhone.
VLC Media Player: The great video player works with many formats and codes. Because it’s continually supported, you can use the app to convert one file to another. You can create smaller files from raw data or larger files, especially when downloading plenty of videos. VLC Media Player is an open-source product, but the creator will appreciate your donation when you use it.
VPNs: Virtual Private Network protects your sensitive data when using public networks. They are crucial because they keep your activity private when browsing the internet. There are many options and prices for VPNs. Some of the best VPNs are solidly priced, but you can install them on unlimited devices. Additionally, the best VPNs have a simple and clean interface, advanced features and work well in the background, thus saving your money in the long run.
1Password: Remembering every single password can be hard, especially when you have several accounts. This password manager helps you secure passwords in a fully encrypted vault. You can later access them through a master password. 1Password has an individual plan starting at $3 a month but billed annually. The family plan starts at $5 a month, billed annually, and covers 5 individuals. The team’s plan costs $4 a month per user.
