10 OS X Finder alternatives compared and reviewed

Love it or hate it, Finder is the default file manager for OS X. But there are other choices out there, and this article offers reviews, screenshots and links to download 10 different alternatives.

Did I miss your favorite file manager in this list? By all means please feel free to leave a comment below and I’ll update this list (come on – the windows commenters have suggested a lot!)

Name	Cost (USD)	Demo version available	Universal Binary	Stars (out of 5)	Detailed review
Path Finder	$34.95	yes (21 days)	yes	***½	here
Disk Order	$22.57	yes (30 days)	yes	***	here
FileBrowse	$25.00	yes (30 days)	yes	****	here
FileRun	$??.??	no	unknown	n/a	here
3DOSX	free	n/a	no	**	here
RAGE Macintosh Explorer	$15.95	yes	not yet, but works w/ Rosetta	**½	here
Xfolders	free	n/a	yes	****	here
muCommander	free	n/a	no	****	here
Liquifile	$9.90	yes (30 days)	yes	**½	here
Xfile	$79.00	no	no	*	here

Path Finder

Requirements: Version 4.5 requires Mac OS X 10.4 or higher, there is an older version available for 10.3 and 10.2, however that version will no longer be updated.
Download URL: http://www.cocoatech.com/download.php
Features in a nutshell:
New Features:

Undo support added

Superuser mode: You can now temporarily become superuser when performing a move, copy, delete, rename, label, and many other actions

Multiple Shelves

Labels Editor: Change label colors and names

Added Reload button to force a file listing refresh

Added ability to change default compression format: You can now choose between zip, sitx, bz2, and gz

Added Stuffit Verify feature

Added Slideshow to contextual menu item

Added set locked, hide extension, group, owner, change modification date, and set to invisible to File > Attributes

Added Apply to enclosed folders button to permissions setting in Get Info window

Added f5 as a reload directory shortcut

Added the Sparkle framework for automatic update checking and downloading

Improved the Size Browser’s interface (now a regular window with toolbar)

Added ability to disable the Finder’s desktop (see the General preferences)

Improved Japanese, French, Danish and German localizations

Improved Applescript support

Optimized application launch time

full list of features here

Thoughts:

Path Finder is by far the most “popular” alternative to Finder for OS X. It has many, many features that you won’t find in Finder (top of the list would be tabs, desktop icon changes and the ‘drop stack’). The Path Finder menu item/button is also a helpful feature (see image below).

It uses more system resources than most of the other File Managers outlined in this article, and isn’t above the occasional crash. It does share the same “3 view” option as Finder (list, columns, icons), but the addition of tabs helps make for a far less cluttered desktop.

Being the 2nd most expensive File Manager reviewed, it’s a good thing that there’s a 21 day fully-functional demo available.

Screenshots:

lots of commands	column view with tabs
Path Finder menu icon	new desktop ‘right-click’ menu
Path Finder prefs	more Path finder prefs
changed desktop icons

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Disk Order

Requirements: OSX 10.3 and higher, there is an older version for 10.2 that won’t be updated and has fewer features
Download URL: http://www.likemac.ru/english/download.shtml
Features in a nutshell:

Tabbed interface

Copy/Move/Delete/Link operations

Built-in Viewer (viewing html, rtf, mov, mp3, jpg, gif, tiff etc.)

Built-in Editor

Built-in FTP-client (create, upload, download, CHMOD, transfer mode, encodings, viewing files and so on…)

Multi-Rename Tool

Archives support (tar, gz, tgz, bz, bz2, tbz, zip)

Sophisticated Drag’n-Drop

Color Marking support

System Index Utilizing Search

Command Line

Plug-in architecture (Terminal window, Burn CDs, Zip, Unzip, Untar etc.)

Very usable interface (Eject buttons by volume names and FTP sessions, customizable toolbar, Drives panel)

Customizable main menu shortcuts

Two file selection modes (Mac native and Norton-Commander-like)

Compare Directories, wildcard selection

Thoughts:

Disk Order is pretty nice. The built in FTP client is helpful, the built-in preview works well and mix of Mac native and Norton-Commander styles blend really well. Its biggest drawback is that Xfolders is very similar, but free.

