The most installed open source Mac apps
Stars show who likes an app. Installs show who uses it. This list ranks open source Mac apps by installs, with stars next to them.
Bijgewerkt 8 november 2026
Kort antwoord
On November 8, 2026, the top three are Ghostty, iTerm2 and Stats. Bekijk alle 50, or how it's ranked.
A star costs nothing. An install means somebody wanted the app on their Mac. So we took the hand-picked open source Mac apps and ranked them by how often people installed them through Homebrew in the last 30 days.
Put the two numbers side by side and you get a few surprises: quiet apps with modest stars that lots of people install, and famous repos that fewer people actually run.
How this ranking works
- Source: GitHub's public repository data (stars, language, last push), and Homebrew's public install analytics (formulae.brew.sh), which count installs by people who leave Homebrew's anonymous analytics on.
- Read on: November 8, 2026. MacPip reads it again every week.
- Ranked by: installs in the last 30 days, from Homebrew. Nobody can pay for a place, and MacPip apps get no boost.
- Included: The hand-picked open source Mac apps that install with Homebrew. Apps not in Homebrew can't be counted, so they are left out.
Picked by MacPip
Our pick here is Maccy. It's tiny, free, does one thing (your clipboard history, one shortcut away), and lots of people install it, which says it does that thing well.
At a glance
The list
Select a column heading to sort. Apps marked Not on MacPip are shown for the ranking only and link to their own pages. Makers are named only where GitHub, the Mac App Store, MacPip or the maker's own website says who they are.
| App | Links | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GGhostty Not on MacPipA fast terminal with a real native Mac app. Also on Linux. door GhosttyMITZig | Installs, 30 days: 29,800 | GitHub stars: 63,889 | Installs per 100 stars: 46.6 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 2 |  iTerm2 Not on MacPipThe terminal many Mac developers have used for years. door George NachmanGPL-2.0Swift | Installs, 30 days: 17,749 | GitHub stars: 18,265 | Installs per 100 stars: 97.2 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 3 |  Stats Not on MacPipCPU, memory, network and battery in your menu bar. door Serhiy MytrovtsiyMITSwiftv3.0.26, Nov 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 11,921 | GitHub stars: 43,234 | Installs per 100 stars: 27.6 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 4 |  Vorssaint Not on MacPipA big toolbox of small menu bar helpers in one app. door vorssaint @vorssaintGPL-3.0Swiftv3.4.3, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 11,269 | GitHub stars: 33,654 | Installs per 100 stars: 33.5 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 5 |  UTM Not on MacPipRun Windows, Linux or another macOS in a window. door UTM @UTMappApache-2.0Swiftv5.0.8, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 9,413 | GitHub stars: 36,784 | Installs per 100 stars: 25.6 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 6 |  Rectangle Not on MacPipSnap windows with shortcuts. Small, free, does one job well. door Ryan HansonSwiftv2.0.4, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 8,932 | GitHub stars: 30,258 | Installs per 100 stars: 29.5 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 7 |  Maccy Not on MacPipA light clipboard history you open with one shortcut. door Alex Rodionov @p0dejeMITSwift2.8.0, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 8,164 | GitHub stars: 22,245 | Installs per 100 stars: 36.7 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 8 |  Hammerspoon Not on MacPipAutomate almost anything on your Mac with small Lua scripts. door Hammerspoon TeamMITObjective-C1.1.1, Feb 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 7,416 | GitHub stars: 16,393 | Installs per 100 stars: 45.2 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 9 |  IINA Not on MacPipThe video player most Mac people switch to and keep. door IINA @iina_appGPL-3.0Swiftv1.5.1, Nov 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 6,902 | GitHub stars: 47,058 | Installs per 100 stars: 14.7 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 10 | HHomebrew app Not on MacPipHomebrew's own Mac app. door Homebrew @MacHomebrewAGPL-3.0Swiftv0.6.0, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 5,379 | GitHub stars: 2,817 | Installs per 100 stars: 190.9 | GitHubHomebrew |
