v1.7.5 What's new

The native Mac HandBrake alternative

HandBrake is powerful and free. If you also work with images, audio, and PDFs — and want something that feels like a proper Mac app — Picmal covers all of it for $15.99.

Get Picmal Download

Trusted by 640+ Mac users

One payment, yours for good · 14-day money-back

"Picmal is an excellent way to manage file conversion and compression jobs of any size. The simplicity and speed with which you can manage batch conversion and compression sets it apart and makes it worth checking out."

MacStories
TL;DR Picmal vs HandBrake

HandBrake is free, open-source, and runs on Windows/Linux/Mac with serious encoding controls. Picmal ($15.99 one-time) is Mac-only, covers images, audio, and PDFs alongside video, and feels like it belongs on your Mac. Neither uploads your files.

Pick Picmal if
You're on Mac and need images, audio, or PDFs alongside video — or just want an app with a native feel and Shortcuts integration.
Pick HandBrake if
You need CRF tuning, device presets, DVD/Blu-ray ripping, or cross-platform (Windows/Linux) support — and free is important.

Picmal vs HandBrake at a glance

HandBrake is a free video encoder with serious encoding controls. Picmal is a paid Mac app that covers images, audio, and PDFs alongside video, with a simpler interface. Different tradeoffs.

Feature Picmal HandBrake
Price $15.99 one-time Free (open source)
Platforms macOS only Windows, Mac, Linux
Privacy 100% offline 100% offline
Interface Native macOS, polished UI Cross-platform, functional
Image conversion Yes—20+ formats No
Video conversion Yes—common formats Yes—advanced encoding options
Audio conversion Yes—MP3, WAV, FLAC, etc. Audio within video only
Compression Images, video, audio & PDF Video encoding only
PDF tools Yes—compress, combine, images→PDF No
DVD/BluRay ripping No Yes (unprotected)
Device presets No Yes—Apple, Android, web, etc.
Video filters Basic Advanced (deinterlace, denoise, HDR)
Subtitle support No Yes—SRT, SSA, VobSub, CEA-608
Metadata removal Yes Limited
Shortcuts integration Yes No
Folder monitoring Yes No
Finder right-click Yes No

Which one is right for you?

Here's where each one makes more sense.

Choose Picmal

Mac-native, images + audio + PDFs + video in one place

  • You want to convert, compress, and edit images, video, audio, and PDFs in one app
  • You use Apple Shortcuts for automation
  • You care about a well-designed UI that feels like Mac
  • You want folder monitoring and Finder integration

Choose HandBrake

Free, powerful video encoding, cross-platform

  • You only need video transcoding and encoding
  • You use Windows or Linux
  • You don't want to pay for an app
  • You need DVD/BluRay ripping or subtitle support

What Picmal actually does

Convert, compress, and resize images, video, audio, and PDFs. All on your Mac, nothing touches a server.

Convert, compress & PDF

Anything in, anything out

Any format, in or out

Images, video, audio, RAW, PDF — over 100 formats. PSD to PNG, MOV to MP4, FLAC to ALAC. Pick the output and go.

See it before you commit

Slide between the original and the compressed version, then dial in the quality.

Before/after slider comparing the original 1.6 MB photo with the 145 KB compressed version

RAW and PDF, too

Camera RAW in, JPEG out. Rasterize a PDF to PNG at the DPI you pick.

Smaller files, same quality

Fit an email limit or a slow upload without the quality drop you'd actually notice. Convert and compress in one pass.

Combine PDFs

Merge a stack of PDFs into one. Drag to reorder pages, pick the page size, save it out.

Images to PDF

Turn a batch of photos into a multi-page PDF. A4, Letter, or custom — with an optional password.

Batch & automate

Built for hundreds of files

Drop a folder, walk away

Thousands of files at once, whole folders, mixed formats. Picmal sorts out each file type and works through them all.

Picmal batch processing a list of files

Run it overnight

Schedule big jobs for later. They survive quitting the app.

Picmal schedule dialog set to compress files at a chosen time Picmal schedule dialog set to run a job at a chosen time

Watched folders

Drop a file in, it converts itself. Set it once, forget it.

Optimize from the clipboard

Copy a screenshot, paste it back smaller. Picmal compresses what's on your clipboard automatically.

