I’ve relied on Homebrew for managing packages on my Mac for years, but I’ll admit the terminal-only workflow gets tedious. Remembering exact package names, typing out install commands, checking for updates - it all adds up. When I came across Taphouse, I was skeptical about whether a GUI could actually improve on the command-line experience. Three weeks in, I’m convinced.
Taphouse transforms Homebrew into something approachable without sacrificing power. The main window shows your installed packages in a searchable grid with icons, descriptions, and version numbers. Need to install something? Browse the entire Homebrew catalog visually, click install, and watch it happen. Updates appear with notification badges in the menu bar, letting you upgrade everything with a single click instead of running brew update && brew upgrade.
What sets Taphouse apart is how it handles the full Homebrew ecosystem. You can manage taps (third-party repositories), control background services with start/stop/restart buttons, import and export Brewfiles for reproducible setups, and visualize dependency trees to understand what each package needs. The “Adopt Apps” feature is particularly clever - it scans your /Applications folder and matches manually installed apps to their Homebrew casks, letting you bring them under Homebrew management without reinstalling.
I’ve been using it on my M2 MacBook Air running macOS 15.4, and the performance has been solid. The app requires macOS 14 Sonoma or later, so older Macs are out of luck. Resource usage stays light at roughly 1% CPU and around 100MB of memory, comparable to other menu bar utilities I run.
The App Store integration surprised me. Through the mas command-line interface, Taphouse can browse, update, and uninstall Mac App Store apps right alongside your Homebrew packages. Batch-upgrading outdated App Store apps saves the tedious clicking through individual update buttons. It’s the kind of feature that seems obvious once you see it working.
The pricing model is straightforward and fair. Taphouse starts free forever with core features fully functional. Power-user features like bulk operations, favorites management, and enhanced installation history unlock with a one-time $4.99 purchase. No subscription, no recurring fees. The 14-day trial for Pro features gives you enough time to decide if the extras are worth it.
One limitation worth mentioning: the interface can feel busy when you have hundreds of packages installed. I wished for more filtering options beyond the basic search and category tags. Also, if you’re comfortable with terminal workflows and have your brew aliases perfected, the GUI might feel slower for some operations. That said, for discovery and visual package management, it beats scrolling through brew search output.
The developer, Multimodal Solutions, keeps the app current with regular updates delivered through Sparkle. Version 1.2.6 is the current release as of January 2025, and the update cadence suggests active maintenance. The app integrates well with macOS - supports dark mode, uses native UI elements, feels like it belongs on the system.
After using Taphouse for a few weeks, I find myself opening Terminal less frequently for Homebrew tasks. The visual approach makes package discovery easier, the menu bar badges keep me aware of updates without checking manually, and the service management panel beats remembering brew services syntax. For developers and power users who want Homebrew’s flexibility with a more accessible interface, Taphouse delivers exactly what it promises.
