BetterLaunchpad

A modern replacement for the system "Applications" view (Tahoe style) that I didn’t like.

Compatibility: Requires macOS Tahoe 26+ (older versions are no longer supported).

A modern, customizable application launcher for macOS

Features • Installation • Usage • Localization • Contributing

Features

• Custom grid layout with configurable rows, columns, and icon size
• Fast app search with live filtering
• Favorites section
• Keyboard, mouse wheel, and gesture navigation
• Glass, solid color, and HTML background modes
• Built-in HTML themes and support for custom themes
• Configurable label font, color, and icon hover effects
• Localized interface for 15 languages

Requirements

• macOS 26.0.1 or newer
• Xcode 26.0.1 or newer for building from source
• Swift 6.2 or newer

Installation

Download the latest release from Releases, then move BetterLaunchpad.app to your Applications folder.

To build from source:

git clone https://github.com/Alien4042x/BetterLaunchpad.git
cd BetterLaunchpad
open BetterLaunchpad.xcodeproj

In Xcode, select the BetterLaunchpad scheme and run with Cmd + R.

Usage

• Launch BetterLaunchpad to show the app grid
• Type to search applications
• Click an app icon to launch it
• Use arrow keys, mouse wheel, or swipe gestures to change pages
• Press Esc to quit
• Press Cmd + , to open Settings
• Press Cmd + F to focus search

Customization

Settings include:

• Grid rows and columns
• Icon size
• Background type and opacity
• Built-in or custom HTML themes
• Label font, size, weight, color, and opacity
• Icon hover effect

Changes apply immediately.

Custom HTML Themes

Custom themes live here:

~/Library/Application Support/BetterLaunchpad/CustomThemes/

Each theme needs its own folder. The folder and file names must match:

CustomThemes/
└── mytheme/
    ├── mytheme.html
    ├── mytheme.css
    └── mytheme.js

Only the HTML file is required. CSS and JavaScript are optional.

Recommended theme rules:

• Use relative paths for CSS and JavaScript
• Set overflow: hidden to avoid scrollbars
• Use requestAnimationFrame() for animation
• Handle window resize if you use canvas

After adding a theme, open Settings, choose HTML background mode, and refresh the theme list.

Localization

Supports 15 languages covering 60%+ of the global population:

🇺🇸 English • 🇪🇸 Spanish • 🇫🇷 French • 🇩🇪 German • 🇷🇺 Russian • 🇺🇦 Ukrainian • 🇨🇳 Chinese • 🇯🇵 Japanese • 🇰🇷 Korean • 🇮🇹 Italian • 🇵🇹 Portuguese • 🇳🇱 Dutch • 🇵🇱 Polish • 🇨🇿 Czech • 🇸🇰 Slovak

Language	Code	Status
English	en	✅ Complete
Czech	cs	✅ Complete
Slovak	sk	✅ Complete
German	de	✅ Complete
French	fr	✅ Complete
Spanish	es	✅ Complete
Italian	it	✅ Complete
Dutch	nl	✅ Complete
Portuguese	pt	✅ Complete
Polish	pl	✅ Complete
Russian	ru	✅ Complete
Ukrainian	uk	✅ Complete
Japanese	ja	✅ Complete
Korean	ko	✅ Complete
Chinese (Simplified)	zh-Hans	✅ Complete

To add a language, create a new [language-code].lproj/Localizable.strings file, translate the keys from en.lproj/Localizable.strings, and add the localization in Xcode.

Project Structure

BetterLaunchpad/
├── BetterLaunchpadApp.swift
├── ContentView.swift
├── Settings.swift
├── AboutView.swift
├── GlassBackground.swift
├── GlassSearchBar.swift
├── HTMLThemeManager.swift
├── FavoritesManager.swift
├── FavoritesModal.swift
├── Resources/
│   └── HTMLThemes/
└── *.lproj/

Contributing

Issues and pull requests are welcome. Keep changes focused and include screenshots for UI changes when possible.

License

BetterLaunchpad is licensed under the MIT License. See LICENSE.