Clop alternatives for Mac
By Himanshu Ranjan · Updated 8 November 2026
Clop is excellent if you want images shrunk the moment you copy them, and that part is free. If you want to compress files on purpose, to a size limit, in large batches, or alongside PDF and video jobs, FileDial is a strong Mac alternative that runs offline from Finder. For free, ImageOptim and Preview cover basic image shrinking.
Why people look for a Clop alternative
- Free-tier caps: Clop's free version limits file optimisation, conversion, the drop zone and the command line to 5 per session, and drops to 5 files at a time.
- Batch mode is Pro: optimising large drops in one window is listed as a Pro feature.
- Background versus on demand: some people do not want copied images changed automatically and prefer to pick the result each time.
- Wider jobs: Clop optimises and converts, but jobs like OCR, redaction, trimming or renaming are outside its scope.
About Clop: A Mac utility from lowtechguys that optimises images, videos, PDFs and audio, including automatically optimising images as soon as you copy them. Platforms: Mac, macOS 14 Sonoma or later. Direct download or Homebrew.. Price: Free version, free forever after a 14-day Pro trial; Clop Pro is a €15 lifetime license.. Where files are processed: On your Mac. The site says Clop does not use any cloud services and does not send file data to the internet.
Every Clop tool, and its FileDial equivalent
| Clop | FileDial (offline) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Optimise images | Compress › Compress | Smaller copy, looks the same |
| Fit under size | Compress › Compress to size… | New copy beside the original |
| Downscale images | Resize › Resize to 50% | New copy beside the original |
| Crop to a size or aspect ratio | Resize › Crop… | The box is measured from the top left |
| Convert to WebP | Convert › Convert to WebP | Animated GIFs stay animated. Metadata isn't kept |
| Convert to AVIF | Convert › Convert to AVIF | New copy beside the original |
| Convert video to HEVC | Convert › Convert to HEVC (smaller) | New copy beside the original |
| Convert video to WebM | Convert › Convert to WebM | New copy beside the original |
| Optimise video files | Compress › Compress to 720p | New copy beside the original |
| Optimise PDFs | Compress › Compress PDF | Images at 144 dpi · text stays selectable |
| Optimise audio (WAV to MP3) | Convert › Convert to MP3 | New copy beside the original |
| Optimise GIFs | Compress › Optimize GIF to size… | Fewer colours, frames or pixels until it fits |
What FileDial does not replace:
- Clipboard optimisation: Clop shrinks images as you copy them, ready to paste. FileDial works on files you select, not the clipboard.
- Screen recordings and formats: Clop watches for new screen recordings and optimises them as they are created, converts to JPEG XL and AV1, and has a command-line tool and an MCP server. FileDial has none of these.
- Cost of entry: Clop's free version keeps working forever with caps, and Pro is €15. FileDial is $20 after a 1-day trial.
Details about Clop come from its own website, checked 2026-11-09. FileDial tool names match the app exactly.
The best Clop alternatives for Mac
1. FileDial
Select images in Finder and pick Compress › Compress under 1 MB, Compress › Compress under 500 KB or Compress › Compress by percentage… A batch of 300 photos converted in 5 seconds on a MacBook, with no per-session limit. Watched folders run a recipe on anything dropped into a folder.
- Size targets for photos, PDFs and video
- Original kept, result beside it, with Undo
- Needs macOS 14 or later on an Apple silicon Mac
- No clipboard optimisation
2. ImageOptim
ImageOptim runs JPEG, PNG, GIF and SVG files through optimisers such as MozJPEG, pngquant, Zopfli and SVGO and strips metadata, lossless by default. It does not convert formats or resize.
- Free with no caps
- Several optimisers in one pass
- Images only
- No size targets or format conversion
3. Preview (built in)
Preview can export a PDF with the Reduce File Size Quartz filter, per Apple's guide, and it can resize and re-export images one at a time. It is fine for a single file and slow for many.
- Already installed
- Manual, one file at a time
- No automation
What Clop does better than anything else
Clop's signature feature is quiet: as long as it is running, every image you copy is optimised and ready to paste, which suits people who paste screenshots into tickets, chats and notes all day. Clop's own free-versus-Pro table lists automatic clipboard optimisation in the free version, so if that is all you use, you may not need anything else.
It also optimises screen recordings as they are created, offers pipelines you can pin to the clipboard, a drop zone or a watched folder, and has a command-line tool. If those are your daily habits, keep Clop.
Where an alternative makes sense
The free version caps most file jobs at 5 per session and 5 files per drop, and batch mode is Pro. If you regularly process a folder of product photos or a week of screenshots, you either pay €15 for Pro or use a tool without caps.
FileDial is built around deliberate jobs on files you choose. You pick the exact outcome: Compress › Compress under 200 KB for a strict upload form, Convert › Make uploadable for a JPG any form takes with location removed, or Resize › Resize to 2048 px. The same dial compresses PDFs with Compress › Email-safe (under 20 MB) and videos with Compress › Compress under 25 MB.
- Select the images in Finder.
- Hold the right Option key to open the dial.
- Choose Compress, then a size such as Compress › Compress under 1 MB.
- Check the result card for the size before and after.
- To repeat it automatically, save a recipe and attach it to a watched folder.
Matching Clop's pipelines with recipes
Clop's pipelines chain steps, such as cropping to 1920 px wide and converting to WebP, and pin them to the clipboard, the drop zone, a watched folder or a preset zone. FileDial's equivalent is recipes: chain tools, for example Resize › Resize to 2048 px then Convert › Convert to WebP, and run the recipe on a selection or attach it to a watched folder so anything dropped in is processed.
The difference is the trigger. Clop reacts to copying and to new screen recordings; FileDial reacts to a selection in Finder or a file landing in a watched folder. Pick the trigger that matches how files arrive on your Mac.
Using both
They do not conflict. Many people would keep Clop's free clipboard optimisation running and use FileDial for batches, PDFs and anything that needs a specific size or format. Both process files on the Mac: Clop says it uses no cloud services, and FileDial never uploads files.
Questions
Is Clop free?
Partly. Clop's free version keeps working after the 14-day Pro trial, and its site says free features are free forever. Most file optimisation, conversion, drop zone and command-line uses are capped at 5 per session, and batch mode is Pro. Clop Pro is a €15 lifetime license.
Is there an alternative to Clop that compresses images when I copy them?
FileDial does not optimise the clipboard; it works on files you select in Finder. If clipboard optimisation is the feature you want, Clop's free version includes it. FileDial is the better fit when you want to choose a size target, process large batches or handle PDFs and video in the same place.
Can FileDial compress screenshots automatically?
FileDial's watched folders run a recipe on anything dropped into a folder, so you can, for example, chain Compress › Compress and Privacy › Remove all metadata and run it on files you drop in. It does not watch the clipboard, and it does not detect new screen recordings the way Clop does.
Does Clop or FileDial upload my images?
Neither does. Clop's site says it does not use any cloud services and does not send file data to the internet. Every FileDial tool runs on the Mac with Wi-Fi off, and files are never uploaded. That matters for screenshots, which often show emails, customer names or internal dashboards you would not want on a stranger's server.