| 11 |  Karabiner-Elements Not on MacPipRemap any key on any keyboard. The classic. door pqrs-orgUnlicenseC++v16.3.0, Sep 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 5,193 | GitHub stars: 23,074 | Installs per 100 stars: 22.5 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 12 |  SwiftBar Not on MacPipPut the output of any script in your menu bar. door SwiftBarMITSwiftv2.1.1, Aug 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 4,922 | GitHub stars: 4,761 | Installs per 100 stars: 103.4 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 13 |  cmux Not on MacPipA Ghostty-based terminal with vertical tabs, made for coding agents. door manaflow-aiSwiftv0.65.2.2, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 4,784 | GitHub stars: 28,747 | Installs per 100 stars: 16.6 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 14 |  AeroSpace Not on MacPipA tiling window manager in the style of i3, set up with one text file. door Nikita Bobko @nikitabobkoMITSwift | Installs, 30 days: 4,701 | GitHub stars: 23,770 | Installs per 100 stars: 19.8 | WebsiteGitHub |
| 15 |  Keka Not on MacPipOpens and makes zip, 7z, rar and more. door aONe @aonezPHPv1.6.8, Sep 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 4,563 | GitHub stars: 7,633 | Installs per 100 stars: 59.8 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 16 |  LinearMouse Not on MacPipMouse and trackpad settings Apple left out. door LinearMouse @linearmouseMITSwiftv0.12.0, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 4,525 | GitHub stars: 7,142 | Installs per 100 stars: 63.4 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 17 | AAltTab Not on MacPipWindows-style alt-tab with window previews. door lwouisGPL-3.0Swiftv11.10.1, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 3,504 | GitHub stars: 16,503 | Installs per 100 stars: 21.2 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 18 |  CodexBar Not on MacPipShows your Codex and Claude Code usage in the menu bar. door Peter Steinberger @steipeteMITSwiftv0.84.0, Nov 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 3,443 | GitHub stars: 23,061 | Installs per 100 stars: 14.9 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 19 |  MonitorControl Not on MacPipBrightness and volume keys for external displays. door MonitorControlMITSwiftv4.4.0, Sep 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 3,311 | GitHub stars: 34,670 | Installs per 100 stars: 9.6 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 20 | TThaw Not on MacPipA newer open source menu bar manager. door thaw-appGPL-3.0SwiftSwiftUI2.1.0, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 3,129 | GitHub stars: 12,622 | Installs per 100 stars: 24.8 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 21 |  QLMarkdown Not on MacPipQuick Look previews for Markdown files. door sbarexGPL-3.0C++1.5.7, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 3,017 | GitHub stars: 3,745 | Installs per 100 stars: 80.6 | GitHubHomebrew |
| 22 |  Mos Not on MacPipSmooth scrolling for a regular mouse, and its own scroll direction. door Caldis_Chen @Caldis_ChenSwift4.2.1, May 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 2,703 | GitHub stars: 21,852 | Installs per 100 stars: 12.4 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 24 |  PureMac Not on MacPipA free cleaner with no tracking. door Moamen Basel @momenbasselMITSwiftSwiftUIv3.2.0, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 2,633 | GitHub stars: 7,693 | Installs per 100 stars: 34.2 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 25 |  LuLu Not on MacPipA free firewall that asks before apps call out. door Objective-See Foundation @objective_seeGPL-3.0Objective-Cv4.5.7, Nov 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 2,418 | GitHub stars: 13,528 | Installs per 100 stars: 17.9 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 26 |  DockDoor Not on MacPipWindow previews when you hover the Dock. door ejbillsSwift1.42.3, Nov 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 2,363 | GitHub stars: 6,537 | Installs per 100 stars: 36.1 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 27 |  MacPacker Not on MacPipAn archive manager that previews before you extract. door Stephan Arenswald @sarenswGPL-3.0SwiftSwiftUIv1.2.0, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 2,345 | GitHub stars: 1,467 | Installs per 100 stars: 159.9 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 28 |  Xcodes Not on MacPipInstall and switch between Xcode versions. door XcodesOrg @xcodesAppMITSwiftSwiftUIv4.1.1b41, Sep 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 1,963 | GitHub stars: 8,641 | Installs per 100 stars: 22.7 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 29 |  FineTune Not on MacPipVolume per app and multi-output audio from the menu bar. door Ronit SinghGPL-3.0SwiftSwiftUIv1.9.0, Jul 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 1,769 | GitHub stars: 10,076 | Installs per 100 stars: 17.6 | GitHubHomebrew |
