AutoHotkey vs Keyboard Maestro

AutoHotkey

• Windows users who want custom hotkeys and key remaps at no cost
• People comfortable writing or adapting short scripts
• Text expansion and repetitive data entry on Windows

Keyboard Maestro

• Mac users who repeat the same multi-step tasks and want to automate them
• People who prefer paying once per major version to a subscription
• Users who want clipboard history, text expansion and app switching in one tool

AutoHotkey

• Windows only: the vendor describes it as a scripting language for Windows and lists no other platform.
• Everything is defined in plain-text script files, so using it means learning AutoHotkey's scripting syntax.
• Games with cheat-prevention measures such as GameGuard or Hackshield are likely to block AutoHotkey.
• Antivirus programs sometimes raise false-positive alerts, more often for compiled and compressed scripts.

Keyboard Maestro

• macOS only; version 11 requires macOS 10.13 High Sierra or later.
• The license covers version 11.x. Later major versions are paid upgrades, which the vendor says it releases roughly every 12 to 36 months.
• There is no free plan: the programs are free to download and try, but continued use requires a license.
• Licensed per user for up to five Macs; customers with ten or more users are asked to contact the vendor for a volume quote.

AutoHotkey

Hotkeys

Bind keys, key combinations and mouse buttons to scripted actions. Hotkeys can be made window-specific so they work only in certain applications.

Hotstrings

Abbreviations that expand into longer text as you type, which also serve as autocorrect-style replacements.

Key and button remapping

Remap keyboard keys or mouse buttons to other keys, alongside the hotkeys defined in the same script.

Sending input and running programs

Scripts can send keystrokes to simulate typing, run programs and open websites, which covers jobs such as form filling, auto-clicking and macros.

Compile scripts to EXE

Ahk2Exe turns a script into a standalone executable that contains the interpreter, so it runs on a PC without AutoHotkey installed.

A full scripting language

Built-in commands suit beginners, while experienced developers get a language that supports procedural, object-oriented and command-based styles and can build GUIs.

Keyboard Maestro

Macros built from triggers and actions

A macro pairs one or more triggers with a list of actions, created by hand or by recording. Built-in actions include control flow, conditions and loops, and third-party plug-in actions can be added.

Many trigger types

Macros can fire from a hot key, a typed string, a time of day or cron schedule, an application launching, a folder change, a USB or MIDI device, a Wi-Fi network change or a remote web link.

Clipboard history and named clipboards

The Clipboard History Switcher browses and pastes past clipboard entries, and an unlimited number of Named Clipboards are saved permanently.

Text, image and web actions

Type or paste strings, expand typed snippets, run calculations, OCR and capture images, and work with the front page in Safari or Chrome, including filling in forms.

Application and window control

Launch, quit, show or hide applications, move and resize windows, and switch between running apps and open windows with the Application and Window Switchers.

Scripting and syncing

Macros can run AppleScript, shell scripts and JavaScript, and can be triggered from scripts, a URL or the keyboardmaestro command-line tool. Macros sync across Macs through Dropbox or other file sharing.

AutoHotkey

• AutoHotkey$0

  The full scripting language as an installer or ZIP download, with English documentation included. Donations are optional.

Keyboard Maestro

• Keyboard Maestro 11US$36

  one-time purchase, plus applicable tax

  A per-user license for version 11.x that an individual may use on up to five Macs. Not a subscription; version 11 can be used indefinitely.

• Upgrade to version 11US$25

  one-time upgrade, plus applicable tax

  For owners of any previous version. Purchases made since 1 March 2023 were issued a free upgrade to version 11.

AutoHotkey

No public discounts listed.

Keyboard Maestro

• Other savings

  US$25 upgrade from any previous version

  Owners of an earlier version can buy an upgrade to version 11 for US$25 plus tax instead of the US$36 new-license price.

• Other savings

  Volume discount for ten or more users

  The user manual asks customers with ten or more users to contact Stairways Software for a volume discount quote.