Folia Files vs Marta
Looking for a Marta alternative?
Marta is a fast, keyboard-first, extensible file manager — and a free beta whose last release dates from 2024. If you need servers, batch rename or undo, here is how Folia Files compares.
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
Marta is free, very fast, keyboard-centric and scriptable in Lua, with an embedded terminal, but its last version (0.8.2) is from mid-2024 and it has no servers, batch rename, undo or folder sync. Folia Files is actively developed and has all of these, plus search inside documents and images, scenes, a clipboard history and an Open/Save assistant, for $49.99 once.
Feature by feature
| Feature | Folia Files | Marta |
|---|---|---|
| Folders side by side | YesAs many as you need, any layout | YesTwo |
| Saved layouts | YesScenes and workspaces | No |
| A view per folder | Yes | No |
| Tree view | Yes | NoRequested |
| Gallery view | Yes | No |
| SFTP, FTP, WebDAV, S3 | YesSFTP and S3 through rclone (free) | No |
| SMB and network shares | Yes | No |
| Cloud services | YesThrough their apps, or directly with rclone | No |
| Folder sync | Yes | NoRequested since 2017 |
| Batch rename | YesTemplates, photo dates, regex | NoRequested |
| Built-in terminal | YesWebsite edition | YesSynced with the pane |
| Archives opened as folders | YesZIP and TAR, read-only | YesZIP read-write |
| Quick open from the keyboard | Yes⌘P | Yes⌘P |
| Undo file operations | YesAny line of the history | NoRequested |
| Clipboard history | Yes | No |
| Open/Save dialog assistant | Yes | No |
| Price | $49.99 once, up to 3 Macs, updates included | Free beta (paid license planned) |
| Languages | 8 | English |
What Marta does well
Marta is a native Swift app, light and fast, made for the keyboard: an action palette, a Look Up panel (⌘P), configuration in a text file and a Lua plugin API. Its embedded terminal follows the pane, and it can even edit inside ZIP files.
Why people look for an alternative
Marta has not had a release since version 0.8.2 in mid-2024. Its issue tracker lists long-standing requests: SFTP, batch rename, undo, folder sync, a tree view. If you need any of these today, they are in Folia Files.
- Servers and clouds mounted as disks
- Batch rename with a preview
- Undo of every operation
- Eight views, including tree, gallery and branches
- Scenes, a clipboard history and an Open/Save assistant
Which one to choose
Marta, if…
- You want a free, minimal, keyboard-only tool
- You write Lua plugins
- Local files are all you need
Folia Files, if…
- You need servers, batch rename or undo
- You want an app that is updated
- You want to search inside documents and images, and tools in every app
Questions
Yes: ⌘P quick open, ⌘1 to ⌘7 for views, F5 and F6 between panes, F2 to rename, global shortcuts for the drawer and the clipboard, and every menu command can get its own shortcut in macOS.
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 3 October 2026, on the makers' websites, documentation and release notes.