The best automation apps for Mac

App	Price	How you pay	Mac	Developer	Setapp	Rating
Keyboard Maestro	$36 once	Pay once				Too few ratings
Hazel	$42 once	Pay once				Too few ratings
Alfred	Free to start	Free, with paid upgrades				Too few ratings
BetterTouchTool	$15 once	Pay once				Too few ratings

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1. 1

   Keyboard Maestro

   $36 onceOur pick

   Pick it if you repeat the same clicks and keystrokes at work every day and want macros to do them.

   Build a macro once and your Mac will fill that web form, arrange your windows or clean up copied text whenever you press a hotkey, type a string or reach a set time. Keyboard Maestro has hundreds of built-in actions plus conditions and loops, which takes it well past Apple's free Shortcuts app. It costs $36 once, but expect a learning curve, which is why version 11 added a wizard for your first macro.

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2. 2

   Hazel

   $42 once

   Pick this if what you repeat is filing and renaming downloads, bills and scans.

   If your Downloads folder fills with invoices, statements and screenshots, Hazel files them using rules you set up once. It reads the text inside scanned PDFs, so a bank statement gets renamed by date and moved to the right folder, and version 6 can undo any change from Finder. Finder's smart folders only show files and never move them, but Hazel costs $42, and after the trial its demo mode watches just 1 folder.

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3. 3

   Alfred

   Free to start

   Pick it if you want automations you start by typing a keyword, plus community workflows to borrow.

   Thousands of community-shared workflows plug into this Mac launcher once you buy the £34 Powerpack, which also adds clipboard history and text snippets and includes the free upgrade to Alfred 6. The free version already launches apps, finds files and runs web searches from 1 hotkey. Raycast covers similar ground for free with a newer look, but its extras sit behind a $10 monthly Pro plan, while Alfred's are a one-time purchase priced in pounds.

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4. 4

   BetterTouchTool

   $15 once

   Pick this if you want a trackpad gesture or mouse button to run a script or paste a snippet.

   macOS gives you a fixed set of trackpad gestures and window snapping to halves, while BetterTouchTool maps almost any gesture, mouse button or key to an action and chains actions into small automations. It also has a launcher with clipboard history and AI agents that work with OpenAI, Anthropic or local models. It costs $15 with 2 years of updates or $25 for life, and building a setup takes real time.

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• Keyboard Maestro vs HazelPick this if what you repeat is filing and renaming downloads, bills and scans.
• Keyboard Maestro vs AlfredPick it if you want automations you start by typing a keyword, plus community workflows to borrow.
• Keyboard Maestro vs BetterTouchToolPick this if you want a trackpad gesture or mouse button to run a script or paste a snippet.