A simple application, as well as ingenious and incredibly useful. In a nutshell, this is Declutter, which allows you to tidy up the entire desktop of your Mac in a single click and to organize the numerous files scattered around the desktop, inserting them into customizable folders, both from a graphic point of view, than from that of the contents. Here's how it works and where to download it.
The operation of Declutter is really simple and intuitive, elements that make the app even more functional and versatile. At start-up, it will only take a few clicks to grant the application the permissions it needs, after which you will be ready to tidy up the Desktop. Declutter is positioned as an icon in the toolbar at the top, next to the clock, just to be clear.
Smart Folders
The main screen is made up of the folders into which the individual files on the desktop will be moved. By default, Declutter proposes folder Videos, Documents, Audio and Pictures, which most of the time are enough to organize all the files present in a confusing way on the desktop. Each of these folders can be customized to your liking, both in appearance and content.
As for the appearance, the user will be able to change the folder color, icon, and name. Not only that, it will also be possible to indicate which file extensions the folder itself should contain. For example, by default the image folder will group jpg, png, jpeg, and bmp files, but the user can also choose to insert .gif, .tiff, .heic files, or whatever else comes to mind . The same thing, of course, also applies to all the other folders already present by default on Declutter. For each folder, therefore, it will be possible to decide the appearance, and the files it should contain.
The four system folders are already more than enough to organize your Desktop, but if they are not enough, of course, it will be possible to create completely customized folders from scratch.
In fact, by clicking on the “+” symbol on the main screen, you can choose to create a folder, assigning it a color, an icon, a name and the files it will host. In this way you can create dozens of different folders, each of which can contain files of different extensions.
Declutter in one click
Declutter, which we could translate as “clear”, is the blue button to press to start cleaning. After clicking on it, the thousand files present in a disordered way on the desktop will be automatically moved to the various smart folders created. So, for example, all the images will be addressed in the appropriate Images folder, all the pdfs will be addressed in the documents folder, all the songs in the audio folder, and so on.
Our desk before Declutter …
The magic of Declutter happens in the blink of an eye, with no waiting time required. One click is enough to eliminate the clutter present on the desktop and end up with a few smart, well-ordered folders, within which all the files with a certain extension will be present.
The Desk after the Declutter …
Automatic cleaning
It is interesting to note how it is possible to enable the automatic cleaning function, which at selected intervals, from 1 minute to 8 hours, will automatically perform a Declutter. This is a very good option, especially for those who download a lot of files to the desktop in a short time. In this way, the Desktop will always remain in order, because the files saved on the desktop will be automatically moved, from time to time, to the various smart folders, according to their extension. Practically the Desktop will be only a passage way, while the files will be redirected to the smart folders by Declutter, all without the user having to act in any way.
Declutter doesn't offer many other options, but if you look at the Settings menu you will discover some interesting features. For example, in addition to being able to decide whether to automatically start Declutter when the Mac is turned on (recommended if you have enabled automatic cleaning at time intervals), you can also enable two keyboard shortcuts.
The first will allow you to open Declutter with a combination of keys, while the second, probably more useful, will allow you to perform the Declutter by pressing a series of keys on the keyboard, so you can put everything in order without even having to open the app.
Curiosity…
We noticed that after performing the Declutter, with the consequent movement of the files in the respective Smart folders, it is possible to move a file present in the automatically created folders back to the desktop. This file, manually moved to Desktop, will no longer be subject to Declutter. In other words, if an automatically organized file is moved back to the desktop, it will not be affected by subsequent Declutters.
Initially it seemed like a “against”, but if you decide to manually move a file on the desktop, it is clear that it will remain there undisturbed, not affected by the functioning of the app.
Furthermore, in case you decide to uninstall the app, even if only temporarily, rest assured not to lose any files automatically moved to the Smart folders. Not only will the files remain intact, but the Smart folders previously created with the app will also remain on the desktop.
Conclusions
Declutter is an extremely simple software, but at the same time it is very useful for always keeping the desktop tidy. It does nothing revolutionary and nothing that the user could not do manually, but it tidies the Desktop without wasting time for the user, in just one click. It also does this automatically, at regular time intervals. It is one of those software that automates the movement and organization of files, and that after trying it, it will hardly be missing in your collection of favorite utilities.
How to buy and price
Declutter costs € 5.49 on the Mac App Store. You can also download it from Setapp, the Netflix of Mac apps. If you decide to use Setapp, you should take a look at our article which offers you tips to save on the subscription cost.
Probably the best way to orient yourself and understand if Setapp is for you, is to buy a gift card that allows you to prepay predetermined periods of access to the service (from one month to 24 months). In this way you will have time to evaluate the system, and avoid recurring payment perhaps even for simple forgetfulness.
In addition, using a card, thanks to an agreement we took with the Setapp on the occasion of our presentation, Cyberlayman readers can have a discount 10% of the total . To be eligible for the discount, you must use our access link to the Gift Card page. Gift cards can be paid with PayPal, Credit Card and even Apple Pay.
