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Notes
Obsidian
Local-first markdown knowledge base with a graph view. Your notes stay plain text files on your own disk — no account, no sync fees, no lock-in.
Independent software directory — since 2009
Free apps.
Free apps.
Zero noise.
Pure signal.
freeapps.net is a hand-curated index of free software, open-source tools, browser utilities and web services. Every single entry is tested by a human, described in plain language and checked again every ninety days — so you never have to guess whether a "free" download will cost you your time, your data or your sanity.
4,800+
Apps indexed
12
Categories
190k
Monthly readers
0
Paywalls
ProductivityDesignDeveloper ToolsSecurity & Privacy
Video EditingAudioEducationAI & Machine Learning
UtilitiesCommunicationOpen SourceCross-platform
ProductivityDesignDeveloper ToolsSecurity & Privacy
Video EditingAudioEducationAI & Machine Learning
UtilitiesCommunicationOpen SourceCross-platform
Why freeapps.net
A directory built the way software directories should have been built.
The web is drowning in download portals that bury the actual download button under four fake ones. We took the opposite route: fewer entries, longer descriptions, real screenshots, honest limitations, and a strict editorial policy that we publish in full.
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Every entry is manually tested
A catalogue number does not mean anything until somebody installs the thing. Our editors run each application on a clean virtual machine, check what it installs, what it phones home about and whether the "free" tier is actually usable without a credit card. If a tool only looks free until you hit a paywall at step three, it does not get listed — or it gets listed with a clear warning at the very top of the page.
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No sponsored placement
Nobody can buy the first position in a category. Ranking is derived from testing score, maintenance activity and reader feedback — nothing else.
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Privacy flags
Telemetry, account requirements, ad SDKs and licence traps are marked with a visible badge on every listing, so you can decide in two seconds.
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Re-checked every 90 days
Software rots. Licences change, projects get acquired, installers start bundling toolbars. Every listing is re-verified quarterly and quietly retired when it stops being trustworthy.
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Alternatives, always
Each page ends with three to five alternative tools for the same job, including at least one offline-first option and one cross-platform option. Lock-in is not a feature.
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Plain-language copy
No marketing fluff and no copied press releases. We write what the app does, who it is for, what it is bad at, and how long it takes to learn.
"If we cannot explain a tool in three honest sentences, we have not understood it well enough to recommend it."
Editor's picks
Twelve free apps worth installing today
A rotating selection from the directory: the tools our editors actually keep on their own machines, across creative work, development, security and everyday productivity.
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Design
Krita
Professional digital painting studio built by artists for artists. Full brush engine, animation timeline and PSD support, completely free.
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3D
Blender
The complete 3D pipeline: modelling, sculpting, rigging, simulation, rendering and video editing in one 400 MB download.
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Developer
VS Code
The most widely used code editor on the planet. Fast, extensible, and with a marketplace that covers practically every language.
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Security
Bitwarden
Open-source password manager with a genuinely unlimited free tier, end-to-end encryption and clients for every platform you own.
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Media
VLC
Plays literally anything. Twenty years old and still the fastest way to open a strange video file without installing a codec pack.
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Video
OBS Studio
Broadcast-grade screen recording and live streaming. Scene compositing, audio routing and unlimited recording length at zero cost.
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Audio
Audacity
Multi-track audio editor for podcast cleanup, noise removal and quick mastering. Simple enough to learn in an afternoon.
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Browser
Firefox
An independent browser engine with strong tracking protection, container tabs and a total-cookie-blocking mode built in.
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Office
LibreOffice
Full office suite with excellent Microsoft format compatibility. Writer, Calc, Impress, Draw, Base and Math in one install.
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Design
Inkscape
Vector illustration with a mature SVG workflow. Ideal for logos, icons, diagrams and print-ready layouts that must scale.
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Video
DaVinci Resolve
Hollywood-grade colour grading and editing in a free tier that is not crippled. Heavy on hardware, generous on features.
About the project
Seventeen years of keeping a list honest.
freeapps.net started in 2009 as a plain HTML list of eleven programs a graphic designer kept reinstalling on every new machine.
There was no business plan behind it — just a text file, a shared hosting account and a stubborn belief that the best software on the internet was often the software nobody was advertising. The list was published because friends kept asking the same question in different words: "what should I actually install?"
