About

This directory collects apps without a subscription model: software you buy once or use for free — no monthly or yearly fee, no features vanishing when you stop paying.

The editor of these pages knows both sides: as an app developer and as an ordinary app user. And as a user, subscriptions pile up in a way that quickly gets out of hand: a few euros a month here, an annual fee there, plus the cloud storage, the notes service, the image tool, the player. Each one small on its own — together a quiet standing order that goes out month after month, whether or not you actually used the app in that time.

Across a year and across many apps, that adds up to substantial ongoing costs that rarely match the real value — and that you often only notice when you go through your statements. Software you buy once and then own is frequently the more honest and, over time, cheaper deal. This directory exists to make exactly that kind of software easier to find.

The focus starts with the Mac. Every listing is reviewed manually. What gets in is software with a fair, subscription-free pricing model: one-time purchase, free, or freemium with no recurring obligation.

That this directory looks, of all things, like a newspaper — the classic subscription product — is very much intended with a wink. There is no subscription here. Listing is free for now. Building a subscription-free app yourself? Submit it through the form.