The short answer. If you want a timer, a plain switch is enough. If you want the Mac awake only while something is running — a build, a download, an agent — use a conditional tool such as Adrafinil or Belay. If you want it awake on a schedule and nothing else, the simple ones. The distinction is whether the tool decides for itself when to stop, and that is the only question that matters here.
This guide covers 5 keep awake apps for macOS. Every fact below is drawn from the same verified records that back each app’s own page. The recommendations are our editorial judgment, not payment.
Quick comparison
| App | What it is | Pricing | Licence | Version |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adrafinil | battery and power utility | Open source | MIT | 1.8 |
| Amphetamine | battery and power utility | Free | not published | — |
| Belay | battery and power utility | Free | not published | 2.1.0 |
| KeepingYouAwake | system tool | Open source | MIT | 1.6.8 |
| Mouse Jiggler for Mac | Mac utility | Free | not published | 3.4 |
What actually decides this
- Timer or condition. A timer keeps the machine awake for a fixed period and then stops. A condition-based tool watches something and lets the machine sleep when it finishes. The second fails far less often in practice.
- What it prevents. Display sleep, system sleep and disk sleep are separate settings. A tool that only does one of them will not stop the others.
- How it keeps the machine awake. An assertion through the power API is the clean way. Simulating input works but can interrupt a full-screen app or a game.
- Whether it can be automated. If you want this behaviour tied to a build or a script, the tool needs a CLI or a URL scheme, which most of the simple ones do not have.
- What it does to a full-screen presentation. Sleep suppression can keep a display awake through a call you thought had ended. Check whether the tool pauses on its own, because the ones that do are the ones you can leave running.
Our picks
- Adrafinil — Its record describes keeping the machine awake while work is running and letting it sleep afterwards, which is the conditional pattern. Choose it when you want the Mac awake only while an AI agent is still working.
- Belay — It watches a specific class of workload rather than a timer, which is the difference that matters overnight. Choose it when the thing you are waiting on is a local coding agent.
- KeepingYouAwake — Its record describes a simple caffeine-style tool, and a simple tool is the right size for a simple need. Choose it when you want a plain schedule and a menu bar switch.
- Amphetamine — Trigger-driven sessions are its model, which generalises a plain timer without requiring a condition. Choose it when you already use a trigger-based approach and want it configurable.
The apps
Adrafinil
Adrafinil is a battery and power utility for macOS. Keep your Mac awake only while AI agents are still working, then let it sleep normally. It is released under MIT.
What it does. Agent-aware, not always-on. Sleep is blocked only while ≥1 agent session holds an assertion. Zero sessions → normal sleep, including lid-close. Sub-50ms CLI. adrafinil acquire / release are called from agent hooks and round-trip to the daemon in under 50ms, so they never stall an agent’s workflow. Reference-counted assertions. Overlapping sessions stack cleanly; sleep unblocks only when the last one releases. Thermal cutout. If skin/CPU temperature crosses threshold while the lid is closed, all assertions are force-released so a bag-bound Mac can’t cook itself.
Adrafinil is listed with current version 1.8.
Full profile and verified facts for Adrafinil →
Amphetamine
Amphetamine is a battery and power utility for macOS. Keep your Mac awake. It is free.
Full profile and verified facts for Amphetamine →
Belay
Belay is a battery and power utility for macOS. Keeps your Mac awake only while a local AI coding agent is working, and lets it sleep the moment the work stops. It is free.
Belay is listed with current version 2.1.0.
Full profile and verified facts for Belay →
KeepingYouAwake
KeepingYouAwake is a system tool for macOS. Caffeine alternative with dark mode support. It is released under MIT.
What it does. Prevents your Mac from going to sleep.
KeepingYouAwake is listed with current version 1.6.8.
Full profile and verified facts for KeepingYouAwake →
Mouse Jiggler for Mac
Mouse Jiggler for Mac is a Mac utility for macOS. Prevent Mac from sleep with Mac Mouse Mover. It is free.
What it does. Keep your Mac awake with Mouse Jiggler. A thoughtful menu-bar app with cursor movement, schedules, app conditions, and automatic stop controls.
Mouse Jiggler for Mac is listed with current version 3.4.
Full profile and verified facts for Mouse Jiggler for Mac →
How to choose
- Free of charge. Amphetamine, Belay and Mouse Jiggler for Mac — no payment is required.
- No licence fee, source available. Adrafinil and KeepingYouAwake — the source can be read and, under the terms of each licence, reused.
Open source: Adrafinil and KeepingYouAwake (2 of 5).
Common mistakes
- Leaving a keep-awake tool on all day. It is a battery and heat problem, and the point of the conditional tools is that you do not have to remember.
- Assuming one tool controls display sleep. Check which sleep setting it actually asserts.
- Using input simulation in a full-screen app. It registers as activity and can break the app’s idle handling.
- Confusing this with a screensaver setting. They are different layers and only one of them is under your control.
How this guide was put together
Each app’s facts come from its own record: the developer’s own pages and repository, the App Store listing where one exists, and the documentation, each with a source grade and an access date. Where a fact rests on the developer’s own statement rather than on something we verified independently, the sentence says so. Where our data has no value for something, the guide says “not published” instead of guessing.
A price appears here only where the record carries one from a stated source; the guide never estimates one, and it records the pricing model alongside so the two can be read together. Prices change and vary by region, so each app links to its own page for the current detail.
The facts and the recommendations are kept apart on purpose. Everything in the app entries, the comparison table and the answers above is composed from the records. The short answer, the criteria and the picks are our editorial judgment: they reflect what we would choose and why, and they are not paid for. Where we make a recommendation we name the condition it applies under, because we do not call anything “the best” without explaining the criteria.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I choose between these keep awake apps?
There is no single answer — it depends on what you need. This guide covers 5 keep awake apps: Adrafinil, Amphetamine, Belay, KeepingYouAwake and Mouse Jiggler for Mac. They differ mainly in pricing model, licence and the trade-offs each one carries. Pick by the trade-off you care about rather than by rank.
Are these keep awake apps free?
Pricing across this group: open source (Adrafinil and KeepingYouAwake) and free (Amphetamine, Belay and Mouse Jiggler for Mac). We quote a price only where the record carries one from a stated source, and we never estimate one. Prices change and vary by region and by store, so always check the developer’s own page for the current figure.
Which of these keep awake apps are open source?
Adrafinil (MIT) and KeepingYouAwake (MIT) are open source.
Do these keep awake apps support Apple Silicon?
Our data does not carry an explicit Apple Silicon statement for any app in this group, so we do not claim one. The absence of a statement is not the same as the absence of support.
How do I choose between them?
Start with how you pay: the guide groups these apps by pricing model, because the budget is the constraint most people actually have. Then check the trade-offs listed for each app: the limitations are the part that decides most people’s choice, because they describe what the app will not do for you.
