14 UNIQUE Mac Apps You Can’t Live Without!

Here's 14 free Mac apps you'll want to install! These apps and tools will help secure your Mac or MacBook, boost productivity, and get the most out of your Mac without spending a dime!
If I've missed any great free Mac apps, feel free to share them in the comments.
Essential Mac Apps to Get - • Mac Setup - 14 UNIQUE ...
Wallpapers - andrewethanzeng.gumroad.com/
Clyde - theclyde.app/
Portal - portal.app/mac
Hazeover - hazeover.com/
Al Dente - apphousekitchen.com/
Itsycal - www.mowglii.com/itsycal/
Monitor Control - github.com/MonitorControl/Mon...
PDFGear - www.pdfgear.com/
Transnomino - www.transnomino.com/
Photomater - www.pixelmator.com/photomator/
Recut - getrecut.com/?ref=aez
HEIC Converter - apps.apple.com/us/app/heic-co...
XNIP - xnipapp.com/
Handbrake - handbrake.fr/downloads.php
Hand Mirror - handmirror.app/
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🥏 VIDEO CHAPTERS
0:00 - Introduction
0:28 - Mac Security Lock
1:20 - Focus Portal
2:24 - Single-Window Dimmer
3:38 - Battery Life
4:34 - Toolbar Cal
5:38 - Monitor Control
6:28 - PDF Gear
7:57 - Auto File Namer
9:26 - Photomater
11:20 - Recut
12:34 - HEIC Conveter
13:26 - Screenshots
14:30 - Handbrake
15:40 - Hand Mirror
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#mac #apps
14 UNIQUE Mac Apps You Can’t Live Without!

[@EricMuranoAU]

don't leave you mac in a public place, even with a loud alarm.

[@ivor1957]

I’d take it with me for a slash when I need to go, alarm or not.

[@leakeice]

like for real

[@raiwet]

Anybody who calls Preview underwhelming needs to spend a month locked in Windows or Linux and tell me how underwhelming macOS’s free PDF reader app is.

[@d8nnii_]

Couldn’t agree with you more, Preview when coupled with Quick Look and annotation within Quick Look is simply a V8 engine. Preview does lots of things for free that otherwise is a paid feature in other apps.

[@JohnEusebioToronto]

Edge is a pretty solid odd reader. Not as good as preview but solid. The PDF situation on Linux is EXTREMELY grim, tho.

[@delq]

Lmao, the cracking scene is enormous compared to the walled garden and mess that is macos and linux, respectively. I bet Adobe Acrobat dc is miles ahead that whatever preview is capable of.

[@MatisseGoossens]

Amazing list. Thank you for making this video. Just got a 2020 Air and I've been loving it

[@NileshParmar]

Productivity. Some nice time savers there, thanks.

[@chaeugene]

Wow!!! You just dropped another solid list here for productivity. Thanks a lot!

[@KUBOGRAPHICS]

Hey would you like to try my Mac app Folderizer :)?

[@rahannn]

Great job! Many thanks solved many issues I have been struggling with. Big thumbs up 👍

[@NatureMystic]

Definitely downloading Monitor Control Lite. That's going to be super helpful, thank you! 😊

[@PaperWill]

Solid video, and super helpful. Thanks Andrew!

[@user-le1te9hg4p]

Thanks for the info. Great summary.

[@ilm91]

I would add some more Apps I Can’t Live Without: 1) Pixelmator Pro - the best Photoshop Alternative for Mac 2) Craft - Awesome for taking Notes 3) Speed Player for Safari - to adjust speed of any Video 4) 1Blocker for Safari - to block any ads 5) Encrypto - to secure folders with a password 6) Rectangle - a free App to adjust window size easy and with shortcuts too 7) AppCleaner - delete Apps completely with all files 8) ColorFolder - free App to give all folders colors 9) Downie - dowload any video from web These apps are the reason why I can't go back to Windows ever again

[@KeviKhoreo]

Thanks for the suggestions! How do you like Craft?

[@ilm91]

@@KeviKhoreoI use it for summaries, personal notes and important information for myself. It’s free and the performance on Mac, iPad and iPhone very fast. You can share your notes online via links. And the best feature is, that you can create notes in notes for each line

[@BryceDriesenga]

I would also add Raycast! Can often replace many other apps (like Rectangle), though it'll depend what you prefer

[@CKei9]

did u purchase downie?

[@omitobisam]

Nice

[@anastasiialazuka7260]

Thank you very much! I pencilled down many apps!

[@ennakarengonzalez3632]

This list of apps is stellar

[@curiosophy4241]

I LOVE THE APPS so helpful, thank u so much

[@chrislozanovski4751]

This was awesome, what a great list of useful apps! thanks!

[@OMAR-rv6hi]

Best video ever, definitely going to download some of the apps.

[@germ19a27]

Great video. Thanks. Really useful suggestions!

[@JanLandy]

I am impressed. Excellent choices of apps.🎉❤

[@jonno965]

So helpful! Thank you.

