Homebrew AlternativesOnly apps categorised as Package Managers

The best Package Manager alternative to Homebrew is Chocolatey, which is both free and Open Source. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 50 alternatives to Homebrew and many of them are Package Managers so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting Package Manager alternatives to Homebrew are UniGetUI, MacUpdater, Scoop and Flatpak.

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Homebrew alternatives are mainly Package Managers, but if you're looking for Software Installers or Software Updaters you can filter on that. Other popular filters include Windows and Mac. These are just examples - use the filter bar below to find more specific alternatives to Homebrew.
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Alternatives list

  1. Chocolatey icon
     344 likes

    Windows-centric package manager streamlining software updates without registration. Privacy-focused, ad-free, open-source, lightweight, and supports a command-line interface for efficiency and ease of use.

    73 Chocolatey alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Windows
     
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    1
    Comments about Chocolatey as an Alternative to Homebrew
    Shaz Shah
    Positive
    0

    It is probably the closest you can get to a Homebrew experience as Chocolately does have a command line interface. It's not as elegant, but a very useful package manager to quickly setup new machines.

    Chocolatey icon
    Chocolatey icon
    • Chocolatey is Freemium and Open SourceHomebrew is Free and Open Source
    • Chocolatey is Privacy focusedHomebrew is not according to our users
  2. UniGetUI icon
     140 likes

    Intuitive interface for managing software on Windows through WinGet, Scoop, Chocolatey, Pip, Npm, .NET Tool, and PowerShell Gallery. Offers bulk install, detailed metadata, custom options, auto-updates, tray notifications, filtering, backups, and restore features.

    21 UniGetUI alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source (MIT)

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Chocolatey
     
  3. MacUpdater icon
     270 likes

    Automates scanning for outdated third-party Mac software, delivers one-click updates, runs silent daily checks, sends update alerts, and keeps an update history. Free trial scans, while bulk updating beyond ten apps requires a paid license and detailed control.

    18 MacUpdater alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Paid
    • Proprietary

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Mac
     
  4. Flatpak icon
     69 likes

    Distributing applications on Linux is a pain: different distributions in multiple versions, each with their own versions of libraries and packaging formats. Flatpak is here to change all that. It allows the same app to be installed on different Linux distributions, including...

    29 Flatpak alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Linux
     
  5. Nix is a powerful package manager for macOS, Linux and other Unix systems that makes package management reliable and reproducible. It provides atomic upgrades and rollbacks, side-by-side installation of multiple versions of a package, multi-user package management and easy setup...

    Cost / License

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Linux
    • BSD
     
  6. The pacman package manager is one of the major distinguishing features of Arch Linux . It combines a simple binary package format with an easy-to-use build system. The goal of pacman is to make it possible to easily manage packages, whether...

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Linux
    • Arch Linux
     
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    1
    Comments about pacman (package manager) as an Alternative to Homebrew
    Guest
    Negative
    0

    Because it doesn't work on Macs! Duh!

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    pacman (package manager) icon
    pacman (package manager) icon
    • pacman (package manager) is Free and Open SourceHomebrew is also Free and Open Source
  7. The Arch User Repository (AUR) provides user-made PKGBUILD scripts for packages not included in official repositories. These PKGBUILD scripts simplify building from source by explicitly listing and checking for dependencies and configuring the install to match the Arch...

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Linux
    • Arch Linux
     
12 of 45 Homebrew alternatives