| 30 | SSyncthing Not on MacPipSyncs folders between your devices, no cloud. door The Syncthing ProjectMITObjective-Cv2.1.6-1, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 1,745 | GitHub stars: 4,010 | Installs per 100 stars: 43.5 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 31 | HHelium Not on MacPipA private, ad-free Chromium browser. door imput @imputnetGPL-3.0C++0.21.1.1, Nov 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 1,723 | GitHub stars: 1,183 | Installs per 100 stars: 145.6 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 32 |  FluidVoice Not on MacPipDictation that runs on your Mac, not in the cloud. door ALTIC @FluidVoiceAppGPL-3.0Swiftv1.6.12, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 1,715 | GitHub stars: 12,909 | Installs per 100 stars: 13.3 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 33 |  Status Trio Not on MacPipWi-Fi, battery and Bluetooth in one menu bar item. door lingyiredApache-2.0SwiftSwiftUIv1.9.4, Nov 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 1,600 | GitHub stars: 1,766 | Installs per 100 stars: 90.6 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 34 | CCaskHub Not on MacPipBrowse and install Homebrew casks. door Ali Elsokary @alielsokaryMITSwiftSwiftUI0.9.3, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 1,562 | GitHub stars: 1,419 | Installs per 100 stars: 110.1 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 35 |  CotEditor Not on MacPipA plain text editor that opens instantly. door CotEditor Project @CotEditorSwift7.1.3, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 1,518 | GitHub stars: 8,677 | Installs per 100 stars: 17.5 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 36 | MMarkEdit Not on MacPipLike TextEdit, but for Markdown. door MarkEdit.appMITSwiftv1.37.1, Nov 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 1,474 | GitHub stars: 5,954 | Installs per 100 stars: 24.8 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 37 |  Sequel Ace Not on MacPipMySQL and MariaDB, the friendly way. door Sequel-AceObjective-Cproduction/6.1.0-2, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 1,400 | GitHub stars: 7,561 | Installs per 100 stars: 18.5 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 38 | KKeyCastr Not on MacPipShows the keys you press, for screencasts and demos. door KeyCastrBSD-3-ClauseObjective-Cv0.11.1, Sep 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 1,369 | GitHub stars: 15,200 | Installs per 100 stars: 9.0 | GitHubHomebrew |
| 39 |  KeepingYouAwake Not on MacPipKeeps your Mac awake with one click. door Marcel DierkesMITObjective-C1.6.8, Sep 2025 | Installs, 30 days: 1,363 | GitHub stars: 7,040 | Installs per 100 stars: 19.4 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 40 |  Mac Sai Not on MacPipA cleaner and malware scanner. door Iliya MirzaeiBSD-3-ClauseSwiftSwiftUIv1.28.0, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 1,359 | GitHub stars: 2,122 | Installs per 100 stars: 64.0 | GitHubHomebrew |
| 41 |  OmniWM Not on MacPipA tiling window manager for Apple silicon Macs. door OmniNullGPL-2.0Swiftv0.8.0, Nov 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 1,299 | GitHub stars: 3,574 | Installs per 100 stars: 36.3 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 42 |  Easydict Not on MacPipDictionary and translation, with offline text recognition. door tisfengGPL-3.0Swift2.25.0, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 1,217 | GitHub stars: 15,248 | Installs per 100 stars: 8.0 | GitHubHomebrew |
