Hazel alternative
Folders that tidy themselves — in your file manager
Hazel has been filing Mac users' downloads for years, and its rules engine is the most complete there is. Folia Files covers everyday filing — sort, rename, tag and clean up what lands in a folder — with a preview first and an undo afterwards, inside a complete file manager.
7 days free with every feature, no account, no card. Then $49.99 once for up to 3 Macs, every future update included — no subscription.
In short
Hazel ($42 for two Macs, 14-day trial, macOS 13 or later) is the deepest folder automation on the Mac: conditions on any Spotlight attribute and on the text inside PDFs and scans, scripts, Shortcuts, imports into Photos and Music, App Sweep and Trash management, all running in the background. Folia Files ($49.99 once, a full file manager) has automatic rules too: watch a folder, then move, copy, rename, tag, open or trash what lands in it, with the advanced search's criteria, “Otherwise, If” branches, a preview, and every action in an undo history. Choose Hazel for deep automation; choose Folia Files for everyday filing and a file manager in one app.
Rules side by side
| Feature | Folia Files | Hazel |
|---|---|---|
| Watch folders and act on what lands in them | Yes | Yes |
| Runs on its own | PartlyWhile Folia Files is open — it can start at login, without a window | YesA background helper, window open or not |
| Name, extension, kind, size, dates, tags, download source | YesThe advanced search's criteria, regular expressions included | YesAny Spotlight attribute too |
| Words inside documents | PartlyPlain-text files | YesPDFs and scans too, with text recognition |
| Several outcomes in one rule | Yes“Otherwise, If” branches | YesNested conditions, rules in order |
| Move, copy, rename, tag, open, Trash | Yes | Yes |
| Sort into dated subfolders | Yes{year}/{month} tokens | YesSort into subfolder |
| Archive, upload to a server, import into Photos or Music | No | Yes |
| Run scripts | PartlyA shell command (website edition) | YesShell, AppleScript, JavaScript, Automator, Shortcuts |
| See what a rule will do first | YesEach item and what it will become, then Apply Now | YesRule preview |
| Undo what a rule did | YesIn the Operations history and the notification | PartlyRevert from the Finder; not copies or imports |
| Clean up after uninstalled apps | PartlyMac care › Applications, when you uninstall | YesApp Sweep, when you trash an app |
| Keep the Trash in check | No | Yes |
| A full file manager | YesPanes, search, tools, Mac care | No |
| Price | $49.99 once, up to 3 Macs, updates included | $42 for 2 Macs, $65 family pack; $20 to upgrade from an older version |
| Free trial | 7 days, every feature | 14 days, then 1 folder and 2 rules |
| macOS | 14 or later | 13 or later |
| On the Mac App Store | Coming soon | NoNoodlesoft's website |
What Hazel does that Folia Files doesn't
Hazel goes much further. Its conditions reach any Spotlight attribute, the text inside PDFs and scans — recognized on the fly when needed — and checks written as scripts. Its actions archive, upload to a server, import into Photos, Music or TV, and run Shortcuts, AppleScript, JavaScript, Automator workflows or shell scripts. App Sweep offers to remove an app's leftovers when you trash it, and Hazel keeps the Trash in check, deleting old items or emptying it when it grows too big.
It also runs in the background, whether its window is open or not. If your workflows depend on any of this, keep Hazel: it is the reference, and Folia Files works fine next to it.
What you get with Folia Files
A rule watches a folder — and its subfolders if you like — and acts on what lands in it: move or copy it to a folder, into dated subfolders such as {year}/{month}; rename it from tokens such as {date} {name} or {source}; add a color tag; open it; or send it to the Trash. Its conditions are those of the advanced search — name with regular expressions, extension, kind, size, dates added, created, modified or downloaded, tags, the site a file came from — plus a few for pictures: a screenshot from an iPhone, an iPad or a Mac, the orientation, the size in pixels, whether it contains text.
- “Otherwise, If” branches: one rule sorts a folder several ways
- Suggestions for your folders: screenshots, old downloads, installers, PDF invoices by year, photos by date
- A preview of each item and what it will become, then Apply Now
- Files still downloading or being written wait until they are complete; a disk is never moved
- Every run in the Operations history, undone in one click
Filing on demand, too
Not everything needs a rule. Ask Folia takes a sentence — “move the screenshots on my Desktop to Screenshots” — and shows exactly which files and what it will do before doing anything, from any app with ⌃⌥Space. And a saved search sits in the sidebar, always up to date, like a folder that files itself.
Which one to choose
Hazel, if…
- Your rules read the text inside PDFs and scans
- They run scripts or Shortcuts, archive, upload, or import into Photos and Music
- They must run with no other app open
- You want App Sweep and automatic Trash cleanup
Folia Files, if…
- You mostly file downloads, screenshots, invoices and photos
- You want to see what a rule will do, and undo what it did
- You want screenshots sorted by device in one rule
- You'd rather have one app that is also your file manager, with search, tools and Mac care
Website edition and Mac App Store
Rules are in both editions. The “run a command” action is in the website edition only: Apple's sandbox does not allow it in the Mac App Store edition.
Questions
No. Rules act while Folia Files is open: as soon as something changes in the folder, and every 30 minutes for conditions on age. To keep them working, let Folia Files open at login, in the background and without a window (Settings › General). Hazel has a background helper that runs whether its window is open or not.
Yes. Give each app its own folders, so that two rules never act on the same files.
No. Rules are made in Folia Files' Rules tool: start from a suggestion or an empty rule, check the preview, then switch it on — a new rule starts off.
macOS 14 or later, on Apple silicon or Intel. It is in 8 languages and is sold on its website, and soon on the Mac App Store.
Keep reading
See for yourself, free for 7 days
Every feature, no account, no credit card. Then $49.99, once, every future update included — no subscription.
Prices and features checked on 5 October 2026, on Noodlesoft's website, store, manual and release notes.