The Top 100 Mac freeware apps at thriftmac
— rated by the number of times the articles
have been accessed by thriftmac readers
PTHPasteboard
Keeps track of the last 20 (changeable in preferences) items that you copied or cut and allows you to paste them at any time.
Added to the Organizers section
Download site
Posted Monday, November 13, 2006
Video Monkey
A video encoding program created after the demise of the popular Visual Hub. It borrows heavily from the Visual Hub video conversion tool, both conceptually and from the original code.
Added to the AudioVideo section
Download site
Posted Saturday, September 4, 2010
Quicksilver
Keyboard addicts will love the the way this app lets you of find and launch files and applications without touching the mouse.
Added to the Etcetera section
Download site
Posted Friday, February 10, 2006
Bomberman
Work your way through the levels with strategic placement of bombs that kill enemies and destroy obstacles.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Tuesday, January 23, 2007
AssaultCube
First-person-shooter set in a realistic looking environment. It’s all about team oriented multiplayer fun.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Bug Defender
Buy weapons and ammo and set them up along a path to kill bugs before they get in your house. More kills means more cash for weapons upgrades.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Saturday, August 16, 2008
Alien Abduction
Save crash survivors from abduction by evil aliens.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Monday, March 19, 2007
Boggle
Make as many words as you can in three minutes.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Monday, May 1, 2006
Angband
Take the role of an adventurer, exploring a deep dungeon, fighting monsters, and acquiring the best weaponry you can, in preparation for a final battle with Morgoth, the Lord of Darkness.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Tuesday, September 16, 2008
GNU Backgammon
Think you’re good at backgammon? Try your luck against GNU Backgammon, currently boasting world class capabilities.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Monday, May 1, 2006
Freecell
A Mac OS X version of the classic solitaire game.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Thursday, March 30, 2006
Ivory
A solitaire tile matching game based on the single player game known most often as Mahjongg, and also called Shanghai or Taipei. Beautiful graphics.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Thursday, October 9, 2008
DrawBerry
Vector drawing program based on CoreImage technology. A bit on the low end, but nonetheless quite capable.
Added to the Graphics section
Download site
Posted Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Argonaut
A modern rendering of the classic Asteroids game with glorious graphics.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Friday, November 17, 2006
Lin City-NG
A city simulation game with nice graphics. Start with a small village and build your way up to a bustling metropolis.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Saturday, November 15, 2008
Marathon
First-person shooter originally developed by Bungie is now open source with active support.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Tuesday, September 4, 2007
ArtRage
Just check out the website to see some of the incredible art created with this painting program. If you’re artistically inclined, you’ll want to take ArtRage for a spin. For the free version, scroll down to the ArtRage 2 demo. There is no time limit, plus you can load, save and print.
Added to the Graphics section
Download site
Posted Thursday, February 9, 2006
Armand and the Foppish Hat
Adventure game reminiscent of the Zelda series in glorious retro 2D. The storyline is a hoot, but puzzles give you a run for your money.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Thursday, August 14, 2008
Crack Attack
Crack Attack is based on the Super Nintendo classic Tetris Attack, featuring full-screen mode.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Saturday, January 6, 2007
Aquatomic
Slide atoms through the maze-like structures of Aquatomic to create molecules.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Thursday, February 9, 2006
SuperTux
It’s just like Super Mario, but with SuperTux, you get Tux the Linux penguin.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Thursday, February 9, 2006
Freeciv
A free version of the popular Civilization strategy game requires Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) and X11.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Thursday, December 28, 2006
DrawIt Lite
At last a pretty darn good freeware drawing program for the Mac. It has fewer features than the pro version, but it still makes a great vector tool.
Added to the Graphics section
Download site
Posted Monday, February 18, 2008
Dwarf Fortress
Run a dwarven outpost or play an adventurer in a persistent, randomly generated world with distinct civilizations spanning over 1000 years of detailed history, dozens of towns, hundreds of caves and regions with various wildlife
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Saturday, January 23, 2010
Alice
Create 3D models and learn programming with an easy drag-and-drop method designed for students.
Added to the Graphics section
Download site
Posted Monday, July 3, 2006
AppCleaner
Delete not only the app, but also all those pesky files that are associated with it.
Added to the Utilities section
Download site
Posted Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Anxiety
Quite possibly the coolest to-do list ever. A translucent window floats above your work, allowing you to add to-do items. The items automatically sync with your lists in Mail and iCal. Leopard only.
Added to the Organizers section
Download site
Posted Tuesday, December 11, 2007
iRed Lite
Expand the capabilities of your Mac’s remote control so that it works not only with Front Row, but with several other programs such as iTunes or Keynote.
