MergeloomBuilt for macOS
Written in Swift with SwiftUI and AppKit, so menus, shortcuts, scrolling and dark mode work the way they do in other Mac apps.
Meld for Mac
A native Mac alternative to Meld
Meld is a much-loved visual diff tool from the Linux world. On a Mac it runs through a community-maintained build. Mergeloom gives you the same visual compare and merge, built natively for macOS.
Version 1.0.0 · macOS 14 Sonoma or later · Free under the MIT license
Why Mergeloom
Why Meld users try Mergeloom
Three-way merge
Pick left, base and right. Changes that don't conflict merge on their own, and conflicts are marked for you to resolve one by one. Files with conflict markers open directly.
Git changes and revisions
See working-copy, staged and unstaged changes, or compare any two branches, tags or commits.
More than text
Compare JSON, XML, CSV tables, images, binary files in hex, and the text of Word and PDF documents.
Folder sync with a preview
Update or mirror folders after checking a preview of every operation. Replaced files go to the Trash.
Free
Free under the MIT license, with no account and no analytics.
Side by side
Mergeloom and Meld, side by side
Meld details come from the Meld project and its macOS build.
| Feature | Mergeloom | Meld |
|---|---|---|
| Basics | ||
| Built for macOS | Community build of the Linux app | |
| Install | Download the app | Homebrew cask |
| Runs on Linux and Windows | — | |
| Price | Free (MIT license) | Free (open source) |
| Comparisons | ||
| Two- and three-way file compare | ||
| Two-way folder compare | ||
| Three-way folders | Merge into a new folder | Compare |
| Edit while comparing | ||
| Version control | Git | Git, Mercurial, Subversion and more |
| Images | — | |
| CSV tables, JSON and XML | — | |
| Binary files in hex | — | |
| Word and PDF documents as text | — | |
Meld details are from the Meld project and its Homebrew cask in October 2026.
Honest trade-offs
Where Meld is ahead
Meld has been a favourite for years, and it still has real strengths:
- It runs on Linux and Windows too, so one tool can follow you across systems.
- Its version control view works with more systems than Git, such as Mercurial and Subversion.
- Its source code is public, with a long history of contributors.
Switching
Getting started after Meld
- Download Mergeloom and drag it to your Applications folder.
- Drop two files or folders on the window, or use File ▸ New Three-Way Merge for a merge.
- If you used Meld as your Git tool, choose Mergeloom ▸ Install Command Line Tool… and run the commands below.
# Use Mergeloom for git difftool
# Use Mergeloom for git mergetool
# Let Mergeloom decide when a merge is finished
# Make it the default
Questions
Meld on Mac: common questions
Does Meld work on a Mac?
Yes, through a community-maintained build that you can install with Homebrew (brew install --cask meld). It is a port of the Linux app, so it looks and behaves differently from Mac apps.
Is Mergeloom free like Meld?
Yes. Mergeloom is free under the MIT license, with no trial, ads or account.
Can I use Mergeloom as my git mergetool instead of Meld?
Yes. Install the mergeloom command from the Mergeloom menu, then point git difftool and git mergetool at it. The --wait option makes Git wait until you close the window.
What does Mergeloom compare that Meld does not?
Besides text and folders, Mergeloom compares images, CSV tables, JSON and XML, binary files byte by byte, and the text of Word, RTF, OpenDocument and PDF files.
