Smooze vs SteerMouse (2026): which should you pick?

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

Pick SteerMouse if

• Fits if you have a third-party USB or Bluetooth mouse with extra buttons on a Mac
• Works for per-app button setups

Look elsewhere if

• Not for you if you use Apple's Magic Mouse or Trackpad, as neither is supported
• Skip it if you use Windows or Linux, since it is Mac only
• Pricey if you upgrade often: major upgrades like 5.x to 6.0 are charged
• Watch out: settings from version 4 are not carried over to version 5, and older Macs need older builds

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.

SteerMouse

• Does not support the Apple Magic Mouse or Magic Trackpad, and some special buttons may not work.
• Version 5.8.2 needs macOS 12 Monterey or later; older macOS versions use older builds.
• Major upgrades, such as 5.x to 6.0, are charged for.
• Settings from version 4 are not carried over when moving to version 5.

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.

SteerMouse

Button assignments

Up to 24 functions per button, with modifier keys or button combinations (chording). Functions include shortcuts, clicks, scrolling, zoom and Mission Control.

Per-application settings

The mouse can be configured separately for each application.

Cursor speed and sensitivity

Adjusts sensitivity on top of the tracking speed in System Settings, and shows a ranking of settings other users chose.

Scroll tuning

Adjusts scroll acceleration and sensitivity, and has an auto-scroll option for hands-free scrolling.

Cursor snapping

Moves the cursor to a default or close button automatically, with an option to return it afterwards.

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.

SteerMouse

• New license$19.99

  one-time, lifetime license for version 5

  Minor upgrades such as 5.0 to 5.1 are free; a major upgrade such as 5.0 to 6.0 is charged.

• Upgrade from version 4$12.99

  one-time upgrade license

  For existing SteerMouse 4 users moving to version 5.