Binky
Binky sorts your files.
A macOS app that sorts your files into tidy folders, once or as they arrive. Free and open source.
v1.5.1 · macOS 14 Sonoma · Apple silicon ·
Turn on Watch to tidy new files, or run Sort Now. You can also drop files from your watch folder here.
Files mid-download wait until they settle.
Sorted folders
Images, PDFs, media, documents, archives, apps, screenshots, misc — each routed into tidy destinations inside the fussy folder you're calming.
Review folder
Unknowns land here first — nothing sketchy silently disappears. Activity and history spell out messy origins.
Menu bar mode
Hide the Dock icon and run Binky quietly from the menu bar. Sort Now, pause watching, open History — no window needed.
Routines
Sort it once,
or keep it sorted.
Turn on Watch to tidy new files, or run Sort Now. You can also drop files from your watch folder here.
Files mid-download wait until they settle.
Rule
When
figma.com
Runs before automatic destinations. Add extensions, sites, or size rules only if you need them.
Then
Rename
Routines
Name
When
Install from disk images
Rules
Know where it goes
before it moves.
Sort preview
Inline dry-run beside the source card mirrors the live path; confirm tidy only when calm.
Source-aware routing
Routes files by where they came from. A Dribbble download goes to Design. A bank email attachment goes to Finance. Done before you touch it.
Describe a rule
Speak loosely — preview what Binky heard before the rule snaps in. On macOS 26 Tahoe, Foundation Models lend a sharper pass when Apple exposes them.
Currently sorting
96 of 650 — IMG_2041.HEIC
- IMG_2041.HEIC
- Invoice-0423.pdf
- design-assets.zip
- Screen Recording 2026-10-16 at 4.12.08 PM.mov
- Synth-Installer-2.4.dmg
You can dismiss this sheet — sorting continues in the background.
Also in Binky
Quiets the mess right down.
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Smart screenshot names
Screenshots named by their contents. Vision reads the screen; Binky does the filing.
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Energy management
Backs off on Low Power Mode and thermal spikes. Large-batch pacing — Auto, Gentle, or Aggressive — keeps the Mac from sweating.
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Waits for downloads to finish
Sorts only after a file has fully landed. No half-copied regrets.
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Finder tags
Routine defaults plus per-rule tagging. Spotlight hues still rescue memory lapses — protected Finder tags keep chosen files politely frozen.
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Finder Quick Action
“Sort with Binky” from the right-click menu. The fussy stuff never needs a full app launch.
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Shortcuts
Plug Binky into your own Shortcuts. Sort a folder on a hotkey, after a Focus mode, or as part of a bigger routine.
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Receipt & invoice detection
Spots the total and the vendor. Routes financial documents automatically, no folder-watching required.
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Launch at login
Optional Login Item so Binky's already there when the folder starts fussing.
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Duplicate guard
Hashes everything — SHA-256 first; perceptual sniffing catches screenshot twins insisting they're unique.
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Stale file aging
Files that haven't been touched in ages get quietly archived. The watch folder stays clean.
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CLI
Sort, preview, and run Routines from Terminal — same rules and prefs as the app. Build from source with SwiftPM.
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On your Mac only
No sign-in, no upload step. Sorting runs locally. The site may use Fathom; the app doesn't phone home.
Who it's for
Fussy inbox. Meet Binky.
Less digging, more making.
Figma exports, client zips, video renders, PDFs — sorted when they finish landing. Quick Sort for a clean sweep; Routines plus source-aware rules push assets toward project disks without babysitting Downloads.
Find it in seconds, not on the third re-download.
Lecture slides, school forms, receipts, tickets, tax PDFs — out of the heap and into folders that make sense.
Give it to Binky.
Free, about 13 MB, and your files stay on your Mac.
Compare
The quiet one is Binky.
Hazel writes rules. Refolder asks AI. Dropzone wants a drag. Binky just watches, sorts, and parks the mess — no subscription, no setup tax.
