Try it
Apps with an ice crystal are frozen. Click once, then click twice.
Frozen apps: single click → hint only · double-click or ⌃ Control+click → open
You meant to click the app next to it,
and now something heavy is launching.
Apps you keep in the Dock because you use them a lot, but don’t want open right now. You wait for it to load, quit it again, and lose your flow.
This quarter we will
Freeze only the apps you pick
Tick them in the list of your Dock apps. Everything else still opens with a single click.
Open on purpose
Frozen apps open only on double-click or modifier+click — stray clicks are filtered out, intentional ones go straight through.
Running apps stay one click away
Set “When to freeze” to “Only when not running” and apps that are already open switch with a single click. Only closed apps are guarded.
How to use
From download to first click in about a minute.
- 01
Move it to Applications
Open the download, drag Freeze into your Applications folder, then launch it.
- 02
Allow Accessibility
On first launch you’ll be asked for permission. Turn on Freeze in System Settings › Privacy & Security › Accessibility and it starts working. It’s only used to tell which Dock icon you clicked.
- 03
Pick apps to freeze
The settings window lists every app in your Dock. Turn on only the ones you keep opening by accident. You can add apps that aren’t in the Dock, too.
- 04
Use your Dock as usual
Click a frozen app once and it stops cold, with a quick hint. When you really mean it, double-click or ⌃+click.
- 05
Pause from the menu bar
Click the ice crystal in the menu bar to pause Freeze or change when apps freeze. It dims while paused.
Make it yours
- When to freeze
- Always, or only when the app isn’t running
- How to open
- Double-click, modifier + click, press and hold — turn on any combination
- Press and hold
- Double-clicking on a trackpad is a pain? Just hold the icon and it opens (0.3–3 s)
- Modifier key
- Choose ⌃ Control · ⌥ Option · ⇧ Shift · ⌘ Command
- Hint bubble
- Briefly shows how to open a frozen app when you click it once
- Pause
- Turn everything off and on from the menu bar
- Launch at login
- Starts automatically every time you log in
FAQ
- Why does it need Accessibility access?
- To find out which app’s Dock icon you clicked, and to keep that click from reaching the Dock if the app is frozen. Freeze only looks at clicks near the Dock — never your keystrokes or screen contents.
- Does it collect any data?
- No. Freeze only goes online to check your license key with Polar, our payment provider. Nothing about which apps you click is sent or stored anywhere, and your settings stay on your Mac.
- Can I try it before buying?
- Yes. Every feature is free for 5 days after first launch. When the trial ends, Freeze simply stops freezing and your Dock works as usual — enter a license key and it switches right back on.
- Can I use it on more than one Mac?
- One key works on up to 2 Macs. When you move to a new Mac, click “Deactivate on this Mac” in Settings › License, or deactivate the old Mac from your purchase page.
- I lost my license key.
- Open your Polar purchase page with the email you bought with and your key is right there. “Lost your key?” in the app’s settings takes you to the same place. Still stuck? Email works@heiter.studio with your purchase email.
- Why isn’t it on the Mac App Store?
- App Store apps must run in a sandbox, and the sandbox doesn’t allow identifying Dock icons. So, like Rectangle and BetterTouchTool, Freeze is distributed directly and notarized by Apple.
- Isn’t ⌘+click “Show in Finder”?
- It is — that’s why you can choose the modifier. The default is ⌃ Control, and the behavior only changes for frozen apps. Everything else works exactly as before.
- Double-clicking on a trackpad is awkward.
- Turn on “Press and hold” under Settings › How to open. Hold the icon for a moment and the app opens. You can set the hold time anywhere from 0.3 to 3 seconds (default 0.5 s). Available from 1.0.7.
- I can’t see the menu bar icon.
- With many menu bar icons it can hide behind the notch. Open Freeze again to bring up its settings, then turn on “Show Freeze icon in Dock” to reach settings from the Dock too.
- Which macOS versions are supported?
- macOS 13 Ventura or later, on both Apple Silicon and Intel Macs.