Free Mac utility · Apple Silicon

Know which of your apps Rosetta is keeping alive.

Apple is retiring Rosetta 2. Rosetta Radar checks every app on your Mac and shows you, in plain language, which ones are Intel-only and will stop opening — and what each app even does.

Offline by default No account Universal · macOS 11+ ~180 KB
The Rosetta clock is ticking.
TodayRosetta 2 quietly runs your Intel apps on Apple Silicon.
macOS 27The last release with general-purpose Rosetta 2 — Intel apps still run.
macOS 28Rosetta 2 is cut back to a limited subset for certain older games; most Intel-only apps stop opening.
What it is

A one-minute checkup for your whole Mac.

Every Mac quietly runs a mix of app types. Apps built only for Intel chips lean on Rosetta 2 to work on Apple Silicon — and when Apple removes it, they simply won't open. Rosetta Radar sorts every app you have into Intel-only, Universal, and Apple Silicon, so you know exactly what needs an update, a replacement, or nothing at all. For each app it also names the developer and, when it can, links straight to their site to check for an update — and shows when you last opened it, so you can spot what you'll actually miss.

Rosetta Radar app icon
Rosetta Radar
How it works

Open it. Read the report. Done.

Double-click to scan

No installer. It asks once whether to include external drives, then shows a live progress bar while it works — nothing to configure.

It reads each app's real program file

Instead of trusting a label, it inspects every app's actual binary — the same signal Finder uses — so the verdict is accurate on any macOS version.

You get a report & a spreadsheet

A clean report opens in your browser — sort by any column and filter as you type. Each app shows its developer and, when known, a link to check for an update, plus when you last opened it. A matching CSV is saved too.

…and a spreadsheet you can sort
#NameArchitectureSourceLast OpenedDescription
1Aurora HDRIntelSkylum2024-11-02HDR photo editor from Skylum
2DaVinci ResolveApple SiliconBlackmagic Design2026-09-10Professional video editing & color
3Microsoft WordUniversalMicrosoft2026-09-12Word processor (Microsoft Office)
4Geekbench 6IntelPrimate Labs2026-08-01Benchmarks the Mac CPU and GPU
5Quicken 2017IntelQuicken Inc.2023-05-14Personal finance and budgeting
Every scan also writes a spreadsheet (.csv) alongside the report — open it in Numbers or Excel to sort by architecture, filter, and share. Example rows shown.
Your data

Your data never leaves your Mac.

No cloud, no account, no sign-up — the scan happens entirely on your own computer. Rosetta Radar recognizes about 6,000 common Mac apps out of the box, so it describes and links most of what you have with no internet at all. The one exception is an optional lookup you can switch on for anything it doesn't already know, which sends only those app names (to Apple's App Store search and Wikipedia) to fetch a description. Everything else stays on your Mac.

Offline by default.

No network connections at all — unless you explicitly turn on description lookup. Runs fine on a fully offline Mac.

No account, no tracking.

No sign-in, no email, no analytics. Nothing to register, nothing collected.

Saved only to your Desktop.

The report and spreadsheet are written to your Desktop, for your eyes — delete them anytime.

Open and inspectable.

It's a readable script, not a black box — anyone technical can see exactly what it does.

How it's different

Most checkers want your data. This one wants to help.

Plenty of tools and websites will tell you about Intel apps. The difference is where your information goes, what it costs, and whether it actually explains what it found.

 Rosetta RadarOnline checkers & typical utilities
PriceFreeOften paid or freemium
Where it runs100% on your MacMay send your app list to a server
Sign-in requiredNoneSometimes
Explains what each app doesYes — plain languageRarely
Recognizes common apps offline~6,000 built inUsually online-only
Names the developer & links to updatesYesRarely
Shows when you last used each appYesNo
Sortable, filterable reportYesVaries
Exports a spreadsheet (CSV)YesSometimes
Finds apps everywhere (Spotlight sweep)YesVaries
InstallationNone — just open itOften an installer
Good to know

Questions, answered.

Will it change or delete any of my apps?
No. It only reads. It inspects each app and writes a report to your Desktop — it never modifies, moves, or deletes anything on your Mac.
What is Rosetta 2?
It's Apple's built-in translation layer that lets Intel-only apps run on Apple Silicon Macs (M1 and later). macOS 27 is the last release with general-purpose Rosetta 2; starting with macOS 28 it's limited to certain older games, so most Intel-only apps will stop opening — which is exactly what this tool helps you get ahead of.
Do I need an Apple Silicon Mac?
The scanner runs on any modern Mac, but the results matter most on Apple Silicon (M1/M2/M3/M4), where Rosetta is what keeps Intel apps working.
How long does a scan take?
Usually about a minute, though it depends on your Mac and how many apps you have. On an M1 MacBook Pro with a few hundred apps, a full scan takes roughly a minute — a little longer if you turn on the optional online lookup. The progress window shows where it's up to the whole time, so you always know it's working.
Why does macOS ask me to confirm the first time?
Because it's a free tool that isn't sold through the App Store, macOS asks you to approve it once. Right-click the app, choose Open, then Open again. After that it launches with a normal double-click.
It won't open when I double-click it — how do I fix that?
This is normal for a free app that isn't sold through the App Store, and it takes ten seconds to get past. Don't double-click it: instead right-click (or Control-click) the app, choose Open, and then click Open again in the box that appears. It opens right away, and every double-click after that works normally.

If macOS still refuses — for example it says the app "can't be opened" or "is damaged" — open System Settings › Privacy & Security, scroll down to the note about Rosetta Radar, and click Open Anyway, then confirm. First make sure you've unzipped the download and are opening the app from a normal folder (like Applications or your Desktop), not from inside the .zip. Nothing needs to be "installed" — Rosetta Radar just runs.
Is it really free?
Yes — no cost, no account, no catch. It's made to be shared. Pass it along to anyone with a Mac.

See what's living on borrowed time.

Run it once and you'll know exactly which apps to update, replace, or stop worrying about.

Download Rosetta Radar — free
Universal buildmacOS 11 or laterOffline by default