Rough tradeoffs — features move. Full comparisons →
Binky |
Hazel
|
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|---|---|---|
Price
|
Free | |
Watch folder
|
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Review folder
|
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Waits for downloads to finish
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Optional Finder tags
|
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Undo moves
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Where macOS agrees | |
Custom rules
|
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Sort preview
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Open source
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MIT | |
App size
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13 MB |
People who popped in a Binky
Real quotes from GitHub Discussions. Want to share your take? Leave a review.
Your data, in plain English
Binky isn't from the App Store, and the build isn't notarized today. That's a distribution choice, not a data choice. The source is on GitHub under MIT so you can read what it does.
Sorting stays on your Mac. No Binky cloud, no upload step, no account.
What leaves the machine
- Once a day, Binky asks GitHub if a newer release exists. That's the only automatic outbound request (see UpdateChecker.swift).
- Crash sharing is off by default. When you turn it on, Apple's MetricKit delivers diagnostics on your Mac. Nothing is sent until you choose Email or a prefilled GitHub issue.
Questions
Good to know
Do I need to be technical to use this?
Nope. Open the app, stay on Quick Sort, hit Sort when you want a folder calmed — Downloads stays the polite default. Add Routines when you want the same routing to run on its own. Reach for Describe a rule once you crave specifics.
What’s the difference between Quick Sort and Routines?
Quick Sort is a one-shot sweep — pick a folder, hit Sort, done (⌘1 jumps there). Routines are named, persistent watchers: each one has its own source folder, rule stack, and tag defaults that run automatically (⌘2). Start with Quick Sort; graduate to Routines when the same folder keeps yelling.
Does Binky upload my files?
No. Sorting stays on your Mac — no Binky cloud, no account. Once a day the app checks GitHub for a newer release (that's the only automatic outbound request). Details: Your data, in plain English.
Does it move originals or make copies?
Moves originals. Nothing duplicated, nothing left behind in Downloads. That's why the stable-file gate and the Review folder exist — Binky won't touch a file it isn't sure about.
macOS says Binky can't be opened — what do I do?
If Binky’s icon in Applications has a line through it, your Mac doesn’t match this build’s CPU (current releases are Apple Silicon only)—see Mac and macOS requirements. Otherwise that’s Gatekeeper.
Is Binky notarized? Why isn't it on the App Store?
It isn't Apple-notarized or Mac App Store today. That's distribution — the binary ships straight from GitHub as free MIT open source. For what the app actually talks to over the network, read Your data, in plain English. First-launch Gatekeeper pain is separate:
Mac only? Which Mac and macOS?
Yes. SwiftUI, native frameworks, no cross-platform runtime. Apple Silicon (M-series Mac). Intel-based Macs are not supported for the current DMG and Homebrew cask. macOS 14 Sonoma or later. On macOS 26 Tahoe, the UI uses Liquid Glass where available.
What about Dinky (compression)?
Dinky shrinks images, video, audio, and PDFs. Its current releases need Apple Silicon and macOS 15 Sequoia or later — see dinkyfiles.com for download and install help.
Where do files land after sorting?
Each routine declares its sorted destinations and downstream actions — rename tokens, archive extraction, Finder-only DMG installs, Finder tag spreads, Trash when warranted.
What file types go in which destination?
Images (jpg, png, gif, webp, svg, heic…), PDFs, Media (mp4, mov, mp3, m4a…), Documents (doc, txt, md, xls…), Archives (zip, rar, 7z, tar…), Apps (dmg, pkg, app), Screenshots (matched by name pattern), Misc (everything else). Unknowns or ambiguous types go to Review.
What about watching Downloads or synced folders?
Binky watches the folder you pick (Downloads by default). For Dropbox, Drive, iCloud, etc., it reacts after the sync client finishes laying bytes on disk — same idea as catching a fussy saver.
Can I set custom routing rules?
Yep — names, extensions, kinds, sizes, sheltered Finder tags, download origins, OCR hints — then reroute, rename, tag, unpack archives, install DMGs quietly, trash when you swear it's junk.
What if Binky isn't running when files land?
The watch folder only acts while Binky is running. Files that arrived while it was off sit untouched — run Sort Now when you're ready and it'll sweep them up.
Who made this and why?
Derek Castelli builds client sites in Figma and Webflow. He wanted a Downloads workflow that behaved without acting sneaky.