After installing, setting up and checking out over 50 Mac Screen Savers (!!!), we’ve narrowed our “best of” list down to our favorite 7. Each of them has been tested to ensure they work in the latest version of OS X (El Capitan, 10.11). They are all free and rather unique from each other.
1. UberNES
Play classic Nintendo games from within your screen saver! This one is so awesome we wrote an entire guide on how to install and set up UberNES (link will open in a new tab/window).
You can “jump” right into games and play them from where they left off in the screen saver. Or start from the beginning.
Download: UberNES
2. iOS Lockscreen Screen Saver
This one is a replica of your iPhone’s “Lock Screen”. It displays the time and a (slow) moving background image, in addition to the ‘Slide to Unlock’ bar that we’re all so familiar with. As it happens, we have a whole bunch of the iOS 9 Wallpapers and Lock Screen images for you to download and use to make this screen saver even more realistic.
You can customize the screen saver in quite a few ways, from changing the wallpaper to formatting the time and text.
Download: iOS Lockscreen Screen Saver
3. Skyrocket
Skyrocket is remarkably hypnotizing. It’s a never-ending “fireworks show” that takes place in a football field. Imagine yourself on a flying-carpet, zooming through a fireworks-filled night sky.
Download: Skyrocket
4. Apple Watch
The name pretty much sums it up. Your monitor(s) will turn into giant “Apple Watch” clocks, which actually look pretty cool, especially when displayed on a large screen in a shared area.
Download: Apple Watch
5. Flux
If you like Apple’s built in screen saver “Flurry” – Flux is for you. Flurry was my go-to screen saver for years – until I discovered Flux. It’s more colorful and has a whole slew of Options you can tinker with.
Download: Flux
6. Euphoria
Euphoria is one of those “fractal/geometric” screen savers. With a whole bunch of presets and the ability to customize everything, it’s my favorite of that type.
Download: Euphoria
7. Webview
This one has amazing possibilities if you’re willing to do some research and a bit of trial-and-error testing. In a nutshell, Webview allows you to view webpages, including “live updating” sites, as your screen saver. Visit the Webview’s home page for a list of sites and URLs that work really well with Webview. It’s easy to customize and add your own web sites. My favorite way of utilizing Webview is to use this URL:
http://www.google.com/trends/hottrends/visualize?pn=p1
and get a constantly updated list of what’s trending on Google.
Download: Webview
Hello, ross.
Well I now treid everything: I’ve downloaded the newest version and installed it manually.
Still I am getting the same message that a newer version is needed.
It says on Rassmus’ website that the newest version is compatible with Mac OS 10.10. I am running 10.11.
Do you have any advise?
worked for me on el cap
1. I tested version 1.2, which was compatible with El Capitan. I wouldn’t have included it on this list if it didn’t work with El Capitan – when it was called “Apple Watch” not “Watch OS X”.
2. The current version DOES work with the very latest El Capitan beta (10.11.3. 15D13b) and I’d create a screencast showing you if it’s that important.
3. Please don’t assume I would intentionally lie or make things up on this website. That’ll never happen.
Apple Watch is NOT compatible to El Capitan!
I doubt how you would have been able to test it, when the developer says, that it is not compatible.