Best Mac Apps 2020: Top 20 Apps Every Mac User NEEDS

Affinity Photo is a photo editing app for Mac and does almost everything that Photoshop can do. Great for minor editing & retouching images all the way to creating full-blown multi-layered compositions.

Alfred is the ultimate productivity app for your Mac with things like hotkeys, keywords, text expansion, and more. With it you can quickly search your Mac and the web, and perform other custom actions.

Amphetamine is one of my most used Mac apps. It keeps your Mac awake (and optionally the display) through a simple on/off button, or automatically through custom triggers.

Backblaze is an important Mac app. For $5/month on their annual plan you get unlimited cloud backup of all your files. It backs up all your Mac’s data along with any connected external drives.

BeFocused is based on the Pomodoro technique and uses a timer to break down work into intervals, separated by short breaks. You can create tasks, configure breaks, and track your progress.

CheatSheet is a free app that lets you quickly view the keyboard shortcuts of the active app you have opened.

CleanMyMac X is all-in-one optimization tool for your Mac to clean it of junk files and keep it running fast. It has an intuitive interface that does a wide variety of tasks including cleaning & optimizing your Mac with one click and keeping your Mac free from malware.

DropBox provides free cloud storage that syncs with all your devices and is accessible from the web. The folder on your Mac that stays synced with the cloud automatically.

Evernote is a virtual notebook that syncs to the cloud and is accessible from nearly any device so you can save, access, and organize all of your most important ideas and thoughts.

Flume is an Instagram app for your Mac. It lets you upload photos & videos to your Instagram directly from your Mac.

Helium is a free app that lets you keep a floating browser on top of all your open windows at all times. It allows you to simultaneously see your content and your work.

IINA is a free open source modern media player for macOS. It’s designed with the look and feel of the latest macOS versions while integrating the latest features.

LastPass is my favorite free password manager. It creates & remembers strong unique passwords and is secure with strong encryption.

Pocket lets you save any web page for future reference and access it at anytime on any device. It lets you tag & organize all of the web pages you save so you can quickly find and sort through them.

Rectangle is a free open source app that lets you move and resize windows in macOS using keyboard shortcuts or snap areas.

ToDoist is an intuitive to-do app that lets you quickly capture & organize tasks. You can use it to remember deadlines with reminders and due dates, build lasting habits with recurring due dates, and more.

Screens 4 lets you remotely access your Mac from anywhere and control it from the comfort of wherever you are. It is fast, secure, and reliable and a must-have if you travel frequently or need to access your Mac from anywhere.

Smart Converter is a free Mac video converter. It's easy to use and is fast. Smart Converter can handle hundreds of file types and converts them so they play on your favorite devices.

The Unarchiver can unarchive (or unzip) many different kinds of archive files such as Zip, RAR, 7-zip, Tar, and Gzip. It’s a useful utility app for your Mac.

Unclutter is a Mac productivity app that's 3 tools in 1: File Storage to keep your Desktop clean from temporary files, Notes to write down something quickly, and a Clipboard manager to track what you copy & paste.

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[noahpaye]

This is among best video I watched on introducing Mac Apps, you talk fast (no need to 2x) and give a very nice description of what each app does. Plus very good collection of must have apps. Thank you v.much

[kevinstier]

0:24
Andy: "At some point every Mac user will need to edit photos"
iOS developers: Wait what?

[abegg]

It's so nice that you prioritize free apps (e.g. rectangle instead of magnet)

[HaydenGoldsworthy]

Well LOOKY HERE!!!! Just got the new iMac and wanted to see which apps are hot stuff right now and you came up first. I support it.

[amiradeuraseh]

This content is GOLD! I've been struggling a lot on my mac after switching from windows/ubuntu. Thank you!

[frontlinebreakthrough]

this was such an incredible video, I actually ended up downloading just a bunch of these

[robertsteich]

7:50 I believe that feature is already in the MacOS and has been for the last 3 or so version.

Let’s say you have a window that isn’t fully opened. Click and crap the top part to either side and when the edge of the window hits the edge of the desktop, it’ll stop unless you keep on moving the mouse. This is true for moving it down. Both shall be done at a moderate to low speed. If you move the mouse fast then it’ll go beyond the sides or bottom.

Now to “snap” the windows for half screen. Just click and hold and move the Green circle to either left or right. Or scroll down to the left or right or full screen modes. But this may be app dependent. I remember receiving an update for MS Office to allow this feature, however that was an year ago.

[JatinNagpal]

Thanks for CheatSheet. I am new to MacOS and had to google every other shortcut. Now its so much easier! :D

[johng]

Bored on a quarantine Saturday. Came here to see what might catch my fancy. You mentioned Unclutter. I'm a very happy camper now.

[claudehill]

Thank You for all of this info. Very helpful to us older Dudes.
Y’all come down South sometime and we’ll teach you to talk slower. 🤠

[BenRangel]

I've used Alfred as a program launcher for a long time, but great to get a reminder that it can also do math, empty the trash etc. I always forget how powerful it is

[SofiaanF]

Very useful list Andy. Thanks! That cheat sheet is going to be very helpful for my FCPX editing too 😀🙏👊

[nabilelalaouisossey]

Great app recommendations, Andy! Thanks a lot 🙏

[peterpodgorski]

The idea that every user edits photos is adorable :D

[ashleyj]

I like your video.It was clearer explanation compare to others.You write some apps that can help people uses Mac just like me I am a beginner in Mac Pro. Goodluck for your next video 😊

[RANGER]

Love the recommendations! Awesome content!

[Aimsixmeals]

No bullshit just straight to the point a lot of tech youtubers can learn from you

[brainnotfound]

I feel Flow is a more minimalistic timer and is a great alternative to be focused.

[wafaaelmenayer]

Thank you I really appreciate that you wrote everything about the video so because your video was so quick but I understand everything and the written text is really great help

[glukoagkalitsas]

Good video mate... it helped me a lot..