This App Keeps All Your Mac Apps Updated in One Place.
Tired of every app you open prompting you to install an update before you can use it? Want to install all updates at once? Updatest is the app for just that.
I’ve already talked about Homebrew for Mac , a command-line tool for installing and updating Mac software. Updatest scans all the programs on your computer and updates them using Homebrew, even if you didn’t originally install them that way. But that’s not all. Many apps use an open-source tool called Sparkle to provide updates, and Updatest can find and update all of them. The app can also identify apps downloaded from GitHub that have newer versions, as well as any apps downloaded from the Mac App Store.
Essentially, if there are updates for an app, Updatest can find and install them. To get started, click the download button on the app’s website (you can also install it using Homebrew if you already have it set up). The app will explain how it works, ask which app categories you want to update with the tool, and offer to install Homebrew if you haven’t already.
Once you’ve completed these steps, you’ll see a list of all apps on your system. You can filter the list to display only those apps that need updating.
Click on any app to learn more about the update. From there, you can install the update. Alternatively, you can click the “Bulk Update” button below the search bar to update all outdated apps at once. You can monitor the update process by clicking the “Terminal” button in the upper right corner, or you can let the app update automatically while you do something else.
Some updates require passwords, in which case you will be prompted to run the update command in Terminal.
In some cases, apps from the Mac App Store won’t update—in my tests, this mostly affected iPad apps I had installed. Instead, the app will provide you with a link to open the App Store and install the update.
These minor inconveniences are unavoidable and not overly burdensome. It’s nice to be able to check all your apps for updates in one place. If you’re interested, there’s a 15-day free trial to evaluate the app. Afterward, you can purchase a personal license that runs on three Mac computers for $9.99; a family license that runs on 10 Mac computers costs $19.99.