[@danielleamber7353]

Can't wait to receive my new Mac and try some of these. I have always followed your older lists and added them in my stack.

[@krill_inksanity]

Hi Daniel ! Did you get your new Mac yet ? How's the experience ?

[@mrunalsonawane3363]

By the way, you have the option to display the date, including the day and time, on the menu bar. This feature has been available since the beginning. Settings > Control Center > Under "Menu Bar Only" > Clock Options > Show date - Always

[@danielvictor4984]

yes but you won see the full calendar like the app

[@_JaiBrown]

Great Vid, Note: You can also convert HEIC images by right clicking on the image and selecting Quick Actions. There will be an option to convert. Productivity

[@cliffsunlight4751]

That's how it's done !

[@HenryHill-ok1qu]

thanks for the great content, I downloaded several of these apps

[@edilsondev]

Monitor Control is a ++, thanks!

[@_ABHB_]

Great list Andrew, Keep goin🔥

[@alirezazadeh1876]

very useful, thanks mate

[@davejackson7468]

Nice work. What is the docking station you are using for the new M3 MacBook Air? I need this

[@laurapotter1100]

those are amazing, thank you!

[@eftersays]

Useful apps. Thank you

[@markster136]

Thank You for monitor control

[@jungleworld11]

Great stuff ! Thank you.

[@railpressureflip]

Productivity! Great video!

[@user-ch5dj2rc4d]

I wrote them down in my love journal and put inside my hope chest. THX!

[@john___007]

Very good, thanks!

[@katsweeterly2039]

Love Portal since forever, also on my iPhone ❤

[@jdambat]

Excellent suggestions

[@KiramToKose]

Hey men, that was really a good video - you help me a lot!! Many thanks, good men😎

[@anisdada1646]

Thanks for Al Dente, I was searching for an app to control charging.

[@rogue_lele6167]

is there any app like, smart kepboard. like g board

[@melaniesvenson9459]

Dont use it if you have macbooks M models. they already have optimized batttery. that app can only be good for older macs

[@MrBlayze99]

@@melaniesvenson9459Why? I use this since 6 Months

[@PedroDanielBittencourt]

@@rogue_lele6167 👀

[@balajprasanna]

Great video Andrew thank you. I already use Monitor Control and Handmirror. 🙏 Trying Portal and Haze now. What is that outro music? It is so cool.

[@jermainelewis4789]

this was a good list

[@miiko_web_dev]

Thank you!

[@haseebjavedkhan1166]

great video . unique apps

[@jo69123]

Question. I have 2 monitors, and sometimes when I click on a new app "window" and use keyboard shortcuts, the last previous active window still takes those, even though I clicked on a different app, sort of like the "focus" doesn't switch fast enough, it would be awesome if it could be set to switch on mouse focus, I believe the default is "cmd+click" and wait a couple seconds, and then the app is on focus, do you know a way to change this?

[@Willthurston]

Loved the vid - productivity. id love to know how you order your main bar at the top of your screen with arrows

[@TheZkills]

Greetings Andrew, What do you use to record your screen to make your videos?

[@GabrielFereira]

Great video dude.

[@joaoalves3985]

Great job!

[@andrefernandozen]

Great stuff! 👏👏

[@DSGQR]

Andrew, what do you use to edit a video like this? Specifically where you have your face in the bottom right while showcasing your desktop. Thanks in advance.

[@Valeriy-is1hi]

You can also convert images from HEIC to JPEG or PNG in Finder. You don't need to install an app for that

[@jaezim]

great apps selection

[@lenajafaryassinosman2168]

Thanks alot !

[@sruli522]

Great video, I need a good and simple screen recording option.

[@StephenDavisMonsignor]

First video of yours I have seen! Downloaded Transnomino, Portal, and Clyde.. Already had Handbrake and Monitor Control (must haves!!)! Subscribed! Productivity!

[@StephenDavisMonsignor]

..forgot to add.. Apps I use daily include CopyClip (the 'old' free one not V2), AppCleaner (great uninstaller), PostHaste (creates folders and hierarchy), Instapaper (an app to read things later), and Carbon Copy Cloner. Productivity!!

[@ggs0605]

Hey productivity guy, nice video!

[@99_Customz]

like 6 good looks fr fr

[@mohammadkhalil3265]

Amazing… thanks

[@philharmonicaz]

This is great but Macs have had built in file conversion for a bit, you just right click file, go to quick actions and you can convert heir to job or whatever built into the OS. I'm trying som of these other suggestions. Thanks!

[@heathhoward]

Great video. Recently was on a work imposed 10 year hiatus from a Mac and now moving my workflow back to a Mac. Love videos like this.

[@gman5375]

Please nobody leave your Mac sitting on a table in a cafe unattended. Switch on people.

[@Adriana8n87R]

Obrigada! ❤️❤️❤️

[@wauzi_]

Any app to suggest to batch remove all sounds from mp4 or any other video files ?