Screenshots:

Disk Order default view	Disk Order with FTP
Disk Order prefs	Disk Order nag screen
Disk Order Extras	Disk Order Commands
Disk Order (running a command)

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FileBrowse

Requirements: Mac OS X 10.4.0 and later
Download URL: http://www.filebrowse.com/download.html
Features in a nutshell:

3D Icons/Thumbnails

Large In-Context Previews

Powerful Grouping and Sorting

Thoughts:

FileBrowse strikes me as a ‘love it or hate it’ File Manager. It’s quite different than the others in this list, as it has far fewer features. But… what it lacks in features, it makes up for by perfecting the the existing ones. Plus, at the (early) version of 1.0.2, who knows what the future may have in store.

Arguably the best ‘feature’ of FileBrowse is its unique, minimalist but elegant interface. FileBrowse can show thumbnails for many file types, not only for images. And folder icons even show the items inside, so you don’t have to open a folder to see its contents. Keyboard navigation within FileBrowse takes some getting used to. Previewing images at different sizes is a snap, and previewing multimedia (music, movies) is just as easy. Give it a try, but don’t blame me if you don’t like it.

Screenshots:

FileBrowse is pretty	FileBrowse is pretty 2
view the contents of folders	huge preview
play, preview or open media

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FileRun

Requirements: who knows, it’s not out yet
Download URL: n/a – but the home page is: http://www.filerun.info/
Features in a nutshell:

Powerful user interface

Advanced volume management

Reinvented trash handling

All activities in one place

Thoughts:

I really only included this one because I’ve been watching this website for updates since Jan of 2006. It was supposed to be available for download in Feb of 2006, and still isn’t. It’s a shame, because it looks like it could be really great.

Screenshots:

FileRun – doesn’t exist, but looks pretty	FileRun
FileRun again	FileRun LastOne

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3DOSX

Requirements: Mac OS X 10.1 or higher, and an OpenGL hardware accelerated video card (supporting OpenGL 1.2 or higher)
Download URL: http://www.acm.uiuc.edu/macwarriors/projects/oldprojects/3dosx/download.html
Features in a nutshell:

utilizes three dimensions to view directory hierarchies

supports a full range of file system actions, such as copying, labeling, creating new folders, and ejecting disks

developed using Cocoa and Carbon routines to gain access to the file system, and OpenGL for display

designed for the average user, and cutting-edge computer enthusiasts

cool eye candy

Thoughts:

Barely worked for me. A neat concept that was either very poorly executed, or not at all intended for a MacBook Pro and/or Tiger. It reminded me a bit of Sphere, but I used Sphere for at least an hour longer than I did 3DOSX.

Screenshots:

3DOSX is a neat concept	Too bad it doesn’t really work (for me)
3DOSX prefs	3DOSX apps view

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RAGE Macintosh Explorer

Requirements: OS X, OS 9
Download URL: http://www.ragesw.com/products/explorer/download/
Features in a nutshell:

Tabbed File Browsing reduces window clutter and allows instant switching between folders

Thumbnail view lets you see previews of all picture files instead of just generic icons

Hierarchical overview of all files and folders

Filter file list makes locating specific files fast and easy in clutter folders

Folder banks provide the ability to group specific documents together

Spring loading folders and advanced drag and drop features

Preview files as you browse

Store links to commonly used items

Get and set extended finder info

Batch file info changer

Back up important documents

Find unused and unwanted files

Cut, copy and paste files like text in a text editor

Permanently delete files and folders

Open multiple browser windows

Thoughts:

As the name suggests, Macintosh Explorer is what might happen if Finder and Windows Explorer had an ugly child. OK not ugly, but not very exciting either. At least it has tabs. It responded quite slowly compared to the other File Managers.

The Filter drawer was the best feature I found. It allows you to create and save filters so with one click you can find the files you’re looking for in a given folder.

Screenshots:

Default Macintosh Explorer with preview	Default Macintosh Explorer
Macintosh Explorer prefs	Macintosh Explorer File list
Macintosh Explorer Filter drawer	Macintosh Explorer File Info

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Xfolders

Requirements: Apple PowerPC or Intel based Mac with Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger
Download URL: http://www.kai-heitkamp.de/cms_en/main.php?content…
Features in a nutshell:

Completely for Tiger re-written cocoa application.

Uses the new technology of Mac OS X Tiger.

