According to AlphaMoat, as of 2026-09, mac-use has 4,623 downloads and 9 stars — ranked #2,062 of 5,078 AI skills overall, and #388 of 969 in AI Agent.
| Platform | Installs | Downloads | Stars | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ClawHub ↗ | 150 | 4.5K | 8 | - |
| SkillHub ↗ | 187 | 4.6K | 9 | — |
Platforms count differently and update at different times.
The primary describes taking a screenshot, using OCR to identify interface elements, then clicking, scrolling, typing, or pressing keys and taking another screenshot to verify the result. It is for macOS and relies on Apple Vision OCR and the required local Python environment.
Profile published 2026-10-27
Generated from the skill’s documentation as examples; not results of actual runs.
The counting method changed in 2026-09: skills with the same name are now counted separately by author, and the full catalog is covered. Dashed lines show months before the change; they are not compared with later months, and no growth is computed across the change.
| Month | Downloads | MoM | Stars |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-09 | 4.6K | — | 9 |
| 2026-08 | 4.4K | +2.5% | 9 |
| 2026-07 | 4.3K | — | 9 |
| 2026-05 | 3.8K | — | 9 |
| 2026-03 | 2.9K | — | 8 |
The author’s original file, shown as plain text without edits or review by AlphaMoat. Links are not clickable; check commands before running them. Fetched 2026-10-23.
---
name: mac-use
description: Control macOS GUI apps visually — take screenshots, click, scroll, type. Use when the user asks to interact with any Mac desktop application's graphical interface.
metadata: {"openclaw":{"emoji":"🖥️","requires":{"bins":["python3"]},"os":["darwin"],"install":[{"id":"python-brew","kind":"brew","formula":"python","bins":["python3"],"label":"Install Python 3 (brew)"}]}}
---
# Mac Use
Control any macOS GUI application through a **screenshot → pick element → click → verify** loop.
## Setup
**Platform**: macOS only (requires Apple Vision framework for OCR)
**System binaries** (pre-installed on macOS):
- `python3` — via Homebrew (`brew install python`)
- `screencapture` — built-in macOS utility
**Python packages** — install from the skill directory:
```bash
pip3 install --break-system-packages -r {baseDir}/requirements.txt
```
## How It Works
The `screenshot` command captures a window, uses **Apple Vision OCR** to detect all text elements, draws numbered annotations on the image, and returns both:
1. **Annotated image** at `/tmp/mac_use.png` — numbered green boxes around each detected text
2. **Element list** in JSON — `[{num: 1, text: "Submit", at: [500, 200]}, {num: 2, text: "Cancel", at: [600, 200]}, ...]` where `at` is the center point `[x, y]` on the 1000x1000 canvas (origin at top-left)
You receive both by calling Bash (gets JSON with element list) and then Read on `/tmp/mac_use.png` (gets the visual). **Always do both** so you can cross-reference the numbers with what you see.
## Quick Reference
```bash
# List all visible windows
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py list
# Screenshot + annotate (returns image + numbered element list)
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py screenshot <app> [--id N]
# Click element by number (primary click method)
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py clicknum <N>
# Click at canvas coordinates (fallback for unlabeled icons)
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py click --app <app> [--id N] <x> <y>
# Scroll inside a window
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py scroll --app <app> [--id N] <direction> <amount>
# Type text (uses clipboard paste — supports all languages)
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py type [--app <app>] "text here"
# Press key or combo
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py key [--app <app>] <combo>
```
## Workflow
1. **Open** the target app with `open -a "App Name"` (optionally with a URL or file path)
2. **Wait** for it to load: `sleep 2`
3. **Screenshot** the app:
```bash
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py screenshot <app> [--id N]
```
This returns JSON with `file` (image path) and `elements` (numbered text list).
4. **Read** the annotated image at `/tmp/mac_use.png` to see the numbered elements visually
5. **Decide** which element to interact with:
- **Prefer `clicknum N`** — pick the number of a detected text element
- **Fallback `click --app <app> x y`** — only for unlabeled icons (arrows, close buttons, cart icons) that have no text and therefore no number
6. **Act** using `clicknum`, `type`, `key`, or `scroll`
7. **Screenshot again** to verify the result
8. Repeat from step 3
## Commands
### list
Show all visible app windows.
```bash
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py list
```
Returns JSON array: `[{"app":"Google Chrome","title":"Wikipedia","id":4527,"x":120,"y":80,"w":1200,"h":800}, ...]`
### screenshot
Capture a window, detect text elements via OCR, annotate with numbered markers, and return the element list. The target window is automatically raised to the top before capture, so overlapping windows are handled.
