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Uses


This page shows 41 apps that I use currently. I pick up most of my app recommendations from The Sweet Setup and uses this. I starred the apps I feel like I cannot live without.You can also use the filter below to filter by platforms that I use the app on.


Note that I have left out any apps that are specific to my geographic areas, i.e., UK or India.


1Password
Password manager - 1Password

If you only try one of the apps I recommend, I hope that it is this one. The idea is simple: you only have to remember one master password which in turn gives you access to all of your passwords, credit card info, secure notes etc. The beauty of 1Password is how well it integrates with all your devices and browsers. Filling in passwords is such a breeze.

Highlights:

  • Autofill passwords with just Face or Touch ID.
  • Autofill 2FA OTPs after you enter your password.
  • Generate passwords to keep your data secure.
  • Very secure and impossible to hack. To hack my account, you'd need to know my password, my secret key and my 2FA OTP.

Authy
2FA - Authy

I use Authy to store the 2FA for 1Password and a few other apps that integrate with the Authy API.

Alfred
Launcher - Alfred

I don't think I'd enjoy using my Mac half as much without Alfred. It's a more powerful replacement for Spotlight.

Highlights:

FireShot
Screenshot - FireShot

This is a fantastic Chrome extension for taking full page screenshots. I use it almost daily at work.

CleanShot
Screenshot - CleanShot

A powerful screenshot tool for Mac. When you take screenshots, it floats on your screen and allows you take further actions like copying, saving, and annotating.

Highlights:

Bartender
Menu bar organiser - Bartender

Lets you control the Mac menu bar. I like to have less than five apps visible on my menu bar.

Grammarly
Grammar checker - Grammarly

I run all my blog articles, CV and other documents through this.

Fantastical
Calendar - Fantastical

I mostly use Fantastical for the really nice UI rather than any specific feature.

Todoist
Manage todos - Todoist

It's not perfect, but it's the best tool I've come across so far for managing todos. I used to use Things, but prefer Todoist for the key features listed below.

Highlights:

  • Set priority levels for your tasks - p1 to p4.
  • Shared projects - My partner and I find this useful to keep track of shared projects and assign tasks to each other.
  • Filters - I use filters to quickly see tasks that need triaging, and important tasks that I should focus on this week.

Magnet
Window manager - Magnet

Snap windows into organised tiles. Fairly basic feature. I don't understand why Apple didn't implement it themselves.

Notion
Collaboration - Notion

My go-to tool for collaborating with family or friends on documents.

Highlights:

Obsidian
Note taker - Obsidian

I use this for personal note taking as I prefer to write using Markdown.

Edison Mail
Mail - Edison Mail

Star feature: One click to unsubscribe / block emails from spammers. I have not seen any other email client do it so well.

Brave
Browser - Brave

A great browser for blocking ads and trackers. Since Brave uses the Chrome engine, you can still use all the Chrome extensions.

Google Photos
Photos - Google Photos

The iCloud photo library is great in everything except sharing. I, manually 😭, put copies of my albums that I want to share on Google Photos.

Google workspace
Docs, Sheets - Google workspace

I absolutely hate using Office style apps but when I have to, I use Google docs or sheets.

Kiwi
Flights - Kiwi

The UX for searching for cheap flights is great. I particularly love that you can specify a range of start dates and duration of holiday.

reveal.js
Slides - reveal.js

My slides are available in bluprince13/slides.

yEd
Diagramming - yEd

An underappreciated tool as the UI takes getting used to. A former colleague who was really into it showed me how to set it up and how powerful it could be.

Time machine
Backups - Time machine

I backup my Mac once a month.

textexpander
Snippets - textexpander

I use this for snippets shared across my devices. I don't like the UI on the iPhone or iPad but there isn't a better option out there yet.

Ancestry
Family tree - Ancestry

Not perfect, but I haven't found a better way of constructing and maintaining my family tree.

Observable
JavaScript notebook - Observable

Familiar with Python Jupyter notebooks? Well this is the same thing, but for JavaScript.

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