LinearMouse vs Smooze (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, LinearMouse and Smooze share a 2.6 GPA, and only LinearMouse has a free plan.
Checked Oct 9, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
LinearMouse grades higher on the free plan. Smooze grades higher on features and platforms. They get the same grade on value for money and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Smooze
Mac app for smooth scrolling and mouse button actions
Free trial · from $19.99 one-time
Which one is for you
Pick LinearMouse if
- Fits if you want the mouse wheel reversed and the trackpad left alone
- Works for giving a mouse's extra buttons jobs like Mission Control or a keyboard shortcut
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you're on Windows or Linux, as it's macOS only
- Not for you if you want a different long-press time per button: timings are fixed at 500 ms and 50 points app-wide
- Watch out: some advanced settings mean editing a JSON file that doesn't accept comments
- Watch out: it needs Accessibility permission at first launch, and another before it can simulate key presses
- Not for you if you want a big team behind your tools: it's version 0.12.0, and the sponsors page lists one main developer
Pick Smooze if
- Fits if you use a wheel mouse on a Mac and want animated scrolling plus button gestures
- Works for per-app and per-display scroll settings
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you use Windows or Linux, as it is Mac only
- Watch out: the vendor's own site gives no price, only the Paddle checkout does
- Watch out: one licence covers two Macs, and moving it to a new machine goes through support
- Tight if you want to decide quickly, since the trial is 7 days
How we grade them
| 2.6GPALinearMouseGood | 2.6GPASmoozeGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AFree and open source under the MIT licence, a download anyone can run, with no paid tier or licence key. Donations are optional, and the project says they go only to developer fees, infrastructure and test devices. | A$19.99 one-time before VAT, for two Macs, under a year of this category's typical subscription. |
| Free plan and trial | AEvery feature is free, as a direct download or a Homebrew cask. There's nothing to upgrade to and no cap to hit. | CA 7-day trial, and the page we read doesn't mention a card. No free edition. |
| Features | CMouse and trackpad behaviour is its one job: scroll direction and smoothing, pointer speed, acceleration off, button bindings, long presses and swipes, all per device, app or display. It does that job fully, and its own notes say gesture timings are fixed for the whole app. | BAnimated scrolling, button actions and gestures, auto scroll, grab-and-throw and per-app and per-display settings. Nothing in the listing is missing from the job. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record, and it isn't quite install-and-go: it wants Accessibility permission at first launch, another before it can simulate key presses, and the documentation says some advanced settings mean editing a JSON file that doesn't accept comments. | CMany per-app settings to work through. No store rating is on record. |
| Platforms and integrations | DMac only. No integrations are listed, though buttons can fire keyboard shortcuts and shell commands. Worth knowing that the current release is numbered 0.12.0. | CMac only, macOS Catalina 10.15 and up, with no other platform listed. |
| Best for | making a mouse behave on a Mac, for free | animated mouse scrolling on a Mac |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: LinearMouse and Smooze. How we grade
Where they differ
- LinearMouse is open source, according to its own site.
- Smooze can be bought with a one-time purchase.
- Smooze also covers menu bar app.
In commonmacOSKeyboard and mouse remapping
At a glance
| LinearMouse | Smooze | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free trial |
| Starts at | Free | $19.99 one-time, excluding VAT |
| Free plan | The whole app is free and open source under the MIT license, as a direct download or a Homebrew cask. Donations through GitHub Sponsors, Open Collective or Ko-fi are optional. | None |
| Free trial | None listed | 7-day trial |
| macOS | ||
| Made by | LinearMouse | Smooze |
| Price read from | github.com | buy.paddle.com (not the vendor's own page) |
| Checked | Oct 9, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
LinearMouse
- macOS only. It needs Accessibility permission at first launch, and a further permission before it can simulate key presses.
- The documentation says some advanced features are reached by editing the JSON configuration file, which does not accept comments.
- Gesture timings are fixed for the whole app, at 500 ms for a long press and 50 points for a swipe, and cannot be set per mapping.
- The current release is numbered 0.12.0, and the sponsors page lists one main developer.
Smooze
- Mac only; the site lists macOS Catalina 10.15 and up.
- The price is shown only in the vendor's Paddle checkout, as US$19.99 before VAT; the vendor's own site gives no price.
- One license can be used on two Macs; moving it to a new machine goes through support.
- People who bought the earlier non-Pro version are pointed to a separate download.
Key features
LinearMouse
- Profiles by device, app and display
- A group of settings can apply to all mice or all trackpads, to one device by vendor and product ID, to one app or process, or to a named display, and matching groups are merged.
- Scroll direction and smoothing
- Reverse vertical or horizontal scrolling on a mouse while the trackpad keeps natural scrolling, and add smoothed scrolling from presets with adjustable response, speed, acceleration and inertia.
- Pointer speed and acceleration
- Adjust pointer acceleration and speed per device, switch acceleration off entirely, or return either value to the system default.
- Button mappings
- Bind mouse buttons and wheel movements, with optional modifier keys, to Mission Control, Launchpad, media and brightness controls, keyboard shortcuts or shell commands.
- Long presses, chords and swipes
- Version 0.12.0 added long-press, button-combination and swipe triggers, so one button can do different things on a short press, a long press and a swipe in each direction.
- Click debouncing and hover focus
- Click debouncing filters repeated signals from worn mouse switches, and an optional setting focuses a window when the pointer moves over it.
Smooze
- Animated scrolling
- Adds smooth, animated scrolling to a scroll wheel mouse in every app.
- Button actions and gestures
- Attach mouse buttons to actions, and assign gestures and rocker gestures to buttons, shortcuts or apps.
- Auto scroll
- Scrolls anywhere on the screen hands-free with animated movement.
- Grab, drag and throw
- Grab the screen to scroll; throwing it animates the scroll the way a trackpad does.
- Free acceleration control
- Turn off scroll acceleration and choose lines per tick. The vendor says these features are and will stay free.
- Per-app and per-display settings
- All settings can be set for each app on each display.
Plans
LinearMouse
LinearMouse$0
Every feature, with no paid tier or license key. The project says donations go only to developer fees, infrastructure and test devices.
Smooze
Smooze Pro$19.99
one-time, excluding VAT; one license covers two Macs
Full app with animated scroll, button actions, gestures, auto scroll and per-display settings.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, LinearMouse or Smooze?
As of Nov 13, 2026, LinearMouse is free, and Smooze starts at $19.99 one-time, excluding VAT.
Which has a free plan, LinearMouse or Smooze?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only LinearMouse has a free plan. Smooze does not, though it has a free trial.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.