Added to the Etcetera section
Download site
Posted Thursday, May 8, 2008
Bullfrog
Use a bullfrog to clear your yard of pests before time runs out. Beautiful graphics.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Wednesday, December 20, 2006
TVShows
Feed your TV addiction the easy way with TVShows. Leave this pref pane running in the background, and it will automatically seek out and download torrents for shows (using your torrent app) as they become available. Presets for many shows do all the setup for you. Tested on Big Bang Theory and worked like a charm.
Added to the AudioVideo section
Download site
Posted Friday, June 17, 2011
Pac the Man
When you play Pac the Man, it’s just like, well, Pac-Man.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Thursday, February 9, 2006
Expression
It’s a full-featured vector graphics program along the lines of Illustrator or Freehand. Expression was recently acquired by Microsoft and, for reasons unknown, is available for free. Get it while you can from MacUpdate.
Added to the Graphics section
Download site
Posted Thursday, February 9, 2006
Armagetron
3D clone of the popular laser-racing game Tron with a customizable playing arena.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Saturday, April 19, 2008
iProcrastinate
Organize your university and college courses and assignments in a way that makes so much sense, you’ll breeze right through post-secondary education.
Added to the Organizers section
Download site
Posted Friday, August 22, 2008
Bricksmith
Create Lego models with your Mac—looks tricky, though.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Thursday, December 28, 2006
Deliantra
Co-operative multiplayer RPG and adventure game that is fully graphical and runs in realtime. It is set in a classical medieval environment with ubiquitious weapons and magic.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Thursday, December 11, 2008
Sauerbraten
First-person shooter with gorgeous graphics based on an open source game engine.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Sip
Sip sits in your menu bar ready for a click that lets gives you a loupe to select a color anywhere on the screen. Choose from as many as a dozen color formats. Store selections in a history and paste them at will.
Added to the Graphics section
Download site
Posted Thursday, May 31, 2012
Warzone 2100
As a commander, you must carry out various assignments in this real-time strategy game. For example, you may have to build a base, explore new technologies, deal with scavengers, and give manufacturing orders.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Monday, December 29, 2009
Solitaire Greatest Hits
A dozen high-quality solitaire card games rolled into one, including the classic Klondike, Free Cell, Spider, Pyramid, Canfield, Aces Up, Golf, Scorpian, Yukon, Baker’s Game and Forty Thieves.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Monday, September 7, 2009
McSolitaire
A good clean version of good ol’ Klondike. Recent upgrades have made this the best solitaire you’ll find for the Mac.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Thursday, February 9, 2006
NinjaQuestX
You play a ninja in a dungeon, exploring the many passages and fighting many fearsome monsters. It’s built to have the feel of a text adventure but with full graphics and a complete ninja-style look. Requires Java.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Monday, November 19, 2007
Glider Pro
Float your Glider Pro paper airplane through rooms in a house with many obstacles.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Thursday, February 9, 2006
The Battle for Wesnoth
A turn-based strategy game with a fantasy theme sees you build up a mighty army so you can regain your rightful place on the throne of Wesnoth.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Thursday, December 28, 2006
JewelToy
Just like Bejeweled — you switch jewels around on a grid to group them in threes and eliminate them. You’ll want to keep going forever.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Monday, September 24, 2007
Onyx
Verifies the startup disk and the structure of its system files, runs system maintenance, configures some hidden parameters , deletes caches, removes unneeded files and folders, and more.
Added to the Utilities section
Download site
Posted Thursday, February 9, 2006
BZFlag
A free multiplayer, multiplatform 3D tank battle game. The name stands for Battle Zone capture Flag. Aside from Mac OS X, it also runs on Irix, Linux, *BSD, Windows and other platforms.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Saturday, January 6, 2007
Cocoa Mad Race
Race your vehicle against the computer in a bid to make it to the next level.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Monday, January 15, 2007
UFO: Alien Invasion
Protect Earth from an alien invasion by controlling your base, training your troops and researching deadly, new weapons. Similar to X-COM, but with new features added.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Friday, February 27, 2009
Cosmic Painter
Create complex animated patterns and save them as QuickTime movies.
Added to the Graphics section
Download site
Posted Thursday, December 28, 2006
Oolite
A space sim game with a retro feel and modern technology. Fly from planet to planet, buying and selling goods, shooting pirates or committing acts of piracy. It can be complicated, but there is a flight training manual.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Thursday, September 27, 2007
Oberin
An online fantasy role-playing game and virtual community, available exclusively for Macintosh.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Marble Arena
Fans of Marble Blast, which sells for $19.95, will be happy to know that a similar freeware game called Marble Arena is now available. Both involve rolling your marble through intricate and challenging 3D landscapes. Another freeware game along this vein is neverball. Plus, an updated version of Marble Arena is available at the Mac App Store.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Friday, November 2, 2007
Cave Story
This Japanese side-scroller has you trying to make your way through a series of caves, avoiding obstacles and enemies along the way. You’ll have to download both the game and a separate English-language patch to make it work — unless, of course, you speak Japanese.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Ommwriter
An amazing and beautiful word processor that makes writing a true pleasure, with an innovative interface, soothing music and a tranquil background. One of the best new apps I’ve seen in a long time.
