Free for macOS 15 and later
Mac widgets that live on your desktop
Apple keeps its widgets in Notification Center, or on the desktop where they turn grey the moment you open a window. BetterMacWidgets puts 36 widgets anywhere on your Mac or MacBook desktop, in full colour, most of them animated. 8 are free for good.
macOS 15+ · Apple Silicon · no account needed
What is free, what is Pro
Free
€0no time limit
- 8 widgets on your desktop
- Clock in every size, Weather up to 2×1
- Calendar, Reminders, World Clock, Timer, Stopwatch, Countdown
- Drag anywhere, invisible snap grid
- No account, no subscription
Pro
€19.99once, updates included
- All 36 widgets
- Live weather: rain, snow, sun and clouds
- Widgets on the lock screen
- Stacks and all 20 themes
- 1, 2 or 3 Macs
How to put widgets on your Mac desktop
- 1
Download and open
Get the app on the homepage and open it. It runs on any Apple Silicon Mac with macOS 15 Sequoia or later.
- 2
Pick a widget
Choose one in the sidebar. The preview is live, so you can try sizes and themes before anything touches your desktop.
- 3
Drag it onto the desktop
Drop it wherever you like. An invisible grid keeps things tidy, and every widget stays put through restarts, sleep and monitor changes.
Apple's widgets and BetterMacWidgets
| Apple widgets | BetterMacWidgets | |
|---|---|---|
| Where they sit | Notification Center, or the desktop | Anywhere on the desktop, per display |
| While you work | Turn grey by default when an app is in front | Stay in full colour |
| Movement | Static, refreshed now and then | Live: second hands, charts, falling rain |
| Sizes | Up to four | Up to nine, from 1×1 to 4×3 |
| Look | System style | 20 themes, Clear or Frosted glass (Pro) |
| Cost | Built in | 8 free, all 36 for €19.99 once |
All 36 widgets
Most come in several sizes that are each drawn on their own, not one design stretched to fit.
Essentials
- ClockFree
- WeatherFree
- CalendarFree
- RemindersFree
- Music
System
- Battery
- System
- Temperature
- Devices
- Network
Workspace
- Sticky Note
- Quote
- Photos
- Apps
- Shortcut
- Web Page
Clocks and timers
- Flip Clock
- Word Clock
- World ClockFree
- TimerFree
- StopwatchFree
- Pomodoro
- CountdownFree
- Year Progress
Tools and data
- Clipboard
- Drop Zone
- Folder
- Calculator
- Unit Converter
- Currencies
- Stocks
- Crypto
- Password Generator
Ambient
- World Map
- Starfield
- Mirror
Questions people ask
Does it work on a MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac or Mac mini?
Yes, on every Mac with Apple Silicon (M1 or newer) running macOS 15 Sequoia or later. Intel Macs are not supported.
Are the free widgets really free?
Yes. The 8 free widgets stay free with no trial period, no account and no subscription. You can also preview every Pro widget live inside the app before deciding anything.
Do live widgets slow down my Mac or drain the battery?
Only what you can see does any work. A widget behind a window or on another Space stops completely. In the default Balanced mode widgets animate while your pointer is over them; Energy Saver turns them into still images. Reduce Motion is always respected, and measured idle CPU is close to zero.
What does Pro cost?
€19.99 once for 1 Mac, with options for 2 and 3 Macs. No subscription, and every future update is included.
What happens to my data?
Your widget data stays on your Mac. There is no telemetry, no analytics and no crash reporting. The app only goes online for things that obviously need it: weather, cover art, exchange rates, licence checks and updates.
It looks better in motion
The homepage shows every widget running live: the weather scenes, the glass, stacks and the lock screen.