Homebrew

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BrewUI, Homebrew's Own Mac App

BrewUI, the Homebrew GUI app. Homebrew's own free Mac app for installing software by clicking instead of typing, and seeing each command as you go.

BrewUI is Homebrew's own app for finding and installing Mac software. Most people get Mac apps from the App Store or from a publisher's website, and if they know about Homebrew, they think of it as a command-line tool for programmers. But Homebrew actually is a free catalog of thousands of apps and tools (everyday apps such as Zoom, Chrome and LibreOffice among them), many of them completely free. BrewUI puts the entire Homebrew catalog in a searchable window, with an easy one-click install.

The app's name is confusing. Homebrew's developers call it BrewUI. Once it is installed, it appears as "Homebrew" in your Applications folder. And many people search for it as "Homebrew GUI" (a graphical user interface, meaning an app with windows and buttons instead of typed commands).

Homebrew says it made BrewUI for newcomers and for people who would rather not use the command line. Its own description says it is for "CLI-averse users" (people who avoid the command-line interface), and Homebrew's project leader, Mike McQuaid, says it is "aimed a little more at newcomers" while still meant for experienced users. If you already use Homebrew, it gives you a convenient view of every package that is installed and every package that is out of date. There is one catch for beginners. BrewUI doesn't install Homebrew, so you need one trip to a terminal application (or use my free app) before you can use it. After that, you can install and update everyday apps without typing a command.

BrewUI is an optional step in setting up your Mac. See the Mac setup guide for more.

Before you get started

I recommend using our free app to set up Homebrew and install BrewUI. It is a FREE Mac app that installs Homebrew, configures and verifies it, then offers to install BrewUI. It does the setup described in this guide, but easier and faster. Here are all the details about the app before you download. Then:

First steps to install BrewUI

First, check the macOS version. If you're running an older version, update macOS to the latest macOS version.

Here's what BrewUI needs:

  • macOS 26.2 or later. Homebrew's package record says macOS 26, but the app itself is built for 26.2, so on 26.0 or 26.1 it may install and then not open. Homebrew's developers have said they won't make it work on macOS 15 or earlier.
  • An administrator account. Homebrew's developers don't support BrewUI on a standard account. The first account on a Mac is an administrator account, so this matters only if you set up a separate standard account for everyday use.
  • Homebrew installed. BrewUI runs the real Homebrew in the background, so it can't do anything until Homebrew is on your Mac. If it doesn't find Homebrew, it shows the message "Couldn't locate the brew executable. Install Homebrew, then refresh." Follow Install Homebrew on Mac, or use my app, which installs Homebrew and then offers BrewUI. Homebrew no longer installs on an Intel Mac, so a new setup needs a Mac with Apple Silicon.

Install BrewUI

If you use any of my "Set Up Your Mac" apps, you can skip the terminal command shown here. Right after the app sets up Homebrew, "Set Up Your Mac" offers BrewUI with an Install button (on macOS 26.2 or later).

Homebrew installs BrewUI the same way it installs any other Mac app. Without my app, open a terminal application (How to Open Terminal on Mac) and run this command:

$ brew install --cask homebrew-app

The --cask option tells Homebrew to install a Mac app rather than a command-line tool, and homebrew-app is BrewUI's name in Homebrew's catalog. There is no package named brewui, so a command with that name finds nothing.

When the command finishes, look in your Applications folder for an app named Homebrew, with Homebrew's beer mug icon. Or press Command-Space (Spotlight search) and type "homebrew".

BrewUI updates itself, and it also updates when you run brew upgrade in a terminal application.

Install an app with BrewUI

For ideas of apps to install, see my list of Best Homebrew Packages and Apps.