Full integration of the Finder, thus support of all file operations from and to the Finder.

Drag & Drop between both filelists and the Finder.

Support for all important file operations.

Info dialoge for simply changing the file and folder attributes.

Intelligent path navigators for both file lists.

Bookmarks & manager for folders.

Direct access to importend system utilities.

Navigation with the keyboard ala Norton Commander.

Integrated, detailed Spotlight search.

Versatile search and compare possibilities.

Zip archive support.

Flat or 3D Unified look.

Supports the following languages: English, German, Italian, French, Spanish

Optimized for the PowerPC G5 processor, but remains compatible to G3 and G4 processors!

Universal binary: Compatible with Intel based Macs!

Xfolders is freeware!

Thoughts:

Xfolders is one of the three reviewed File Managers that I haven’t yet removed from my Mac. It’s very easy to navigate using just the Keyboard, and all mouse actions are exactly as you’d expect. If you’re a fan of the Norton Commander style of File Manager, you’ll appreciate the Xfolders layout (though maybe not as much as muCommander).

Compared to all of the other File Managers, Xfolders uses a very small amount of system resources. The ability to completely customize the Toolbar is a nice bonus.

Screenshots:

Default Xfolders view	Xfolders Spotlight add-on
customize Xfolders toolbar	Xfolders new folder
Xfolders prefs

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muCommander

Requirements: Mac OS X 10.1 and up
Download URL: http://www.mucommander.com/#download
Features in a nutshell:

Virtual filesystem with FTP, SFTP, SMB and HTTP/HTTPS support

Quickly copy, move, rename files, create directories, email files…

Browse, create and uncompress ZIP, TAR and GZip archives

Universal bookmarks

Multiple windows support

Customize the look and feel to your taste

Never leave that keyboard again, shortcuts are provided for almost everything

Available in 11 languages : English, French, German, Spanish, Czech, Simplified & Traditional Chinese, Polish, Hungarian, Russian and Slovenian

Thoughts:

muCommander is a Norton Commander-lovers dream come true for OS X. Also, being cross-platform, you can use this File Manager on multiple OS’s (if you’re that kind of person). Supporting FTP, SFTP and HTTP is great (HTTP is a very neat feature). Smallest system resource footprint of all the tested File Managers.

Screenshots:

Default muCommander view	Use muCommander to download files via http
muCommander prefs	run a command
muCommander FTP/SFTP etc setup

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Liquifile

Requirements: OS 10.4 or higher
Download URL: http://www.liquefile.com/ (then click the download link)
Features in a nutshell:
Even the folks at liquifile.com seem to have trouble explaining their product. They suggest you watch this video (in German) to understand its features. Liquifile is based on some concepts and technologies (like liquid browsing or the scatter tree) that originate from the “iworld” or “infoverse” project.

Thoughts:

It’s neat. I guess. I won’t be using it any time soon, but I suppose there are folks out there who might adore this File Manager. Give it a try, it’s unique at least.

Screenshots:

use the far right slider to adjust size	some file options
bubble size and location matters	folder view
Liquifile prefs

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Xfile

Requirements: OS X, I think.
Download URL: http://rixstep.com/4/0/buy/index.shtml
Features in a nutshell:

Runs on the Unix API (super-fast)

Nothing is hidden – absolutely nothing

Nothing is off-limits unless privileges do not allow

Open a Terminal.app console window anywhere, at any path, with a single click

Full ‘stat’ information available for all objects: icon, path, device, inode, mode, links, owner, group, device type, size, blocks, optimal block size, user defined flags, file generation #, last accessed, last modified, status changed

Owner, group, mode, set uid, set gid, sticky bit, and user defined flags directly editable

Resource fork alerts

Creation of hard and symbolic links

Open any document at any location with any application or launch any application anywhere

Executable under 40 KB [sic] – ‘one bounce launches’

Does not drop ‘.DS_Store’ or similar ‘config files’ everywhere on your disk

Rugged, extensively tested fully compliant Cocoa document-based application for OS X

Thoughts:

Seriously, $79 for a single license and there’s no demo/trial? We’re supposed to decide if we want to buy this software based on just three screenshots? Get real. I’m not sure that it deserves even one star, but I like the idea of a 40 KB executable.

Screenshots:

Xfile looks pretty nice	uh ok
delete stuff

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