Getting set up on a Windows/Linux/macOS system from scratch is not something that happens everyday, but when it does, it’s always a pain remembering everything you had installed and configured. Everyone has their favorite or most useful applications they install first thing when you get a new system. This post is focused on the macOS version of my must have apps.

Security

  • 1Password: A password manager is a must this days to use strong passwords (if you can use SSO instead of setting a password, always use SSO).
  • Authy: Manage your Two-Factor authentication codes using this online service with apps for every OS.
  • Suspicious Package: Preview plugin to check installer packages’ signature, download origin and more for increased security before installing anything.

Usability

  • AltTab: I never liked the macOS version of alt-tab to change between application windows, this app changes it to a more Windows style that works a lot better in my opinion.
  • Amphetamine: Very helpful app to stop your Mac from going into sleep mode even when the lid is closed.
  • Bartender 3: Lets you organize you menu bar icons and hide them to avoid having too many icons.
  • Karabiner Elements: Fully configure your Mac’s keyboard (third-party or otherwise), change any key to any action you want and modify function keys actions.
  • Spectacle: Move and resize windows any way you want, make them fullscreen or make them take any part of the screen you want.

Maintenance

  • CleanMyMac X: All-in-one app that allows you to clean up free space, uninstall apps properly, run maintenance scripts and a lot more.

Downloads

  • Cyberduck: FTP client with support for: FTP, SFTP, WebDAV, Amazon S3, Microsoft Azure & OneDrive, Google Drive, Dropbox and more.
  • qBittorrent: Open-source alternative to µTorrent.

Gaming

  • CrossOver: Manage or download premade Wine wrappers for games or apps. Compatible with macOS Catalina, they have their own 64-bit wrapper.

Media

  • VLC: No explanation needed.
  • HandBreak: A tool for converting video from nearly any format to a selection of modern, widely supported codecs.

Utilities

  • Sip: Color picker for anything on your screen. It can output colors in a lot of useful formats.
  • DaisyDisk: Disk space usage analyzer.
  • iStat menus: Menu bar system monitoring tools. Includes temperature monitor, weather, network usage, memory usage, CPU activity and more.
  • The Unarchiver: The one and only app to open compressed files on macOS. Supports ZIP, RAR, 7zip, Tar, Gzip and most popular formats.

Extras

  • AirBuddy: Open up your AirPods case next to your Mac and see the status right away, just like it is on your iOS device.
  • Duti: Command-line utility capable of setting default applications for various document types on macOS.
  • iTerm: A replacement for the default Terminal app.