Here's how to install an everyday app, such as Zoom, with BrewUI:

  1. Open BrewUI and choose Discover in the sidebar. Discover searches Homebrew's whole catalog.
  2. Type the app's name in the search field. Results include both Mac apps and command-line tools, and you can filter the list to show only one kind.
  3. Select the app to see its description, version and homepage. Check the homepage to confirm it is the app you want, because some names are similar.
  4. Click Install. Before you click, BrewUI shows a plain-English line ("Installs this package on your Mac") and the exact brew command it will run.
  5. Watch the console at the bottom of the window, which shows Homebrew's output as it works.
  6. Open the new app from your Applications folder.

A few apps need your administrator password to install, such as Docker Desktop. BrewUI version 0.6.0 can't install those yet. Install them in a terminal application with brew install --cask and the app's name, where Homebrew asks for your password.

A tour of BrewUI

Most things you'd do in the terminal for Homebrew are available in BrewUI but the graphical interface makes everything more convenient, especially when you don't know what's available.

Here's what you can do in BrewUI:

  • Discover - Search thousands of apps and command-line tools. Before you search, it shows a Trending list of the apps and tools installed most in the last 30 days, which is a good place to see what other people have installed.
  • Installed - Everything you've installed with Homebrew, whether you used BrewUI or a terminal command. Select a package to see its version, what it depends on, what depends on it, and when you installed it.
  • Upgrades - Software with a newer version available, with an Upgrade All button. BrewUI refreshes Homebrew's list of available software before it checks, so the list is current.
  • Doctor - Runs Homebrew's own check for problems (brew doctor) and shows what it finds. Fixes that need an administrator password are marked "Needs admin · runs in Terminal" and open in Terminal.
  • Services - Background programs that some tools run, such as a database. In version 0.6.0 this screen lists them, and you start or stop them in a terminal application.
  • Configuration - Homebrew's settings as BrewUI sees them. This is where you'll see the "Install Homebrew, then refresh" message if Homebrew is missing.

BrewUI won't remove a package that other installed software needs, and it tells you which packages to uninstall first. That protects you from breaking another tool by accident.

To keep a record of your software, choose "Save Brewfile…" to save a Brewfile, a list of everything you've installed with Homebrew. On a new Mac, the brew bundle command in a terminal application installs everything in that list at once. A Brewfile is a super-convenient way to duplicate installed software from one Mac to another.

BrewUI and the brew command

BrewUI teaches the commands while it does the work. Every action that changes your Mac (install, uninstall, upgrade, and the Doctor check) shows the brew command behind it, with a Copy button. Browsing and searching don't show a command. Homebrew's own announcement says the goal is "helping connect graphical actions with familiar terminal commands."

Here's how BrewUI's buttons match the commands experienced users type:

  • Install - brew install (or brew install --cask for a Mac app). See Install a Homebrew Package.
  • Uninstall - brew uninstall. See Brew uninstall.
  • Upgrade and Upgrade All - brew upgrade, after brew update refreshes the list of available software. See Update Homebrew.
  • Doctor - brew doctor. See Housekeeping for Homebrew for the other upkeep commands.
  • Search - brew search, the command that finds a package by name.

BrewUI and the brew command work on the same installed Homebrew, so software you install either way appears in both. Once you recognize the commands you can run any in a terminal application the same as BrewUI.

What BrewUI can't do yet

BrewUI isn't yet a full-fledged App Store for free software. As of version 0.6.0 (November 2026), here are its limits:

  • No app store extras. There are no ratings, reviews, screenshots or categories, and search results don't show app icons. Trending is the only help in choosing.
  • No taps. A tap is a third-party collection of Homebrew packages. To install from a tap, use a terminal application.
  • Brewfile export only. BrewUI saves a Brewfile but can't install from one. Use brew bundle in a terminal application.
  • No changelogs. BrewUI can't show what changed in an update, because Homebrew doesn't keep that information.
  • Your shell settings don't apply. BrewUI ignores your ~/.zprofile and ~/.zshrc files. If you set Homebrew options there, put them in Homebrew's own brew.env file instead. Most beginners have no such settings.

