No more IMG_4821.HEIC. AirDropped photos get names you can search for.
IMG_4821.HEIC → 2026-09-21_toronto_walnut-lamp-on-oak-sideboard.jpg
IMG_4822.PNG → 2026-09-21_screenshot_failed-payment-notice.png
Install
brew install moizahmedd/tap/betterairdrop
No Homebrew? curl -fsSL https://betterairdrop.com/install | sh
macOS 13 or later. It opens in the menu bar and asks for Downloads access once. If
ANTHROPIC_API_KEY is set in your shell (or you're logged in with ant), it offers to use it;
otherwise it uses Apple Intelligence (macOS 26+, when it's on) or Apple Vision. Photos already in
Downloads can be previewed and renamed from the menu.
Installing with an AI agent
Tell Claude Code or Codex: "Install BetterAirdrop by following https://github.com/MoizAhmedd/betterairdrop/blob/main/docs/install-for-agents.md". It runs:
curl -fsSL https://betterairdrop.com/install | sh -s -- --yes --engine vision --launch-at-login
betterairdrop status --json # "ready": true, or next_steps says what's left
You click Allow on macOS's Downloads prompt (and the notifications prompt, if you want banners). Nothing else needs a click.
Signed with the project's own certificate rather than an Apple Developer ID, so it isn't notarized. Both install paths leave it unquarantined, so there's no Gatekeeper dialog. (Details.)
What it does
- Names from date, city, kind and content
- HEIC → JPEG, originals to the Trash
- Undo from the notification or the menu
- Touches only what AirDrop delivered
Build from source
Needs Xcode 16 or the Command Line Tools. Apple Intelligence naming needs Xcode 26 or later.
git clone https://github.com/MoizAhmedd/betterairdrop.git && cd betterairdrop
scripts/make-app.sh && open .build/app/BetterAirdrop.app
Naming engines
| Engine | Runs on | Sends |
|---|---|---|
| Claude Haiku (your API key) | Anthropic | a 768 px copy with GPS and EXIF stripped; the date, city name, camera model, kind and a short text snippet go as text |
| Pro naming (no API key) | BetterAirdrop's server, then Anthropic | the same, plus your Pro license key; the server keeps no photos, context or names |
| Apple Vision | your Mac | nothing |
| Apple Intelligence (macOS 26+) | your Mac | nothing |
City names come from a built-in table, so coordinates never leave the Mac.
PDFs (Pro) are named from their text: up to 4,000 characters from the first two pages, or OCR of page 1 for a scan, read on the Mac. With Claude or Pro naming, only that text extract is sent, with the page count and the PDF's title; never the file or a page image. Apple Intelligence names them on the Mac. Apple Vision alone leaves PDFs as they are.
Command line
betterairdrop rename --dry-run ~/Downloads/IMG_*.HEIC
betterairdrop undo
brew and the installer link it; Settings → Advanced can too. Reference: docs/cli.md.
Pro
Free does everything above. Pro, $19 once for 3 Macs, adds:
- Screenshots, named as you take them
- Any folder you choose
- A name builder
- Whole folders renamed at once
- PDFs too:
document (3).pdf→2026-10-12_invoice_bell-canada_84-12.pdf
License
MIT. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0.
