In short
Finicky is a free, open-source Mac app for people who like to write their own rules. You keep a JavaScript (or TypeScript) file, ~/.finicky.js, that says which browser and profile each link opens in. Nothing happens that the file doesn't say.
Profile Porter is for people who don't want to keep a list. It reads which profiles are signed in to a site and where you use it, opens the link there, and asks when two profiles are about even. Rules are there if you want one.
Side by side
| Profile Porter | Finicky | |
|---|---|---|
| Picks a profile without rules | Yes: from sign-ins, saved passwords and history | No: rules, or your default browser |
| Rules | Optional: a site, or every link from an app, to one profile | Yes: wildcards, regular expressions or JavaScript functions, by link, app, modifier keys and more |
| Asks you | When two profiles are about even, or when you hold Shift | No picker |
| Learns from your picks | Yes, from each pick and each Undo | No |
| Chrome, Edge, Brave profiles | Yes | Yes, named in a rule |
| Firefox profiles | Yes, old and new style | Only in the 4.4 alpha |
| Firefox containers | Yes, with the Open external links in a container add-on | No |
| Safari profiles | Yes, on a Mac (Safari 17 or later) | No |
| Opens links in apps | Yes, when the site says its app opens the link (Zoom, Figma) | Yes, with a rule that rewrites the link (Zoom, Spotify, Teams) |
| Removes tracking from links | Yes, built in | Yes, with a rewrite rule you write |
| Expands short links | Yes, if you turn it on | Yes, built in (bit.ly, t.co, Outlook Safe Links and more) |
| Undo a wrong pick | Yes | No |
| Private window | Yes: hold Shift as you pick (not Safari) | With launch arguments you add yourself |
| Price | €12 once for 1.x, on up to 3 computers; 14-day refund | Free |
| Platforms | macOS 14 or later; Windows 10 or 11 | macOS 12 or later |
| Open source | No | Yes (MIT) |
Where Finicky is better
- It's free and open source. MIT licensed, on GitHub, installed with brew install --cask finicky.
- Rules can do anything. Match a link by wildcard, regular expression or your own function; by the app it came from; by the keys you hold; even by whether your Mac is on battery. Profile Porter's rules are only "this site" or "this app".
- It can change links before they open. Force HTTPS, strip any parameter, turn a web link into a zoommtg: link. Profile Porter removes tracking and sends links to apps, but you can't write your own rewrites.
- Short links are always expanded, Outlook's Safe Links included, so rules see the real address. In Profile Porter that's a setting you turn on.
- Your setup is a text file. Keep it in git, copy it to a new Mac, comment it.
- It reads nothing of yours. It doesn't look at your browsing history or cookies, so it needs no Full Disk Access. Profile Porter does read them, on your computer.
- Older Macs: it runs on macOS 12; Profile Porter needs macOS 14.
Where Profile Porter is better
- No rules to write. It picks the profile where you're signed in to the site and use it most. A site you already use works on the first click, with nothing to set up.
- It asks when it isn't sure. Finicky has no picker: a link no rule matches goes to your default browser.
- It learns, and you can undo. Each pick and each Undo teaches it. A wrong pick is one key away from the right one.
- More kinds of profile. Firefox profiles (old and new style) and containers, and Safari profiles on a Mac. Finicky's stable release opens Chrome-family profiles only; Firefox profiles are in its 4.4 alpha.
- Windows too. Finicky is Mac only.
Price and platforms
Finicky is free. It's for macOS 12 or later. The latest stable version is 4.2.2, from 3 October 2025. Version 4.4.0-alpha (26 April 2026) adds a rules editor in the app and Firefox profiles.
Profile Porter is €12 once for every 1.x update, on up to 3 computers, Mac or Windows, with a full refund within 14 days if it isn't for you. It needs macOS 14 or later, or Windows 10 or 11.
Which to choose
Choose Finicky if…
- you like writing your setup as code, and want it in a file you control;
- you need rules on more than the site and the app, or links rewritten your way;
- you want something free and open source, or you're on macOS 12 or 13.
Choose Profile Porter if…
- you'd rather not write or keep up rules;
- you want it to ask on a close call, and learn from what you pick;
- you use Firefox containers, Safari profiles, or Windows.
Get Profile Porter for €12, once.
Everything included, no account, and a full refund within 14 days if it isn't for you. macOS 14 or later, or Windows 10 or 11.
Checked on 21 October 2026 on their official pages: Finicky on GitHub; releases; configuration (v4); configuration ideas. Something out of date? Tell us at support@profileporter.com.