Choosy has been a smarter default browser for the Mac since 2007. Click a link and it either follows one of your rules or pops up a picker at your pointer, so the link opens in the browser you meant. Its rule system is one of the most detailed around.
Switchbar gives you the same everyday flow, a picker plus rules, for free on both Mac and Windows. It also opens links in Safari profiles, and it removes tracking and expands short links by default.
At a glance
| Switchbar | Choosy | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A free picker that opens every link in the right browser, profile, or app | A rule-based default browser and picker for Mac |
| Platforms | macOS, Windows | macOS 15.6 or later |
| Picker | Your favorite browsers, profiles, and apps in one row, centered or under your pointer, with keyboard shortcuts | Appears at your pointer in a row or circle, with ⌘+number shortcuts |
| Browser profiles | Any profile, including Safari profiles, plus Incognito and InPrivate windows | Profiles and private windows in Chrome, Edge, Brave, and Vivaldi |
| Desktop apps | Opens links in apps like Zoom, Figma, Spotify, and Notion, suggesting the matching app first | Any app can be added, though non-browsers may not work correctly |
| Rules | URL, domain, or email address with wildcards, set in a few clicks or from the picker | Regex, wildcards, source app, modifier keys, running browsers, Handoff, and AirDrop |
| Link cleanup | Removes tracking parameters and expands short links, on by default | Expands short links for display in the prompt |
What is Switchbar?
Switchbar is a free browser picker for Mac and Windows. Make it your default browser, and every link you click shows a row of your favorite browsers, profiles, and apps, so you can choose where it opens with a click or a keystroke. Check "Remember this choice" and Switchbar turns that decision into a rule, so the sites you open every day skip the picker. It needs no account.
What is Choosy?
Choosy is a Mac app that becomes your default browser and sends each link to the right one. Its rules can match regular expressions, the app a link came from, the modifier keys you hold, and links that arrive through Handoff or AirDrop. When no rule applies, a prompt appears at your pointer. This comparison is based on Choosy 2.5.2.
1. Free, on Mac and Windows
Choosy is a Mac app, and its current version needs macOS 15.6 or later. Switchbar runs on both Mac and Windows with the same picker and the same rules, which helps if you work on both or are moving from one to the other. It's free, with no account to create.
2. Safari profiles, one click away
Choosy opens links in profiles and private windows in Chrome, Edge, Brave, and Vivaldi, but not in Safari profiles.
Switchbar lists your Safari profiles next to your other browsers and profiles. A link can open in your Work or Personal Safari profile with one click, or every time with a rule.
3. Clean links before your rules run
Switchbar removes tracking parameters and expands common short links before it decides where a link opens. Your rules see the real destination, so a bit.ly link to a work document still lands in your work profile.
Choosy can expand short links too, but only to show them in its prompt, after your rules have already run.
4. Rules that cover the everyday
Choosy's rules are built for people who want to fine-tune everything. Switchbar's cover what most people need: match a URL, domain, or email address with wildcards, then open it in a browser, profile, or app, copy it, or always ask. You can create a rule right from the picker and drag rules into order.
Moving from Choosy
Switchbar understands Choosy's x-choosy:// links, so the browser extensions, bookmarklets, and scripts that send links to Choosy keep working after you switch.
- Download Switchbar and make it your default browser.
- Let it find your browsers, profiles, and apps, then pick your favorites.
- Add rules as you go by checking "Remember this choice" in the picker.
Which one should you choose?
Choosy is still a good fit if you:
- Want rules based on regular expressions, the source app, modifier keys, or Handoff and AirDrop
- Automate links with Shortcuts actions or a URL API
- Want browser extensions for Safari, Firefox, or Edge
Switchbar is the better fit if you:
- Want a free picker that works the same way on Mac and Windows
- Use Safari profiles
- Want links cleaned up before they open
- Prefer simple rules you can set from the picker
Get the right browser for every link, on every computer you use: try Switchbar for free.