Presets & controls

Simple by default, deep when you need it

Presets for the usual stuff. Full control for the rest.

One-click presets for web, social media, and archiving. Save your own when none of them quite fit.

Picmal presets and settings

Watermarks

Stamp every file in a batch, scaled to fit any size.

Your metadata stays

Keep camera info, dates, and GPS — or strip what you don't want shared.

Metadata
Make
FUJIFILM
Model
X-T5
Lens
XF33mmF1.4 R LM WR
Focal Length
33.0 mm
Aperture
ƒ/1.4
Shutter Speed
1/250 s
ISO
160
Film Simulation
Classic Chrome

Fits your workflow

Finder, Shortcuts, and Raycast. A conversion is never more than a right-click away.

Finder integration Shortcuts integration
Raycast Soon Coming soon

Picmal CLI

Convert and compress from the terminal, a cron job, or a coding agent — the same engine as the app.

Read the docs
picmal-cli
$ picmal-cli convert -i photo.heic -f jpg
$ picmal-cli compress -i big.jpg --quality 70
$ picmal-cli watch add ~/Screenshots -f webp

Why Picmal

Private, offline, and yours

Designed for Mac

Built in Swift for Apple Silicon and designed around macOS. It plugs into Finder, Quick Actions, and Shortcuts, and feels like it came with your system — not an Electron wrapper.

Works offline

No internet required, ever. Convert on a plane, at a café with terrible Wi-Fi, or with the network off completely. Nothing queues and nothing waits on a server.

Privacy first

Your files never leave your Mac. Nothing is uploaded, there's no account, and nobody tracks what you convert. What's on your machine stays on your machine.

Learn more in the docs

What people are
saying about Picmal

" Clean and easy to use . Perfect for quickly converting images without unnecessary extras."

Marynes, Picmal user
Marynes

"Everything works as expected - great app! "

Anthony Nguyen, Picmal user
Anthony Nguyen

"Great app! Simple and easy to use ."

Beckett R, Picmal user
Beckett R

"It works perfectly now! Thanks and good work. It's really the kind of utility that I find very useful. I know that there are tons of free online tools doing the same thing but it's so much faster that way."

7107Labs, Picmal user
7107Labs

"Wonderfully simple app! I struggled with converting my images from one format to another constantly with online free tools. Picmal makes it effortless . Worth the money to avoid the hassle for sure!"

River Sloane, Picmal user
River Sloane

"Picmal is an excellent way to manage file conversion and compression jobs of any size. There are other apps that accomplish something similar, but the simplicity and speed with which you can manage batch conversion and compression with Picmal sets it apart and makes it worth checking out."

MacStories

"You did a great job here! I like how easy Picmal is to use , and the frequent upgrades show that you are very committed to improving this beautiful software."

Gianluca Savini, Picmal user
Gianluca Savini

"It's a Mac-assed Mac App. Focused, customizable, flexible, well designed and super fast. 10+ times a day I need to convert a file for use on a website. Picmal makes that process a joy . My favorite conversion is taking a multipage PDF and converting each page to an individual image with one click (something even Preview can't do). "

Rob H, Picmal user
Rob H

"I really like these kinds of tools: simple interface, focused functions , one-time purchase, and continuous updates."

limboy, Picmal user
limboy

"Been enjoying the app! Thanks for the very handy utility ."

@imnogeekAJ, Picmal user
@imnogeekAJ

"I f* love this app . Just so you know. Keep building!"

Alessandro Bonini, Picmal user
Alessandro Bonini

"I like the interface. I like the batch processing . I like the fact in the I can set default conversions. I like your program a lot."

Charles Willson, Picmal user
Charles Willson

"I like the quality of the image processing . It also supports all the important image files. But it still needs some work regarding both the UI and the UX design of it."

Yiannis, Picmal user
Yiannis

"I love how Picmal's made compressing videos a frictionless, easy and straightforward ."

George, Picmal user
George

"It's simple to use and does everything I need it to do . Hell, it does much more than I need and the developer keeps adding features :) "

Adam L, Picmal user
Adam L

" I love the app! I use it 4-5 days a week for audio and image conversion as I tag and add missing album artwork to my library of 70,000 songs. After that is done, I would like to try it out with my Blu-ray collection on Plex. I truly appreciate the hard work that goes into creating and frequently updating an app such as this. All the best!"

