Wake up to a de-cluttered Mac desktop
Wakey cleans up yesterday to make space for today.
Free download. Seven free clean-up days, then a one-time purchase.
Apple silicon Mac, macOS 14 Sonoma or newer.
What Wakey does
Tabs and apps
It closes leftover browser tabs and apps.
Dock, widgets, icons
It removes dock, widgets, and desktop icons you never use.
Reversible
Nothing is deleted. A note lists what moved, with Undo beside each kind.
Let it clear your desktop on-demand, or set it to run daily while you sleep.
On-demand
Clean desktop, from the menu bar, whenever you need it.
Daily, while you sleep
Pick a time. Yesterday is put away before you sit down.
One click before you share your screen.
A screen recording, a product demo, a livestream, a screenshare in a meeting: the screen is the set. One Clean desktop from the menu bar closes yesterday's tabs, quits the leftover apps and clears the desktop icons; Deep clean trims the Dock and sets a wallpaper too. The recording shows the work and nothing else. Undo brings it all back once the camera is off.
- Tutorials and walkthroughsNo stray tabs in the shot, no retakes for a notification badge.
- Demos and livestreamsThe same clean desk every time you go live.
- Screenshares in meetingsShare the screen, not the week.
Start focused. Stay focused.
A clear desk is half of it. When you sit down, Wakey's morning note asks for your Highlight: the one thing you would be glad to have done by tonight. Not the whole list, one thing from it. It sits in the menu bar all day, and tomorrow's note asks how it went, Done or Keep, before asking for the next one.
The Highlight is optional, and it stays light: no streaks, no day counts, no reminders. One switch in Settings turns it off.
The idea is the Highlight from Make Time, by Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky. The reason it works is well studied: writing a concrete plan for one unfinished thing stops it from tugging at your attention (Masicampo & Baumeister, 2011), and people who decide what and when are far more likely to follow through (Gollwitzer & Sheeran, 2006).
How it works
Wakey in 24 secondsTry it free for seven clean-up days.
1
Download
Free, with no account and no card. Drag Wakey to Applications and the first run walks you through what is on your desk.
2
Seven free clean-up days
Every clean is included: the daily scan, Clean desktop, Deep clean. A day counts when a clean completes, however many you run that day, so a week away costs you nothing.
3
One-time purchase
After the seventh, the app shows what those days added up to and offers a one-time purchase. No subscription. Your key covers Wakey 1 and every update to it, for good. Wakey 2, when it comes, is a separate purchase, cheaper with your key.
Start your day with intent. Work on today's priorities.
Free download. Seven free clean-up days, then a one-time purchase.
Apple silicon Mac, macOS 14 Sonoma or newer.
FAQ
Does Wakey delete anything?+
No. Nothing is deleted. When you are back at the desk, a small note lists what moved, tabs, apps, files, widgets, with an Undo beside each kind, so the tabs can come back while the files stay filed. Restore is free for good.
Is it a subscription?+
No. Your first seven clean-up days are free, then a one-time purchase, paid through Polar. Nothing recurring, no account. Your key covers Wakey 1 and every update to it, for good: nothing you bought ever stops working. A later major version is a separate purchase, cheaper with the key you have. Restore and your data stay free either way.
What is a Highlight?+
The one thing you would be glad to have done by tonight, in your own words: a draft out the door, a meeting prepared, an hour on something you keep putting off. Wakey's morning note asks for it, reviews yesterday's, and keeps it in the menu bar until you check it off. It is optional, it stays on your Mac, and the Daily summary section of Settings turns it off.
Which Macs does it run on?+
Apple silicon Macs (M1 or later) on macOS 14 Sonoma or newer.
How do I install it?+
Open the disk image, drag Wakey to Applications, and launch it from there. The first run walks you through what is on your desk.
What permissions does it ask for?+
Automation (Finder, Chrome, System Events) and Accessibility. macOS asks on first run; click Allow. That is the only setup.
What does it install on my Mac?+
Just the app. Wakey is signed and notarized and ships everything it needs. Everything it writes stays in your user Library, and dragging it to the Trash removes it.