The Finder you
wish you had.
A file manager for Mac that looks and works like Finder, then does what Finder never did: every folder’s size, search that stays in the folder, and GIFs you can step through.
Cedar does everything Finder does, down to the shortcuts . Then it does what Finder never got around to. Don’t take our word for it. Try it.
Open anything. Edit what you can.
Cedar has its own viewer for almost every file on your Mac, so you stop hunting for the right app. Files that can be changed open ready to edit.
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Plays any video
MKV, AVI, WMV and WebM too, with subtitles, speeds up to 3× and picture in picture.
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Code that looks like code
Xcode’s colours, line numbers and a status bar, in dozens of languages. Edit and save with ⌘S.
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Music you can see
Cover art ringed by live sound bars, and speed changes that keep the pitch.
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Archives, opened up
Look inside zip, rar, 7z and tar files, then pull out everything or just what you need.
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Documents you can edit
Word, RTF and plain text open ready to type in, with the formatting bar you know.
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3D models, in hand
Spin glTF, USDZ, FBX and OBJ models without leaving your files.
And the rest of the toolbox.
The features people install ForkLift or Path Finder for, built into a Finder you already know.
Dual pane
Two folders side by side with ⌘\. Copy across with F5, move with F6.
Real cut and paste
⌘X and ⌘V, the way every other app works.
Merge folders
Same-name folders merge, keep both, replace or skip, with “Apply to all”.
Batch rename
Stack rules like find and replace, numbering and case, with a live preview.
Quick Open
⌘P, type a few letters, and jump to any folder or command.
Select Matching
Pick every
*.jpg, or every name containing some text, in one go.Terminal and editor
Open a folder in Ghostty, iTerm, Warp, VS Code, Cursor or Zed from the right-click menu.
Checksums
Get Info shows a file’s SHA-256 and the page a download came from.
Servers and buckets
Browse SFTP servers and S3 buckets (Amazon, Cloudflare R2, Backblaze) and drag files in and out.
Folder sync
Compare two folders and copy what’s new or changed, one way or both.
Undo everything
Trash, rename, batch rename, copy and move can all be undone.
The best file managers on Mac, side by side.
Nine things that matter, one bar each. A full segment means the app does it.
- 1Free
- 2Looks and works like Finder
- 3Every folder’s size, on by default
- 4Searches the disk, not just Spotlight
- 5Steps through GIFs, saves a frame
- 6Two panes side by side
- 7Merges same-name folders
- 8Remote servers (SFTP, S3)
- 9Folder sync
Path Finder$29.95 a year
ForkLift 4$19.95, 1 year of updatesCedarFreeFrom each app’s own website, October 2026. Finder shows folder sizes only with its slow “Calculate all sizes” switched on, merges only while you hold Option, and connects to basic network drives. ForkLift is a trademark of BinaryNights; Path Finder is a trademark of Cocoatech. Cedar is not affiliated with either.
Your fingers already know it.
Every Finder shortcut works the same way in Cedar, so there is nothing to relearn.
- ⌘1–4Switch views
- SpaceQuick Look
- ⇧⌘GGo to folder
- ⌘⌫Move to Trash
- ReturnRename
- ⌘↑Enclosing folder
Questions.
What files can Cedar open?
Pictures, SVG, GIFs, PDFs, video in any format (including MKV, AVI, WMV and WebM), music, code, JSON, CSV, Markdown, HTML, Word and RTF documents, fonts, Lottie animations, 3D models, and zip, rar, 7z and tar archives. Text, code and documents can be edited and saved. Anything else that macOS can preview opens through Quick Look.
Does Cedar replace Finder?
It runs alongside it. You can make Cedar open whenever another app says “Show in Finder”, in Settings > Integrations. The desktop and the Open and Save dialogs stay with Finder, because macOS doesn’t let any other app take those over.
Why isn’t it on the Mac App Store?
App Store apps must run in a sandbox that only sees the files you hand them. A file manager has to see your whole Mac to show folder sizes and search everywhere, so Cedar is offered here instead, the same way Path Finder and many other Mac utilities are.
Is it safe to install?
Yes. Cedar is signed with our Apple Developer ID and notarized by Apple, which means Apple scanned it before it reached you. There is no account to create, and Cedar doesn’t track what you do.
How do updates work?
Cedar checks for a new version once a day and asks before installing it. Every update is signed, so Cedar only accepts versions that really come from us. You can also choose Cedar > Check for Updates at any time.
What do I need to run it?
A Mac with macOS 14 Sonoma or later. Cedar runs natively on both Apple silicon and Intel.
Why is it called Cedar?
Cedar is the wood people have always used for chests and drawers that keep precious things safe. A file manager is the digital version of that drawer, which is also why the icon is one.