Why not just run a local model?

Apple silicon is good at running open-weight models, and tools like Ollama make it easy. For autocomplete and short questions that can be enough. For agent work, the kind where the model reads a project, runs tests and edits a dozen files, the models that fit in a laptop's memory still trail the frontier, and they are slower.

OmniRush runs frontier GPT-6 models in the cloud and the agent on your Mac. Your Mac stays cool, the model is the best one available, and you pay nothing.

Install the desktop app

  1. Sign up at omnirush.ai with a GitHub account at least 7 days old. Most sign-ups are approved right away.
  2. Download omnirush-mac-arm64-<version>.dmg from the latest release or the download section.
  3. Open the DMG and drag OmniRush to Applications.
  4. Open it and click Sign in to omnirush.ai. Your browser shows a device code to approve.
  5. Open a project folder and describe a real task, with how to check it.

If macOS stops the app on first open, the docs have the two fixes: Open Anyway in System Settings > Privacy & Security, or one xattr command for the "damaged" message.

The app updates itself: it downloads the new version and opens it for you to drag into Applications.

Install the CLI

The CLI works on every Mac, including Intel ones. With Homebrew:

zsh
$ brew install node
$ node --version        # 22.19 or newer
$ npm i -g omnirush@latest
$ omnirush login
$ cd ~/code/app && omnirush

The installer from nodejs.org works as well. If npm says EACCES: permission denied, do not use sudo: install Node with Homebrew or a version manager such as nvm, or point npm at a folder you own (npm config set prefix ~/.npm-global, then add ~/.npm-global/bin to your PATH).

The sandbox: a Linux VM with no Docker

An agent runs commands with your permissions: installs, builds, test runs, scripts. On a Mac, OmniRush runs new chats in a Linux sandbox inside a small VM that it starts and manages itself. You do not install Docker, a VM app or anything else. The desktop app and the CLI share the same VM.

  • The agent's commands run in the VM; the app, your chats and your files stay on the Mac.
  • node_modules, Python environments and build folders inside the sandbox are its own Linux copies, so your Mac builds are never overwritten.
  • A server the agent starts there opens on your Mac at the same localhost port, so you test it in Safari or Chrome as usual.
  • Packages installed in the sandbox are still there next time.
  • The first chat in a project waits a little while the sandbox image downloads; after that it starts quickly.

Why this matters is covered in why run your AI coding agent in a sandbox. If a Mac cannot run the sandbox, the chat carries on directly on macOS and says so.

A good first task on a Mac

Hard to verify
clean up the API
Easy to verify
GET /orders?status=open returns closed
orders too. Fix the filter in src/orders,
add a test, and run npm test.

Give the agent a check it can run, start it in the project folder rather than your home folder, and let it work. In Normal mode it asks before risky actions such as git push, sudo and reading secrets. If a project has no AGENTS.md yet, /init writes one with its build and test commands, and the agent keeps it up to date.

What you get in the Mac app

  • Chat and IDE layouts: Cmd+Shift+Y switches. IDE puts files, changes and Git on the left, the editor and terminal in the middle and the chat on the right.
  • A desktop app for Windows, macOS and Linux with swarm agents: ask for a swarm and several agents split one task side by side, then hand you one summary. It also has a code editor and an IDE layout beside the chat.
  • Themes: eight presets with light and dark versions, or your own theme with a live preview and contrast checks.
  • Review, fix and undo built in: /review checks your changes, /fix fixes what it found, and one /undo takes back a whole turn while keeping your own edits.
  • Hosted web search for the model, when it is available for your account, with the searches and their sources shown in the chat.
  • MCP servers from a supported list: filesystem, git, SQLite, memory, sequential thinking, time, Playwright on local pages, and Figma with your own key.
  • Notifications when a task finishes or needs your approval while the window is in the background.

Computer use, where the agent operates an app window, is available on Windows and Linux today and not yet on macOS.

Keep your Mac tidy

Older versions can leave files behind. In the app, Settings > General > Storage > Free up space removes them. In the terminal, omnirush cleanup --dry-run shows what would go (older releases, stopped downloads, old logs and sandbox images; the current and the previous release stay), and omnirush cleanup removes it. Chats and projects are never touched.

Also on Windows? See the Windows guide. Coming from Cursor? See our free Cursor alternative.

Questions

What is the best free AI coding agent for Mac?

For agent work on a Mac, we recommend OmniRush: a native Apple silicon app and a CLI for any Mac, frontier GPT-6 models with a daily allowance that refills every day, and a Linux sandbox VM it sets up itself. No card, no API key and no paid tier.

Does OmniRush run on Intel Macs?

The CLI does: npm installs a native build for Intel and for Apple silicon. The desktop app is built for Apple silicon.

Do I need Docker for the sandbox on macOS?

No. OmniRush starts its own small Linux VM for the sandbox, shared by the desktop app and the CLI. Nothing else needs to be installed.

Will the sandbox break my Mac builds?

No. In the sandbox, node_modules, Python environments and build folders are the sandbox's own Linux copies, so the builds in your project folder on the Mac are never overwritten.

Does it run local models through Ollama?

No. OmniRush offers its own models: GPT-6 Astra, GPT-6.1 Sol and GPT-6 Sol. Other providers and local models are not supported.

Sources

Checked on October 23, 2026. Prices and features change: check each official page before you decide.

  1. OmniRush install docs: if macOS blocks the app
  2. Node.js downloads (nodejs.org)
  3. OmniRush Privacy Policy (what is collected and how it is used)
  4. OmniRush Terms of Service (free access and allowances)
  5. OmniRush desktop app source and releases (GitHub)
  6. OmniRush command-line tool on npm
  7. OmniRush changelog (what each release added)

OmniRush is not affiliated with or endorsed by Anysphere (Cursor), Anthropic (Claude Code), Anomaly (opencode), the Freebuff and Codebuff team, OpenAI (GPT, Codex), Microsoft (Windows), Apple (macOS) or Figma. Product names are trademarks of their owners and are used only to identify their products.

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