Who made BrewUI

BrewUI was made for the Homebrew project (Homebrew/BrewUI) and is published by the maintainers, in Homebrew's own GitHub organization. Most of the code was written by one developer, Graeme Arthur, with Homebrew's maintainers reviewing and contributing. Homebrew announced it as upcoming in June 2026 and called it fully released with Homebrew 7.0.0 in September 2026, though its version number is still below 1.0.

People have built 3rd-party Homebrew apps for years, and Homebrew's project leader, Mike McQuaid, has explained why Homebrew released its own. The project looked for an existing app that was open source, well maintained and met its requirements, found none, and built one.

Uninstall BrewUI

If you decide you don't need BrewUI, remove it with this command:

$ brew uninstall --cask homebrew-app

This removes only the app. Homebrew, and everything you installed with BrewUI, stays on your Mac and keeps working from a terminal application. To also remove BrewUI's settings, add --zap to the command.

Similar apps

Other developers made 3rd-party Homebrew apps before BrewUI, and some of them still offer features BrewUI lacks or run on older versions of macOS. All of these are independent apps, not Homebrew's own, and you can install each one with Homebrew.

Only one of them installs Homebrew for you, and it installs a limited private copy (explained below). My "Set Up Your Mac" apps install the standard Homebrew, and also offer to install BrewUI, so "Set Up Your Mac" is a good place to start.

  • Applite - Free and open source, for macOS 14 or later, Mac apps only (brew install --cask applite). It shows apps in categories with icons, like an app store, and imports and exports Brewfiles. It is the only one that installs Homebrew for you, so you never open a terminal application. But it installs a private copy that only Applite uses, so the brew command doesn't work in a terminal application afterward, and BrewUI can't use that copy. Keeping its own copy also means Applite depends on its developer to keep up with Homebrew. Applite can use the standard Homebrew instead, if you already have installed it with the terminal.
  • CaskHub - Free and open source, for macOS 15.6 or later, Mac apps only (brew install --cask caskhub). It offers app-store browsing, with categories, icons and a "Recently Added" list, and you can browse before Homebrew is installed. It doesn't install Homebrew itself, but a guided setup walks you through installing the standard Homebrew. It can also take over updates for apps you installed by hand, and it imports and exports Brewfiles.
  • Cork - €25 for the ready-built app, or free if you build it yourself from its source code, for macOS 14 or later (brew install --cask cork). It manages apps, command-line tools, taps and services, and has the longest feature list of these apps. You need Homebrew installed first.
  • Taphouse - Free, with a Pro version for €9.99 once (€19.99 for a family) that adds a menu bar badge for updates and handles several packages at once, for macOS 14 or later (brew install --cask taphouse). Its website doesn't say it installs Homebrew.
  • WailBrew - Free and open source, for macOS 11 or later (brew install --cask wailbrew). It is a small, simple app for apps and command-line tools, built with web technology rather than as a native Mac app. You need Homebrew installed first.

You may also read about Cakebrew, the original Homebrew app. It is discontinued (its last release was in 2021) and Homebrew removed it from its catalog in December 2025, so it is no longer available.

I recommend BrewUI if your Mac runs macOS 26.2 or later, because it is Homebrew's own and it teaches you the commands as you go. Choose Applite if you never want to open a terminal application or use my app to install Homebrew. Choose CaskHub if you want to browse apps the way you would in an app store, or Cork or Taphouse if you want more features and don't mind paying. With any of them, the free software experienced Mac users get from Homebrew is a click away, and with BrewUI you learn the commands that give you the same control from a terminal application.

Whether you use BrewUI or the 3rd-party Homebrew apps, you'll set up your Mac to be more useful and more capable than most other people's Macs.

Continue setting up your Mac

Don't miss the full visual roadmap and checklist that shows how to set up a Mac for software development, with all the essential tools and settings you might not yet know about.