What are your favorite free MacOS apps?

macOS Tahoe
1

I recently got a new Mac and I’m trying to set it up for work and daily life without spending money on paid software right now. I’d really appreciate some recommendations for the best free MacOS apps that you find genuinely useful. Any suggestions that could improve productivity or make things easier would be awesome.

2

Must-Try Free macOS Apps: Five That Actually Deliver

So, you want a shortlist of solid, no-cost Mac apps—all killer, no filler? Say no more. Here’s my personal rundown of five heavy hitters, in no particular order. They’re the ones you’ll find on nearly every Mac, for good reason. I’ll break down what rocks, what sucks, and toss you links straight from the source, not some random download site.

1. VLC Media Player

Picture this: You download a wild file and QuickTime flashes you a “can’t open” message. That’s where VLC steps in—think swiss army knife, but for video and audio.

  • Upsides:
    • Will chew through nearly any media format you throw at it.
    • No codec hunting—download it and done.
    • Open Source, zero nag-ware.
  • Downsides:
    • Not the prettiest UI around.
    • Occasional interface clunkiness, especially on macOS updates.
    • The settings menus look like they time-traveled from 2004.
  • The Facts:

2. GIMP

Let’s be honest: Photoshop pricing gives me commitment issues. That’s why I keep GIMP handy for graphics and photo touchups.

  • Good Stuff:
    • Crazy powerful for a freebie.
    • Works with PSD files and tons of image formats.
    • Customizable with plug-ins for days.
  • Not-So-Good:
    • UI can feel “off” if you’re used to Adobe’s polish.
    • Sometimes a bit sluggish with really massive images.
  • Want to Know More?:

3. Bitwarden

Look, writing your passwords on sticky notes is so 1999. Bitwarden is the vault I trust with all my logins, completely free for personal use.

  • Why It Wins:
    • Cross-platform—use it on Mac, phones, browsers, whatever.
    • Open Source with strong end-to-end encryption.
    • Syncs instantly across devices.
  • What’s Lacking:
    • The autofill is sometimes a little too clever for its own good.
    • If you want super-advanced features, you’ll hit a paywall.
  • Read For Yourself:

4. Notion

If your brain’s a mess and you’re still using sticky notes, try Notion. People use it for everything: notes, to-do lists, wikis, recipes, and that weird hobby you don’t tell anyone about.

  • Strengths:
    • Insanely flexible—organize stuff any way you want.
    • Syncs between Mac, web, and mobile—your ideas travel with you.
    • Templates galore.
  • Weak Spots:
    • Performance can lag with big pages or slow internet.
    • UI might feel overwhelming at first.
  • Deep Dive:

5. The Unarchiver

Ever download a .rar, .7z, or some mystery compressed format and your Mac just blinks at you? The Unarchiver cracks open almost anything compressed.

  • Positives:
    • Plug-and-play—just install and forget.
    • Handles more archive types than you’ve probably heard of.
    • Lightweight, doesn’t hog memory.
  • Drawbacks:
    • Does only one thing (unpacking)—no file compression.
    • The “open with” integration can get buried in Finder menus.
  • Check It:

TL;DR

If you install just a handful of free apps on your Mac, you won’t go wrong with these. I’ve personally rescued coworkers’ presentations with VLC, survived password chaos with Bitwarden, and lost hours tweaking GIMP graphics. If you want extra reading, hit up Apple’s own kind of boring yet useful support docs: Apple Support, or stalk these apps on Wikipedia for an even deeper rabbit hole.

Any of these not living up to the hype for you? Or got a better suggestion? Drop your personal favorites—curiosity’s killing me.

26 Likes
3

Honestly, @mikeappsreviewer nailed a pretty tight core list, but I’ll throw some alternatives in the ring since, let’s face it, everyone installs VLC first but then forgets half the other stuff. Don’t sleep on Rectangle – it’s a window manager that supercharges Mission Control by letting you snap windows with keyboard shortcuts (gettin’ way more done with less wrist gymnastics). I’ll give Notion its due, but honestly, I bounce off its “do everything” ethos; all I really want is a clean notes app. For that, Apple Notes is oddly underrated now with folders, pinning, and even Markdown. Sry, I’m basic.

If you code or tinker: Visual Studio Code destroys most text editors, and it’s actually lightweight-ish if you don’t abuse extensions. I’d also skip GIMP unless you absolutely need Photoshop-grade tools—Preview plus Figma (yes, free tier!) covers most day-to-day image needs for me without the UI hell GIMP provides. I get what people see in Bitwarden, but Strongbox (also free for basic use and works with local vaults + cloud sync) is worth a glance if you want a little peace of mind not depending on a remote service.

For file cleaning: try AppCleaner. Removes all the stray files when ditching apps (Mac still leaves “whaaat, 1.2GB in Application Support?”). If you like Dropbox but hate the paywalls, Sync.com has its own free plan, or just use iCloud—file sync is finally less of a dumpster fire.

Last thing: I use Magnet instead of Rectangle, and yeah, it isn’t free unless you time it with a promo, but Rectangle is so close it’s barely worth shelling out anyway.

Nobody ever mentions IINA (another sleek media player) – looks way better than VLC and is open source too. Or, for the diehards: Homebrew is a must if you do anything remotely nerdy or want easier access to non-App Store tools.

So yeah, I split time between minimalism and piling on stuff. Rectangle, Visual Studio Code, Strongbox, IINA, AppCleaner. Everyone’s got their flavor. There’s a billion out there, so you’ll prob change your mind in a month.

4

Guess I’ll jump in since everyone’s already laid out half the App Store, but nobody’s mentioned Raycast yet—which, honestly, blows Spotlight out of the water and basically turns launchers into a productivity cheat code. Forget the mouse, just hit a hotkey, type your app, file, math problem, or even do clipboard history, quick calendar entries, and snippets. No shade to Alfred lovers, but Raycast’s free tier is actually robust enough for 99% of humans.

Also, +1 to AppCleaner (seriously, how did Apple make uninstalling so obtuse in 2024?), but in the “keeping things working” vein, I’d add CoconutBattery. Tracks your battery’s health over time with zero fuss—super clutch if you plan on keeping your Mac until Apple introduces USB-Nano or whatever.

I get the Rectangle vs Magnet debate and yeah, Rectangle’s free, but if window snapping is make-or-break, try Moom’s demo for a week—sometimes paying for fewer bugs is worth the $10. I actually prefer Amethyst (it’s free) if you want tiling automation, but it’s def. nerdier than Rectangle.

Notion and GIMP are cool, but tbh, if you just need note-taking that isn’t a lifestyle, stick to Obsidian or even Notes—Notion’s bloat gives me hives. And GIMP…I love free software, but the UI reminds me of trying to file taxes with a crayon. For daily quick edits, Preview’s markup does way more than people realize—and is already there.

One more: If you ever touch PDFs, PDFsam (basic edition is free) splits & merges docs without the malware-ridden “free PDF tools” sketchiness. Can’t believe how many “productivity” roundups skip it.

To each their own—I’ll pass on Sync.com (too fiddly) and go iCloud for simplicity. Plus, if you do like to tinker, @suenodelbosque is right about Homebrew; it’ll save you a million web searches for developer stuff alone.

Summing up: Raycast, CoconutBattery, Obsidian, PDFsam, AppCleaner. That’ll get you working, organizing, and headache-free, mostly. Just don’t get caught in the endless app rabbit hole like the rest of us…