[@ethanmatthews7984]

Wish I knew about aldente earlier! My m2 macbook air is already at 88% battery health... Now I can use it on external power at 70% with piece of mind

[@joshchan5721]

8:06 couldn't come at a better time i've been looking for something to batch rename some files. Productivity

[@TheFloatingBartender]

So funny you featured Skógafoss, I’m a tour guide in Iceland I go there twice a week at least

[@zoltanzerohero3099]

Thx🎉

[@johnsfavorites]

Amazing list, seriously!! Revamping my MBP and will be using tons of these. One recent one that I downloaded that I like is Rectangle - for snapping open windows to the sides of your screen like some Windows functionality.

[@AndrewEthanZeng]

Glad you liked it. Thanks for the reco, I'll check that out.

[@fallofshadows2209]

Rectangle pro is totally worth $10 if you have it. I just got it and it's already an integral part of working from my laptop.

[@alexrayvsn]

imagine being this confident to leave your mac alone in a public cafe

[@gezbo66]

I moved to Warsaw Poland a few years ago and saw a guy in a cafe do it . He went to the counter to get another coffee and i joined him and commented on it. He said ,’ oh it’s safe here, we are in Poland not the UK etc. I was amazed. I love it. But then it is a high trust society and not multicultural either so that helps.

[@90ravg]

You too: it blows my mind, and then it smashes it to the ground three times .. to see your space bar (and mine too, of course) worn out like mine, and comparing it to better looking MacBook keyboards from 2010.. Space bar has a specific problem, I guess… It shows so much… It took TWO weeks in my case just unbelievable…

[@emmanueljohn4018]

i need to know which application is good for video presentation

[@davidchildofgod753]

Productivity baby!

[@nataliavillarreal4414]

Productivity. One video I'll be coming back to.

[@anuragsoni522]

Handbrake icon is to show the convert across formats - a pineapple to a cocktail etc.

[@alpha8here]

Interesting! Thanks for the share

[@nilanjanmandal7834]

what is the chrome theme you are using

[@Yosomy]

downloaded almost all, thank you, only missing an app to automatically resize two windows in a single screen

[@altseason_musik]

Focus Portal looks like the Momentum extension for chrome

[@thealmostmillennial7570]

First one in, clyde is already a banger app I'll download after this video 👍

[@Juan-tk5lg]

why clyde app is not available on my macbook?

[@judyrico7290]

Could we use these on an iPad ?

[@rogue_lele6167]

is there any app like, smart kepboard. like g board on mac

[@divayjeet-boi]

i like this keep it up we need it

[@AndrewEthanZeng]

Thank you! :)

[@mikahundin]

Anyone know of a bulk file renamer that uses AI to assign a name combining EXIF data and image recognition to come up with file names?

[@animikhaghosh6536]

I did not even know that there are so many cool apps for macbook

[@MichalJanBaginski]

Dziękuję

[@stills2359]

whats your desk mat?

[@lalvare]

Andrew great vide. However the X snip app is not free. By the way what is the best way to recognize if an app is free? It is really hard to know whether is free or not

[@suryakantasinha]

how you customise your chrome bacground?

[@ToySeeker]

Nice I like recap! ❤😊

[@royribak7471]

Seems that it is not free

[@cochi2221]

0:26 How did you add that arrow in the menu bar to hide/show the icons?

[@ITSDRFAMEZ]

It’s an app called Hidden Bar on the Mac App Store!

[@HypetraxxPredator]

@@ITSDRFAMEZ nice thanks, was looking for that :)

[@thatmrlanphear]

Very much appreciated this video and went to try out some of the apps. Several of them are not actually free. They either have free trials or are significantly hampered without paying. (A watermark on a screenshot app? What?) Hazeover doesn't even have a trial - it's just $5.

[@mustafacantez9727]

I'm pretty sure I can live without those. Unfortunately I didn't like the list so much. Still, thanks for including some interesting apps that doesn't show up everywhere.

[@TrippHo]

Thanks, these apps are so useful

[@Allthingsg37]

What's the app you use to hide the system apps on the upper right? the arrow thing! I really want that.

[@GraphXpress]

There are several i use hidden bar

[@lckcyy]

finally someone recommending apps that are actually free

[@_-Samuele-_]

how did you hide app in menu bar?

[@leevarino6291]

X snip or Shottr ??? whats annoting about Shottr is that annoying splash screen every time you reboot. (with free version) 🙂

[@Rohailmall]

Productivity :)

[@rishikhemka8541]

Great video bud! The hazeover app you just mentioned is a paid one. Can you provide a DMG file for that.

[@enix5000]

Which browser is that ?

[@aminecheffou2272]

Hello. Can you tell me how do you reduce your toolbar on top ?

[@ThamerQtr]

It’s an app called Hidden Bar on the Mac App Store!

[@dextro5383]

isn't optimized charing better than ardent already?

[@myteachingcoach]

Productivity