# LaunchOS: a Launchpad replacement where the grid tools cost money > LaunchOS rebuilds the Launchpad workflow for macOS 26 and macOS 27, with eight features in the free Basic plan and twelve marked PRO. This repository is a product page with localized READMEs and issue collection, not the application source. **Remix-Design/LaunchOS** — LaunchOS – Launchpad alternative for macOS, designed for speed, simplicity, and full control - Repository: https://github.com/Remix-Design/LaunchOS - Website: https://launchosapp.com - Stars: 55 · Forks: 6 - Language: JavaScript - License: not declared - Published: 2026-08-21 · Updated: 2026-08-21 · Language: en - Canonical page: https://hysenlabs.com/projects/remix-design-launchos ## A Launchpad replacement aimed at macOS 26 and macOS 27 LaunchOS is positioned as a Launchpad replacement rebuilt for macOS 26 and macOS 27, and the pitch is continuity rather than reinvention. It arrives through a small installer and brings back the classic Launchpad workflow, with the project claiming it preserves the native Launchpad feel and muscle memory while blending with the new Liquid Glass style. The repository description reduces the same idea to three words: speed, simplicity, and full control. The claim to judge is the one about muscle memory, because it only holds if the grid behaves the way a Launchpad user expects, and the feature table suggests the project is trying to keep the familiar parts free and charge for the additions. ## This repository is a product page, not a codebase The project says so directly: LaunchOS is not an open-source product, nor is it built upon existing open-source launcher products, and this repo is only used for product introduction and collecting Issues. The tree matches that description. There is no application source, no package manifest and no build script for the app itself. What is there is README.md plus README_CN.md, README_TW.md, README_JA.md, README_DE.md and README_FR.md, an assets/ directory for images, a scripts/ directory, a .github/ directory and a stray .DS_Store. GitHub reports JavaScript as the primary language for a macOS application, which is consistent with scripts/ holding the tooling rather than the app. Practical consequence: an issue filed here is a support channel, not a patch. ## Eight features in the free plan, twelve marked PRO The feature table is a grid of twenty cells, and the PRO label does the real work. Eight carry no label: Native Launchpad Experience, Liquid Glass styling, built natively with smooth and fast behaviour, 120Hz+ refresh rate support, Import Native Launchpad Layout, a quick right-click menu, launching with a global hotkey, and dragging apps to the Dock. Twelve are marked PRO: launch with a trackpad gesture, launch from hot corners, launch with the F4 key, customizable grid layout, vertical scroll view, completely uninstall apps, window browsing mode, multi-select and batch actions, custom app renaming, hide unwanted apps, custom app sources, and reorganize layout. The Pro plan comes with a 7-day free trial, and every purchase includes lifetime free upgrades to future major versions. ## Importing the native Launchpad layout is the migration path The cheapest way in is also the one most likely to make a Launchpad user happy: Import Native Launchpad Layout is in the free plan, so the existing app arrangement can be carried over instead of rebuilt by hand. Everything that reshapes that arrangement afterwards sits behind PRO, which is where the pricing logic becomes visible. Customizable Grid Layout changes how many icons fit and how they are spaced. Reorganize Layout covers moving things around once the grid exists. Vertical Scroll View and Window Browsing Mode are two different ways of traversing the same content, one scrolling and one paging. Hide Unwanted Apps keeps entries out of sight without deleting them. Together they describe a grid editor rather than a launcher, and the free plan stops at the import step. ## V2 dropped SwiftUI for AppKit The V2 notes are the most technical statement the project makes about itself. LaunchOS V2 was rebuilt from the ground up and migrated from SwiftUI to AppKit, with significantly improved first-launch speed after startup, better runtime performance and better animations. Native support for 120Hz and higher refresh rate displays came with the same release, and the project summarises the result as faster, smoother, more energy-efficient and using less memory. None of those gains come with a measurement: no startup time in seconds, no memory figure, no frame rate table, no comparison against the previous version. Moving from SwiftUI to AppKit is the one change a reader can verify by looking at the two frameworks, and it is the kind of rewrite that usually explains a version jump of this size. ## The version number is a README comment, not a release There is no GitHub