| 43 |  macUSB Not on MacPipMakes bootable USB installers. door Krystian PierzMITSwiftSwiftUIv2.6, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 1,187 | GitHub stars: 3,410 | Installs per 100 stars: 34.8 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 44 |  Secretive Not on MacPipKeeps your SSH keys in the Secure Enclave. door Max GoedjenMITSwiftv4.0.0, Sep 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 1,172 | GitHub stars: 9,257 | Installs per 100 stars: 12.7 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 45 |  macshot Not on MacPipScreenshots and recordings with notes and arrows. door sw33tLie @sw33tLieGPL-3.0Swiftv4.4.0, Nov 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 1,129 | GitHub stars: 4,074 | Installs per 100 stars: 27.7 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 46 |  Background Music Not on MacPipVolume per app, and it pauses your music when something else plays. door Kyle NeideckGPL-2.0C++v0.5.0, Jun 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 1,081 | GitHub stars: 19,379 | Installs per 100 stars: 5.6 | GitHubHomebrew |
| 47 |  Crisp Not on MacPipEvery hidden display setting in one menu bar app. door Didrik GaltelandMITSwiftv1.7.1, Oct 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 1,074 | GitHub stars: 2,351 | Installs per 100 stars: 45.7 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 48 | FFinicky Not on MacPipPicks which browser opens each link. door John SterlingMITGav4.2.2, Oct 2025 | Installs, 30 days: 1,049 | GitHub stars: 5,258 | Installs per 100 stars: 20.0 | GitHubHomebrew |
| 49 |  Purge Not on MacPipFrees up disk space, carefully. door Jithin Sabu @sabu_jithinMITSwiftSwiftUIv1.14.1, Nov 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 1,014 | GitHub stars: 1,723 | Installs per 100 stars: 58.9 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
| 50 |  Compositor Not on MacPipA layered image editor that wants to be the Photoshop of open source. door RobbieMITSwiftv1.6.6, Nov 2026 | Installs, 30 days: 932 | GitHub stars: 18,537 | Installs per 100 stars: 5.0 | WebsiteGitHubHomebrew |
The makers behind this list
The people and teams who build these apps, as they name themselves on GitHub or MacPip. Say thanks, star a repo, or follow them.
- GhosttyGhostty, a team
- George NachmaniTerm2
- Serhiy MytrovtsiyStats
- vorssaintVorssaint
- UTMUTM, a team
- Ryan HansonRectangle
- Alex RodionovMaccy
- Hammerspoon TeamHammerspoon, a team
- IINAIINA, a team
- HomebrewHomebrew app, a team
- pqrs-orgKarabiner-Elements, a team
- SwiftBarSwiftBar, a team
- manaflow-aicmux, a team
- Nikita BobkoAeroSpace
- aONeKeka
- LinearMouseLinearMouse, a team
- lwouisAltTab
- Peter SteinbergerCodexBar
- MonitorControlMonitorControl, a team
- thaw-appThaw, a team
- sbarexQLMarkdown
- Caldis_ChenMos
Dwarves FoundationHidden Bar, a team- Moamen BaselPureMac
- Objective-See FoundationLuLu
- ejbillsDockDoor
- Stephan ArenswaldMacPacker
- XcodesOrgXcodes, a team
- Ronit SinghFineTune
- The Syncthing ProjectSyncthing, a team
- imputHelium, a team
- ALTICFluidVoice
- lingyiredStatus Trio
- Ali ElsokaryCaskHub
- CotEditor ProjectCotEditor, a team
- MarkEdit.appMarkEdit, a team
On MacPip, too
Smaller open source Mac apps listed on MacPip, each with its own page.
PixtamerBatch-convert, compress, resize and rename images into web-ready files, all on your Mac.
UsageBeaconSee your remaining Cursor, Claude, and Codex usage budgets right in the Mac menu bar.
NotchMuseSynced lyrics in your Mac menu bar and beside the notch
OpenNavoFree, open-source Homebrew GUI for Mac with built-in malware scanning.
Related lists
- The most starred open source Mac apps op GitHub
- The most popular Mac apps, by real installs
- The fastest growing open source Mac apps
- Best open source Mac apps (MacPip listings)
- All Mac app rankings
Haal de gegevens op
Download this list as CSV or read it as Markdown. Free to use: please cite it as MacPip, "The most installed open source Mac apps", https://macpip.com/rankings/most-installed-open-source-mac-apps, read November 8, 2026.
Vragen
What is the most installed open source Mac app?
Ghostty, with 29,800 Homebrew installs in the 30 days to November 8, 2026. Then iTerm2 and Stats.
Why do stars and installs differ so much?
People star a repo to bookmark it or say thanks, often without installing. Installs also depend on Homebrew: apps people get from the App Store or a website are not counted.
What does "installs per 100 stars" mean?
It is installs in the last 30 days for every 100 GitHub stars. A high number means people use the app a lot compared with how famous its repo is.