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Download Tactyl

Free. No account. Installing takes about five minutes.

Tactyl only works on macOS today. Please don’t download it for a Windows PC — join the Windows waitlist instead. Windows waitlist →

Download for Mac

Version 1.0.63 · 41.2 MB · .dmg · macOS 11 or later

Free version: 3 screens, USB only, no add-ons.

Install it, step by step

  1. Drag Tactyl to Applications

    Open the .dmg you downloaded and drag the Tactyl icon onto the Applications folder.

  2. Open it the first time

    macOS will say it can’t verify the developer. That’s expected for apps outside the App Store.

    • On macOS 15 Sequoia and later: try to open Tactyl once, then go to System Settings › Privacy & Security, scroll down and click Open Anyway. The button only appears for a while after you’ve tried to open the app.
    • On macOS 14 and earlier: right-click Tactyl in Applications and choose Open.
  3. Plug in the board

    Use a USB data cable (some cables only charge). The board’s USB chip is a CH340. Most Macs recognise it straight away.

    • If the app doesn’t find the board, install the CH340 driver from the chip maker, WCH, restart, and plug it in again.
    CH340 driver for macOS (WCH) →
  4. Give it two permissions

    macOS asks for these the first time they’re needed:

    • Accessibility — so the board’s buttons can press keys and move the pointer (shortcuts, numpad, trackpad).
    • Automation — so Tactyl can read your browser tabs and talk to apps like Music.
  5. After an update

    Sometimes macOS forgets the Accessibility permission after Tactyl updates, and buttons stop pressing keys. Go to System Settings › Privacy & Security › Accessibility, remove Tactyl with the – button, and add it again (or switch it off and on).

  6. Flash the board

    In the app, choose your board and click to install the firmware. It takes about a minute. When the board restarts with the Tactyl logo, you’re done.

Stuck on a step? Check the help page or write to us.