FineTune Alternative for Mac: Per-App Volume Mixer

FineTune is a per-app audio project many people find through GitHub. If you've tried it, or you're looking at it and wondering what else is out there, this page covers the options for per-app volume on Mac and where SoundDial fits.

For FineTune's current features, status and supported macOS versions, check its project page. We don't repeat claims about other apps that we can't keep up to date.

Why per-app volume needs a separate app

macOS has no built-in per-app volume mixer. Windows has a Volume Mixer; on a Mac, the volume keys and the menu-bar slider move one output volume for every app. The closest native controls are:

• Each app's own volume slider, if it has one (Music, Spotify, most video players and call apps)
• The alert volume in System Settings > Sound, which only affects system alert sounds

That's why tools like FineTune, Background Music, SoundSource and SoundDial exist. More background: why doesn't Mac have a volume mixer?

The main options

• FineTune: a per-app audio project many people find through GitHub. Check its project page for details.
• Background Music: a free, open-source app.
• SoundSource: by Rogue Amoeba, $49, sold directly rather than on the Mac App Store.
• SoundDial: a menu-bar per-app volume mixer, €14.99 one-time purchase on the Mac App Store.

What SoundDial does

SoundDial puts a volume slider for each running app in your menu bar.

• Per-app volume from 0% to 200%: turn Spotify down and keep your call where it is
• Per-app boost: push a quiet app above 100% (up to 200%) without raising the rest
• Per-app mute: silence one app with a click while everything else keeps playing
• Works per app, not per browser tab (all tabs of a browser share one slider)
• Does not record anything
• macOS 14.2 or later, €14.99 one-time purchase on the Mac App Store, no subscription

How to decide

• Stay with a free project if it does what you need and you're comfortable installing and updating it yourself from its project page.
• Choose SoundDial if you'd rather buy once from the Mac App Store and get updates there, and per-app volume, mute and boost cover what you need.

A side-by-side is on our FineTune alternative page.

Switching over

1. Install SoundDial from the Mac App Store.
2. Quit the per-app tool you used before, so two mixers aren't adjusting the same apps at once.
3. Open your usual apps; every running app appears in SoundDial's list.
4. Click the menu-bar icon and set each app's slider.

If you're comparing more than two apps, see our roundup of volume mixer apps for Mac, or read about per-app volume control on Mac.

The short version

Per-app volume belongs in the menu bar, and macOS doesn't provide it. If you want it as a one-time Mac App Store purchase, try SoundDial, a per-app volume mixer for Mac.