Seventeen years later that text file has grown into an editorial directory with a small team of testers, a published methodology and an archive of more than four thousand verified entries. What has not changed is the guiding rule: we only list software we would put on our own parents' computers. That single sentence kills ninety percent of the submissions we receive, and it is the reason readers keep coming back.
The free software world is stranger and richer than most people realise. There is a spreadsheet application written by one person in Iceland, a video editor maintained by volunteers who ship faster than commercial studios, and a note-taking tool that has outlived three venture-funded competitors. Our job is to find those projects, test them properly and describe them without hype — so that the twenty minutes you spend choosing a tool are twenty minutes well spent.
We are funded by unobtrusive display advertising and reader donations. We do not accept payment for placement, we do not publish "sponsored reviews", and we do not use affiliate links that change what we recommend. When a project pays us nothing — which is almost always — that changes nothing at all.
"Good free software does not need a marketing budget. It needs somebody to write down, clearly and without exaggeration, what it does."
— The freeapps.net editorial team
Browse by category
Twelve categories. No filler.
Every category is maintained by an editor who actually works in that field — which is why some of them contain forty tools and others contain nine.
Productivity
486 verified apps
Design & Graphics
372 verified apps
Developer Tools
611 verified apps
Security & Privacy
298 verified apps
Video Editing
214 verified apps
Audio & Music
263 verified apps
Education
187 verified apps
AI & Machine Learning
156 verified apps
System Utilities
402 verified apps
Communication
231 verified apps
Open Source Essentials
344 verified apps
Cross-platform Tools
275 verified apps
How we test
A methodology you can audit.
The word "tested" is thrown around freely, so here is exactly what happens between a developer submitting a project and that project appearing in the directory.
Install on a clean machine
Every candidate is installed on a freshly imaged virtual machine with network monitoring enabled. We record installer size, bundled extras, permission requests and the first connection the application makes to the outside world.
Use it for real work
Editors spend at least three hours on a genuine task — editing a video, writing a document, reproducing a bug. Screenshots come from that session, not from the vendor's press kit.
Check the fine print
We read the licence, the privacy policy and the pricing page. Anything that changes after a trial period, requires a phone number, or exports to a proprietary format gets flagged in the listing.
Re-verify every quarter
Listings carry a verification date. When a project is abandoned, sold or starts shipping adware, the entry is updated or removed — and the change is noted in our newsroom.
Newsroom
What is happening in free software
Weekly notes from the directory: new entries, tools that changed their licence, projects that quietly disappeared and everything else worth knowing before your next install.
No news yet
Our editors are preparing the next batch of articles. Check back soon.
Questions
Everything people ask us before trusting the list.
Is everything on freeapps.net really free?
Every listing has a usable free tier — that is the entry requirement. Some of them are free forever and open source, others are free for personal use with a paid plan for teams. The listing always states which model applies, and any tool whose free tier expires after a trial period is explicitly marked as such.
Can a company pay to be listed or ranked higher?
No. Placement is not for sale, ranking cannot be purchased, and we do not publish sponsored reviews. Our revenue comes from display advertising and reader donations, both of which are independent of what we recommend.
How do you decide which apps make the directory?
Three criteria: the tool must work well, the free tier must be genuinely useful, and the project must show signs of active maintenance. We also require a clear licence and documentation in English. Tools that bundle adware, require a phone number to register or export only to proprietary formats are rejected outright.
Why are there only a few hundred apps per category?
Because padding a category with abandoned projects helps nobody. We would rather list nine tools that work than ninety that exist. If a category looks thin, it is because the honest answer to "what is good here" is short.
How often are listings updated?
Every entry is re-verified on a ninety-day cycle. Breaking changes — a licence switch, a new owner, an installer that starts bundling extras — are flagged immediately and announced in the newsroom.
Can I submit my own application?
Yes. Developers are welcome to submit projects through the contact form below. We review every submission, but we do not guarantee coverage, and we do not accept payment for a review or for a positive verdict.
Get in touch
Submissions, corrections and everything else.
Found a bug in a listing, know an app we missed, or want to tell us that a tool has gone downhill? Write to us — real humans read every message, usually within two working days.
Editorial desk
Use this address for app submissions, factual corrections, licence change reports and press enquiries. Please include a link and a one-paragraph description of why the tool belongs in the directory.
[email protected]We answer submissions within two business days. If your message is about a listing that contains an error, please mention the exact URL — it speeds things up considerably.