release history for this project, and the version lives inside the README between two HTML comment markers, launchos-version:start and launchos-version:end. Between them the README shows v2.4.0 with the date Sep 23, 2026. That matches the last recorded push to the default branch main, dated 2026-09-23, so the badge in the README and the branch state agree. The comment markers exist so a script can rewrite that line without a human editing HTML, and a scripts/ directory sits at the top level, though the repository does not publish the script that does it. The version banner is therefore the only release signal a reader gets, and the changelog behind it is not in the repository. ## Uninstall, rename and batch actions sit in the paid tier Three of the PRO features are the ones a Launchpad replacement is judged on. Completely Uninstall Apps goes past what the free plan offers, which is a Dock drag. Custom App Renaming changes the label shown in the grid, and Hide Unwanted Apps is the softer alternative for entries a user wants out of sight without touching the application itself. Multi-Select and Batch Actions operate on several icons at once, which pairs with the uninstall and hide features. Custom App Sources is the least explained item on the whole table: nothing in the repository says what sources can be added or where they come from. For a user deciding between plans, these six decide it, and the first three are the ones Apple never shipped in Launchpad at all. ## License delivery is the documented failure path The support section covers what goes wrong after payment, which is the part of the product most likely to cost a user time. After payment two emails arrive, a receipt and a license email, and the license email may show up a few minutes later; if only the receipt arrived, the advice is to check the spam folder, and if neither arrived the likely cause is a mistyped address at checkout or a mail service that cannot receive mail. An invalid license usually means extra characters such as spaces or line breaks came along when the code was copied, and the fix is to paste it into a plain text editor first and copy again. Changing devices does not require buying again: remove the old device during activation, or manage devices under Settings > About > Device Management. The contact address given is launchos@remixdesign.app. ## Conclusion LaunchOS fits a Mac user who wants the old Launchpad grid back on macOS 26 or 27 and does not mind a product with no public source, no license file and a free tier that stops before renaming, uninstalling and batch actions. Before installing, check the system version it targets, read the feature table row by row for the PRO tags rather than the marketing line, and confirm how the license is delivered, because the repository itself only carries a product description and a support address. Version 2.4.0 dated Sep 23, 2026 matches the last push, so the product moves, but the release history is not published here. ## FAQ ### Is LaunchOS free to use? There is a free Basic plan and a paid Pro plan with a 7-day free trial. The README says the Basic plan is already enough for daily use for many people, while twelve features in the table are marked PRO. ### Is LaunchOS safe to install on a Mac? The repository says LaunchOS is not an open-source product and is not built upon existing open-source launcher products, and that this repo is only used for product introduction and collecting Issues. It distributes through a small installer from launchosapp.com, and no permissions, network behaviour or privacy details are published here. ### What is LaunchOS on macOS? It is a Launchpad replacement rebuilt for macOS 26 and macOS 27. It installs through a small installer, restores the classic Launchpad workflow, can import the native Launchpad layout, and follows the new Liquid Glass style. ### What is the LaunchOS alternative to Launchpad? LaunchOS presents itself as a Launchpad alternative built for speed, simplicity and full control, adding a right-click menu, a global hotkey, drag to Dock and 120Hz+ refresh rate support in the free plan, with trackpad, hot corner, F4, grid editing, uninstall, rename and batch actions reserved for the Pro plan. ### What is a Launchpad used for? Launchpad is the full-screen app grid that LaunchOS replaces. LaunchOS says it brings back the classic Launchpad workflow and can import the native Launchpad layout, then adds layout editing, vertical scrolling and window browsing as Pro features. ## Sources - [Official documentation](https://launchosapp.com) - [Official README](https://github.com/Remix-Design/LaunchOS#readme) - [Project repository](https://github.com/Remix-Design/LaunchOS) --- Hysen Labs editorial analysis, written from the project's own repository and release notes. Cite the canonical page: https://hysenlabs.com/projects/remix-design-launchos