BetterTouchTool vs Swish

BetterTouchTool

• Mac users who want custom trackpad, mouse and keyboard gestures in one app
• People automating multi-step tasks triggered from any input device
• Stream Deck and macro pad owners who want to skip the vendor software
• Buyers who prefer a one-time license to a subscription

Swish

• MacBook and Magic Trackpad users who prefer gestures to keyboard shortcuts
• Multi-monitor setups where windows move between screens often
• Buyers who want a low one-time price, or who already pay for Setapp

BetterTouchTool

• macOS only. BTT Mobile for iPhone and iPad is a companion remote control for the Mac app, not a standalone version.
• There is no free version: after the 45-day trial a license or a Setapp subscription is needed.
• The Standard License stops receiving updates after 2 years, though the last version received keeps working.
• Listed prices vary by country and taxes, and refunds outside the European Union are decided case by case.

Swish

• macOS only, version 12 and above. It is not on the Mac App Store because it cannot run sandboxed.
• It is designed mainly for the Magic Trackpad; a third-party mouse needs a separate app such as Mac Mouse Fix to emulate touch gestures.
• A license can be active on two Macs at a time and has to be unlinked in Settings before moving to another Mac.
• The Buy button shows a price that Paddle localizes by country; $16 is the US figure.

BetterTouchTool

Trackpad and Magic Mouse gestures

Map multi-finger taps, clicks, swipes and drawn shapes on a MacBook trackpad, Magic Trackpad or Magic Mouse to any action.

Keyboard shortcuts and Hyper Key

Global hotkeys that tell left and right modifiers apart, short and long presses, typed key sequences, text triggers and a configurable Hyper Key.

Window snapping and built-in tools

Window snapping, resizing and switching, plus a clipboard manager and a screenshot tool. The vendor says the snapping is the same technology as its separate BetterSnapTool app.

Spotlight-style launcher

Searches apps, windows, files, actions and calendar events, calculates inline and browses clipboard history. Several launchers can run in parallel, each with its own pinned items.

Stream Deck, macro pads and controllers

Drives Elgato Stream Deck and 43 recognized macro pad models without vendor software, and maps Xbox, PlayStation and Nintendo Switch controllers, MIDI devices and the Touch Bar.

Conditional automations and scripting

A trigger can run different actions by active app, Wi-Fi or time of day. It can run Apple Shortcuts, JavaScript or AppleScript, and BTT itself is controllable by URL scheme, web server or CLI.

Swish

Title bar snapping

A quick swipe on a window's title bar snaps it into position, in place of dragging the window to a screen edge.

Grids and shared dividers

Snapping supports 2×2, 3×2 and 3×3 grids, and dragging the divider between snapped windows resizes several of them at once.

Close, minimize and full screen

Pinching in closes a window, swiping down minimizes it and pinching out sends it full screen, replacing the three title bar buttons.

Screens and spaces

Swipes move windows between displays according to how the monitors are physically arranged, and further gestures work with macOS spaces.

Keyboard hotkeys

Arrow, WASD, IJKL and Dvorak hotkeys trigger the snapping, screen and spaces actions, configured in the Advanced tab of the settings.

30 gestures, each switchable

The site counts 30 window, Dock and menu bar gestures. Each can be turned on or off by clicking its icon in the settings window, which also includes a tutorial.

BetterTouchTool

• Standard License$15

  one-time purchase, 2 years of updates

  Updates for 2 years, after which the last version received keeps working. Covers all of the buyer's personal Macs and unlocks BTT Mobile.

• Lifetime License$25

  one-time purchase, lifetime updates

  All updates for as long as BetterTouchTool exists, plus any other Mac apps the developer releases in the 2 years after purchase.

Swish

• Swish license$16

  one-time purchase (US price; Paddle localizes it elsewhere)

  A full license with no recurring cost, for personal use on two computers. One license can be active on two machines at a time.

• Setapp subscription$9.99

  per month, after 7 days free, for the whole Setapp catalog

  Swish is also available through Setapp, a subscription that the Swish site says includes more than 200 Mac and iOS apps.

BetterTouchTool

• Lifetime license

  Lifetime License with all future updates

  The $25 Lifetime License receives every update for as long as BetterTouchTool exists, where the $15 Standard License covers 2 years of updates.

• Other savings

  Included with a Setapp subscription

  BetterTouchTool is also available through Setapp, a subscription service that bundles many Mac apps for a monthly fee.

Swish

• Education

  33% off for students

  The Swish FAQ says students get 33% off by sending an email from a .edu address.