Added to the Text section
Download site
Posted Saturday, November 21, 2009
Skitch
Take screenshots or photos or make your own sketch from scratch, then edit or annotate and share easily with others. (Note: Acquired by Evernote in August 2011, and now completely free.)
Added to the Graphics section
Download site
Posted Sunday, November 15, 2009
GIMP
Have you ever wished there were a free version of Photoshop? Well, there is — kind of. It’s called GIMP, and it does a good job of such tasks as photo retouching, image composition and image authoring. OK, it’s is not exactly Photoshop, but it you may find it comes close enough. And in case you were worried, GIMP no longer requires that X11 be installed on your Mac.
Added to the Graphics section
Download site
Posted Friday, April 28, 2006
OpenArena
Completely free game based on the Q3A engine and gamecode with fully working bots, net play and a vast sellection of maps and player models. You do not need Quake III Arena to play this game.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Monday, September 10, 2007
Caffeine
Set your Mac to stay awake when it’s inconvenient to have it fall asleep, for example if you’re watching a movie or you want to keep AirPort running.
Added to the Utilities section
Download site
Posted Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Glest
You control two armies on the battlefield of this 3D real-time strategy game: the warriors and mechanical devices of Tech and the mages and summoned creatures of Magic.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Saturday, February 21, 2009
Cashbox
Have you got a hole in your pocket where the money runs out? Cashbox might not plug the hole, but at least you’ll be able to keep better track of your finances.
Added to the Organizers section
Download site
Posted Wednesday, February 15, 2006
Inkscape
If only there were a free version of Illustrator … or FreeHand … or CorelDraw. Inkscape aspires to be all these things and has lots of support. You must have X11 installed on your Mac in order to run this Unix-based program.
Added to the Graphics section
Download site
Posted Friday, April 28, 2006
OpenTTD
Build a transportation empire by land, air and sea, outwitting your competition along the way.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Grand Perspective
Scan your folders to get a colourful view of what is inside them. Then hover with your cursor to see what files are represented. It’s a great way to see what’s taking up all the space. Disk Inventory X does much the same thing.
Added to the Utilities section
Download site
Posted Tuesday, April 11, 2006
Scorched3D
Tanks battle it out in this modern version of the old DOS game, Scorched Earth. Up to 24 players can play at the same time in a variety of changing environmental conditions and terrains.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Seashore
It’s full of cocoa and open source goodness, so Seashore is worth keeping an eye on this program as it develops to its potential — a free version of Photoshop?
Added to the Graphics section
Download site
Posted Thursday, February 9, 2006
Paintbrush
A Cocoa-based paint program similar to Microsoft Paint and the now-defunct MacPaint. It can open and save to most major image formats, including BMP, PNG, JPEG, and GIF.
Added to the Graphics section
Download site
Posted Thursday, August 16, 2007
Gridlock
A collection of over 30 abstract strategy board games, including Ataxx, Reversi, Checkers, Gomoku, Connect Four, Breakthrough, and many others. You can play against the computer or over the network.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Thursday, January 1, 2009
Nexuiz
3D death match similar to Quake III: Arena. A 273 MB download — need we say more?
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Saturday, June 9, 2007
Quinn
Use Quinn to play Tetris the usual way or challenge friends on the network. (Currently unavailable due to legal threats. See the comment below.)
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Thursday, February 9, 2006
Handbrake
Multithreaded video transcoder supports most common multimedia files and any DVD or Bluray-like source that is not copy-protected. Outputs to several popular file formats, including the one for Apple TV.
Added to the AudioVideo section
Download site
Posted Monday, April 17, 2006
Ardour
Record, edit and mix multi-track audio, produce CDs, and mix video soundtracks.
Added to the AudioVideo section
Download site
Posted Monday, May 14, 2007
Solitaire XL
Play solitaire Klondike style with big and beautiful cards. A transparency option lets you feel like you’re playing on your desktop.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Monday, August 18, 2008
PixelNhance
PixelNhance is one of the best of the bunch, but it’s been hard to find since the developer has discontinued it. Caffeine Software has a download link that works as of this writing, but unfortunately it hasn’t been reliable in past. In addition to the link below, you can try this one at 5 star.
Added to the Graphics section
Download site
Posted Thursday, February 9, 2006
Pastor
Pastor is a password-protected spot to stash serial numbers, passwords and the like. Once you get started, you’ll be amazed at how many you have. Keep them all in one, easy-to-find place instead of all over the place. Try KeePassX for a cross-platform alternative.
