Supercharge Refines Your macOS Experience with More Options in More Places

When it comes to features you’ve taken for granted on other operating systems like Windows or Linux, you may find macOS to be somewhat lacking.

Commonly used commands such as “Cut and Paste”, for example, simply don’t exist in the macOS Finder. The macOS way is “Copy and Move”, where you copy a file or folder and paste it into its new location, leaving your original intact.

Or, maybe you’d like to make a new text file in a Finder window, without first having to open an application. This task is already possible in both Linux and Windows, but (inexplicably) not built-in to macOS.

Maybe you’re a long-time Mac user, like yours truly, who wishes that the Finder could do basic things like:

list the pixel dimensions when right-clicking an image file
fill the window by clicking in Finder window’s green traffic light button, instead of entering full screen
auto-adjust column widths to filenames in column view
Add useful context menu actions like “copy path”, “move to”, “AirDrop” and more

While it would be amazing if Apple included these often-requested features in macOS, it’s not happening any time soon. (Apple’s had more than 20 years to do so, and it’s been crickets on that front.)

Thankfully, there is an app that promises to do all of the above, and much, much more. And it goes by the name of Supercharge.

Supercharge includes handy tweaks that improve your macOS experience.

Supercharge by developer Sindre Sorhus, is a Mac app that promises to “elevate your Mac experience.” That’s quite a claim, and one that I have put to the test over the past few weeks. Supercharge is a collection of tools, tweaks and shortcuts that aims to improve your overall macOS experience.

Supercharge lets you add context menu items such as “Move to”, “AirDrop” and “Image / Video Dimensions”, among other options.

I won’t cover all of Supercharge’s features here (there are too many to list). But after using the app in my day-to-day workflow, I do have my favorites. These include:

Preventing accidental Quits by quitting apps with a custom keyboard shortcut (Shift+Command+Q, for example).
Unminimize windows when an app becomes active.
Move files with cut and paste.
Create a new text file using Option+N.
Auto-adjust column widths to filenames in “Columns” view.
Toggle your Mac displays to Grayscale mode with a custom keyboard shortcut.
Toggle the visibility of Widgets on your macOS Desktop.
Capture and Translate Text.
Clear all Notifications.

This image shows the context menu that Supercharge “bakes in”. Select an image and see its width and height. Why can’t Apple do that?

Tweaks can be triggered by Supercharge’s menu or via a keyboard shortcut. You can customize Supercharge’s menu items, keeping only the tweaks you use, while hiding the ones you don’t.

I use AirDrop quite a bit, both at home and at work. My absolute favorite Supercharge feature is the AirDrop context menu. Simply right-click a file in the Finder to send it via AirDrop. It’s so useful, I’m perplexed that Apple doesn’t have this feature built-in.

As a designer, I work with images on a regular basis; Supercharge will display its pixel dimensions when I right-click an image in the Finder. This is incredibly useful; no more visiting the Get Info window for me.

Easily switch between different display modes, such as True Tone, Grayscale, Dark Mode and more. You can even assign custom keyboard shortcuts.

Another useful feature that I really like is Supercharge’s Grayscale mode. With this option selected, your Mac enters a color-free mode, making for a more focused desktop environment. While you can achieve this by going to System Settings > Accessibility > Display > Grayscale – it’s a bit of pain to do this each time I want to view my Mac’s display as grayscale. (I switch between modes multiple times a day.) Supercharge lets me assign a custom keyboard shortcut (Control+G) to toggle between color and grayscale modes.

I also make use of the “Move to” Context menu, to quickly transfer a file to its new location.

In my usage, Supercharge is a well-made app that works as expected. I find tremendous value in its features, many of which are so useful I can’t imagine using a Mac without them. While I don’t use all of Supercharge’s capabilities, the features that I do use are used regularly.

Supercharge is available for $16 via Gumroad. The developer includes a Trial version that includes a repeating reminder to purchase the app. If you purchase the app, all of your data and settings will carry over. Supercharge is also available via Setapp. Supercharge indeed lives up to its billing. Whether you’re an old-hand with Macs, or someone who’s switched to a Mac from Windows or Linux, there’s a lot of useful features here that can help you make the most of your system.