Trevor, Picmal user
Trevor

"The program is very simple and practical , and its options are clear."

Abadi, Picmal user
Abadi

"I use Picmal to convert images. It works perfectly . I can just leave the Picmal window open on my desktop. Whenever I want to convert an image, I drag the file onto the window and click “convert”—and seconds later, the converted file is in the appropriate folder with the suffix “converted.” It couldn’t be easier or more hassle-free!"

Marie-Theres, Picmal user
Marie-Theres

" Thoughtful, polished, and constantly improving . Alberto genuinely listens to feedback, and it shows in Picmal. Easy 5 stars."

Daniel Hewitt, Picmal user
Daniel Hewitt

"I feel Picmal is one of the apps that I would categorize as essential . There are many features that distinguish the app from other web converters such as Folder Watching and Clipboard Optimization."

Joel, Picmal user
Joel

"Picmal is simple and fast but also integrates complex workloads if needed."

Aj, Picmal user
Aj

"Picmal is complete. The quality is good, and it does exactly what I need ."

Gianfri, Picmal user
Gianfri

"Easy to use, automation & batch processing . AVIF & Webp support"

Sem, Picmal user
Sem

"I convert MP4s to MP3s almost every day. Picmal makes it stupidly simple , and I haven't touched a sketchy online converter since."

Rubens Nook, Picmal user
Rubens Nook YouTube Creator

"keep up the great work! Very cool tool you've built here."

J Koh, Picmal user
J Koh

"Working on a presentation and had to convert and resize a lot of images. Picmal did them all in a flash ."

Henry Halem, Picmal user
Henry Halem

" Simple and powerful is a combination that is hard to get right. Picmal nails it! I find image presets particularly useful. Set it up and then just drag and drop to resize and convert."

Ian, Picmal user
Ian

"Me ha sosprendido la compresion que realiza el programa y si apreciar la calidad."

Carlos, Picmal user
Carlos

"The easy going workflow "

Markus, Picmal user
Markus

Pay once, own forever

One purchase, all updates included. No subscriptions sneaking up on you. 14-day money-back guarantee.

Select number of devices

$15.99 / once
  • 1 device

    (1 seat)

  • Convert & compress images, videos, audio

  • Batch processing for multiple files

  • Works offline, no data leaves your Mac

  • Free updates included

Purchase for Mac

Prices in USD. VAT may apply. Secure payment via Lemon Squeezy.

How does the license work?

You pay once and keep it. No renewals, no subscriptions. The license activates on one Mac at a time, but you can move it between machines whenever you want.

How many devices can I use Picmal on?

Depends on the tier you pick: 1, 2, 3, or 5 Macs. You can swap between machines anytime.

What happens if I get a new Mac?

Open Picmal on your old Mac, go to Picmal → Register license to deactivate, then activate on the new one. Takes about ten seconds.

Can I get a refund?

14 days, no questions asked. Email support@picmal.app.

Frequently asked questions

Can't find what you're looking for? Email support@picmal.app

Is Picmal a good HandBrake alternative?

For Mac users who also work with images, audio, and PDFs — yes. Picmal has a polished native interface, Shortcuts integration, and covers more file types. HandBrake is a better fit if you need advanced video encoding controls and don't want to pay for an app.

Why pay for Picmal when HandBrake is free?

HandBrake is great for video encoding and costs nothing. Picmal adds image conversion, audio, PDF tools, folder monitoring, and Finder right-click — and feels like a native Mac app. If video encoding is all you need, HandBrake is genuinely a fine choice.

Can Picmal convert images? Can HandBrake?

Picmal converts 20+ image formats (HEIC, JPG, PNG, WebP, etc.) and decodes RAW files. HandBrake is video-only — images aren't on its radar.

Does HandBrake have more video options than Picmal?

Yes — device presets, CRF tuning, DVD/BluRay ripping, subtitle tracks, HDR. HandBrake goes deep on video. Picmal picks good defaults so you don't have to think about codecs, and covers images, audio, and PDFs alongside video.

Does Picmal work on Windows or Linux like HandBrake?

No. Picmal is Mac-only. HandBrake runs on Windows and Linux too.

What if Picmal doesn't work for me?

Full refund within 14 days, no questions asked. Email support@picmal.app.