```bash
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py screenshot chrome
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py screenshot chrome --id 4527
```
- `<app>`: fuzzy, case-insensitive match (e.g. "chrome" matches "Google Chrome")
- `--id N`: target a specific window ID (required when multiple windows of the same app exist)
- Returns JSON with:
- `file`: path to annotated screenshot (`/tmp/mac_use.png`)
- `id`, `app`, `title`, `scale`: window metadata
- `elements`: array of `{num, text, at}` — the numbered clickable text elements, where `at` is `[x, y]` center coordinates on the 1000x1000 canvas (origin at top-left)
- If multiple windows match, returns a list of windows instead — pick one and retry with `--id`
- The image is 1000x1000 pixels with green bounding boxes and blue number badges
- Element map is saved to `/tmp/mac_use_elements.json` for `clicknum`
### clicknum
Click on a numbered element from the last screenshot. **This is the primary click method.**
```bash
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py clicknum 5
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py clicknum 12
```
- `N`: the element number from the last `screenshot` output
- Reads the saved element map, activates the window, and clicks at the element's center
- Returns JSON with `clicked_num`, `text`, canvas coords, and absolute screen coords
### click
Click at a position using canvas coordinates. **Fallback only — use for unlabeled icons.**
```bash
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py click --app chrome 500 300
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py click --app chrome --id 4527 500 300
```
- **Coordinates are canvas positions (0-1000)** from the screenshot image
- x=0 is left, x=1000 is right; y=0 is top, y=1000 is bottom
- Use this only when Vision OCR didn't detect the element (icon-only buttons, images, etc.)
### scroll
Scroll inside an app window.
```bash
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py scroll --app chrome down 5
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py scroll --app notes up 10
```
- Directions: `up`, `down`, `left`, `right`
- Amount: number of scroll clicks (3-5 for moderate, 10+ for fast scrolling)
- Mouse is moved to the center of the window before scrolling
### type
Type text into the currently focused input field.
```bash
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py type --app chrome "hello world"
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py type --app chrome "你好世界"
```
- `--app`: activates the app first to ensure keystrokes go to the right window
- Uses clipboard paste (Cmd+V) for reliable Unicode/CJK support
- **Always click on the target input field first** before typing
### key
Press a single key or key combination.
```bash
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py key --app chrome return
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py key --app chrome cmd+a
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py key --app chrome cmd+shift+s
```
- `--app`: activates the app first
- Common keys: `return`, `tab`, `escape`, `space`, `delete`, `backspace`, `up`, `down`, `left`, `right`
- Modifiers: `cmd`, `ctrl`, `alt`/`opt`, `shift`
## Important Rules
- **Always screenshot before your first interaction** with an app
- **Always screenshot after an action** to verify the result
- **Always Read the screenshot image** after running the screenshot command — you need both the element list AND the visual
- **Prefer `clicknum`** over `click` — only use direct coordinates for unlabeled icons
- **Click before typing** — ensure the correct input field has focus first
- **Multiple windows**: if you get `multiple_windows` error, use `list` to see all windows, then pass `--id`
- **Popup windows** (like WeChat mini-program panels) are separate windows with their own IDs — use `list` to find them and `--id` to target them
- **Wait after opening apps**: use `sleep 2-3` after `open -a` before taking a screenshot
- **Activate the app** before screenshot/click: prepend `osascript -e 'tell application "AppName" to activate' && sleep 1` when the target app may be behind other windows
- **Do not type passwords or secrets** via this tool
## Coordinate System (for fallback `click` only)
Screenshots are rendered onto a **1000x1000 canvas**:
- **Origin (0, 0)** is at the **top-left** corner
- **x** increases left to right (0 = left edge, 1000 = right edge)
- **y** increases top to bottom (0 = top edge, 1000 = bottom edge)
- The app window is scaled to fit (aspect ratio preserved), centered, with dark gray padding
## Example: Order food on Meituan in WeChat
```bash
# 1. Open WeChat
open -a "WeChat"
sleep 3
# 2. Screenshot WeChat — find the mini program window
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py list
# → find the mini program window ID
# 3. Screenshot the mini program (annotated + element list)
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py screenshot 微信 --id 41266
# → returns: {"file": "/tmp/mac_use.png", "elements": [{num: 1, text: "搜索", at: [500, 200]}, ...]}
# → Read /tmp/mac_use.png to see annotated image
# 4. Click "搜索" (element #1)
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py clicknum 1
# 5. Type search query
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py type --app 微信 "炸鸡"
# 6. Press Enter
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py key --app 微信 return
sleep 2
# 7. Screenshot to see results
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py screenshot 微信 --id 41266
# → Read /tmp/mac_use.png, pick a restaurant by number
# 8. Click on a restaurant (e.g. element #5)
python3 {baseDir}/scripts/mac_use.py clicknum 5
```
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Data month: 2026-09 · Downloads, stars and installs are aggregated monthly from public skill registries (ClawHub, SkillHub). See methodology.