I have been using macOS for the better part of a decade, and over that time I’ve found several little helper apps that I don’t think I could function without. I also recommend them to people frequently, so I compiled a list for faster linking.
Meetings
- Meeter – Actionable alerts that open the meeting in the native app, no matter which one it is (Zoom, Google, WebEx, Blue Jeans, etc)
- Muzzle – Auto-enable Do Not Disturb mode when initiating screen sharing, regardless of meeting app
- Shush – Push-to-Talk app mutes your microphone unless you’re holding down the function key
- ToothFairy – macOS is surprisingly terrible for connecting BlueTooth audio devices. ToothFairy makes it much better
System
- Alfred – The best Spotlight app launcher replacement and more
- Bartender – Declutter your system tray and hide all these silly little apps by default
- Divvy – macOS is also awful at window management. Divvy addresses that with hotkeys and click&drag options. I suspect there are better alternatives. Recommendations welcome!
Other
- Rocket – System-wide Slack-style :emoji:
- Choosy – Set Choosy as your default browser, and forward links to other browsers using custom rules. (For example: work links go to one browser, personal links to another)
- Fantastical – The best calendar-in-system-tray app I’ve seen. Also includes functionality similar to Meeter, although I prefer Meeter for joining meetings
- Carrot Weather – The best weather app for iOS is also pretty good on macOS
