The Best Mac Tweaking Apps Compared

There are only a handful of serious ways to change the settings macOS keeps hidden, and they suit different people. Here is a straight comparison, including the free ones and the built-in option that costs nothing at all.

What it is

Four realistic options: the defaults command built into macOS, TinkerTool, Onyx, and Mainspring. Everything else is broadly a variation on one of these.

Where they overlap

All four can change hidden preferences that System Settings does not expose, and all four stick to preferences Apple already supports rather than patching system files.

Where they differ

• defaults write — free, built in, unlimited scope. You need to know the exact key, and there is no safety net or record of what you changed.
• TinkerTool — free, mature, conservative. Compact tabbed interface, with a global reset rather than per-setting undo.
• Onyx — free, primarily a maintenance tool, with a Parameters section for hidden settings. A separate build per macOS version.
• Mainspring — one-time 29 dollars. 90+ settings with plain-English descriptions, a per-change undo button, Recipes to apply sets at once, plus Clean Mode and private folders.

Which should you use?

If you are comfortable in Terminal and only need one or two changes, use defaults write and note down how to undo it. If you want a free graphical option, TinkerTool is the established choice. If you also want maintenance, Onyx. If you change settings often enough that you want them labelled, searchable and individually reversible, that is what you are paying for with Mainspring.

Every setting here is a one-click, reversible toggle in Mainspring — no Terminal, and an undo button on all of it.