Mac OS X Mavericks is my main operating system now. I still use Windows and Linux a bit, but by far this is where I do most of my work.
I also have a pages for the Best Windows Software and Best Software Development Tools.
For an always up to date list, check out my Best Software List on Github.
Cloud Storage, Sync, and Backup
- Google Backup & Sync - Google’s cloud service tied to your Gmail.
- OneDrive - Microsoft’s cloud service.
Internet
- Adobe Acrobat Reader - PDF reader and editor.
- AirDroid - A suitable replacement for Android File Transfer (ATF).
- Android File Transfer - Transfer files via USB to your Android device.
- balenaEtcher - Flash OS images to SD cards and USB drives, safely and easily.
- Calibre - One stop solution to e-book needs.
- EasyRes - A fast screen resolution switcher for Mac OS X with live animated previews.
- Filezilla - SFTP client.
- Karabiner - A powerful keyboard customizer. I remap my Caps lock key to the escape key.
- GPG Suite - Secure way to encrypt communication.
- OSX Fuse - The easiest and fastest way to create file systems for OS X.
- SensibleSideButtons - Actually functional side navigation buttons on your third-party mice in macOS.
- Service Station - Service Station is a macOS app for customizing your right-click menu in Finder.
- Teamviewer - Remotely control another computer.
- Unarchiver - Decompress zip/rar files.
- World Community Grid - Grid computing.
Audio and Video
- Handbrake - Edit/convert videos.
- Livestreamer - Command-line utility that extracts streams from various services and pipes them into a video player of choice.
- Noizio - App that creates ambient sounds of coffee shop, rain, ocean, etc.
- Plex Media Server - Media server for your home videos/photos.
- SoundNode - Soundcloud desktop app.
- Spotify - Music player.
- Spotifree - Mute ads in Spotify.
- Tagger - Batch update your ID3 tags in your music collection (mp3s).
- VLC Media Player - The best video/media player for any OS.
Pictures and Images
- Blender - Open Source 3D Modeling
- Gimp - Edit pictures, a Photoshop-like program that’s free.
- Giphy - Capture and create GIFs.
- Google Photos - Google’s photo storage.
- Krita - Digital Painting.
- SketchUp - 3D Drawing tool.
Productivity
- Alfred App - Type what you need or what you want to do.
- F.lux - Automatically adjust your computer screen to match lighting.
- Logitech G Hub - Customize Logitech mouse. Also see: how to use Logitech Anywhere MX back/forward button on OSX Finder?
- Glances - System monitoring tool that runs in terminal.
- Skitch - Edit your screenshot images.
- Slack - Collaboration software for teams.
- Trello - Collaborative boards, lists, and cards.
Best Applications to Buy
- 1Password - Password Manager and Secure Wallet.
- Adobe Creative Cloud - Photoshop + Lightroom CC. Well worth the $10/month subscription.
- Bartender 3 - Organize your menu bar apps.
- Better Touch Tool - Custom map your keys.
- Bitwarden - Password manager.
- DaisyDisk - Visual breakdown of your disk space.
- Divvy Window Manager - Window management for tiling your windows.
- ForkLift 3 - Best Finder replacement.
- iStat Menus - System monitor for CPU, memory, HDD, battery, etc.
- iStat Mini - Mini version of iStat Menus.
- Magnet - Window arrangement app.
- Mailplane - The best way to use Gmail on your Mac.
- Noizio - App that creates ambient sounds of coffee shop, rain, ocean, etc.
- NTFS for Mac - Write to NTFS volumes from MacOS.
- Parallels - Run other OSes as virtual machines.