Added to the Organizers section
Download site
Posted Thursday, February 9, 2006
MyMahj
Match the tiles to clear the mahjong board — but this time in glorious 3D.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Monday, April 9, 2007
MacJanitor
There’s maintenance stuff your Unix-based computer does every night, but if you’re like me and turn it off at night, that won’t happen. So get MacJanitor to do it instead, and keep that Mac purring.
Added to the Utilities section
Download site
Posted Thursday, February 9, 2006
Enigma
A puzzle game the object of which is to uncover pairs of identically colored Oxyd stones. It features hidden traps, vast mazes, laser beams and countless hairy puzzles.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Saturday, January 6, 2007
Krank
Create strings of balls by nudging them together with your cursor. Beautiful graphics and soundtrack combine with challenging game play.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Bean
An open source word processor that does more than TextEdit and is much speedier than Office-style software.
Added to the Text section
Download site
Posted Wednesday, May 9, 2007
FreeCol
In this turn-based strategy game your objective is to create an independent nation, starting with only a few colonists in search of new land. Based on the old Colonization game and similar to Civilization.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Avery DesignPro
Design and print labels, business cards, dividers, T-shirt transfers, greeting cards and more, using templates and stock art. Merge data from Address Book, Mail, iPhoto and iTunes.
Added to the Graphics section
Download site
Posted Wednesday, December 31, 2009
Supertuxkart
Race against friends or the computer in a variety of racetracks reminiscent of Mario Kart.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Saturday, April 19, 2008
X-Moto
Physics play an important role in this 2D motocross platform game. You’ll be pushed to the limit in an effort to control your bike as challenges become increasingly difficult.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Warsow
Standalone first-person shooter based on the Qfusion 3D engine (a modification of the Quake 2 GPL engine), aimed at competition. Developed “by gamers for gamers” with a focus on movement, speed and tricks when playing.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Thursday, August 6, 2009
Cyberduck
The thriftmac FTP client of choice has a nice Mac-like interface and can take on most jobs without any trouble. For those with heavy-duty demands, check out FileZilla below. Fugu is also quite good, but it’s limited to SFTP.
Added to the Internet section
Download site
Posted Thursday, February 9, 2006
ClamXav
Virus? What’s that? It’s only a matter of time before OS X is hit by a truly virulent virus, and ClamXav should be able to help you detect it.
Added to the Utilities section
Download site
Posted Thursday, February 9, 2006
Snake Quest
Your snake grows with your Snake Quest as you gobble up crystals, making it tricky to manoeuvre.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Thursday, February 9, 2006
Find A Word
Use letters from the “pot” to create as many words as you can before time runs out.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Tuesday, November 14, 2006
TinkerTool
Not satisfied with the system preferences Apple gives you access to on your mac? TinkerTool lets you get at that hidden stuff too numerous to mention. If you’re the type who can’t leave well enough alone, then tinker away.
Added to the Utilities section
Download site
Posted Saturday, March 25, 2006
AppMenuBoy
Easy access to all your apps (and only apps — none of the associated files) from the dock.
Added to the Utilities section
Download site
Posted Friday, May 2, 2008
Mario Paint Composer
Make music the classic Mario Paint way with this remake of the music system from the original game for the Super NES.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Monday, May 18, 2009
Burn
Burn data disks, audio disks (MP3, audio CD), video disks (VCD, SVCD, DVD-Video, DivX), images and disk copy — just about anything you can think of. And all with great ease.
Added to the AudioVideo section
Download site
Posted Tuesday, December 19, 2006
Numpty Physics
This 2D physics game has to be played to be understood: “Harness gravity with your crayon and set about creating blocks, ramps, levers, pulleys and whatever else you fancy to get the little red thing to the little yellow thing.”
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Wednesday, May 19, 2010
OpenLieroX
An addictive realtime worms shoot-em-up backed by an active gamers community. Players choose their weapons, grab a ninja rope and face off for a deathmatch in a closed level.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Saturday, October 11, 2008
Blender
Open-source software for 3D modeling, animation, rendering, post-production, interactive creation and playback.
Added to the Graphics section
Download site
Posted Saturday, September 27, 2008
Ski Challenge
Ski some of the great courses of the world such as Whistler, Lauberhorn, Streif or Saslong. Compete with friends over the Internet.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Thursday, March 25, 2010
Double
Match the tiles in Double to eliminate them — a good mahjong clone.
Added to the Games section
Download site
Posted Thursday, February 9, 2006
OpenOffice.org
Now that a native Mac version is available, this open source alternative to Microsoft Office is a worthy option to consider along with NeoOffice.
Added to the Text section
Download site
Posted Friday, December 12, 2008
Notational Velocity
Nodeless note-taking with instantaneous incremental searches and full access from the keyboard.
Added to the Organizers section
Download site
Posted Wednesday, May 16, 2007
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