There are lots of different macOS clients for downloading torrents, and new software comes out every year. But what's the best Mac torrent software for you? Which has the best features, and which is easiest to use?

Torrent clients enable you to download torrent files or use torrent magnet links. Each is used to download and share files over the internet; and each Mac BitTorrent client offers something different. A good BitTorrent program should be piece of cake to use, reliable, and quickly download files from other estimator users.

Large or obscure files tin take a long fourth dimension to download, then a skilful client should also be unobtrusive, sitting in the background and quietly pulling downward your files while you continue to piece of work.

In this feature, we look at all the Mac torrent clients worth because, and figure out which is the best for the average Mac user to depend on. If yous're interested in similar software for your tablet, see How to download torrents on iPad.

What are torrents?

Torrents are small files that you can download and open up in a torrent client. The torrent client then downloads a larger file from the net using a process known as BitTorrent. BitTorrent enables people to share large files with each other using a peer-to-peer network, which means they share parts of the file with each other, rather than downloading the whole file from a central location (such every bit iTunes).

You lot download a small file, called a torrent, and this enables you to connect to other computers with the same file and download parts of it from each other. These parts are then shared until y'all have the whole of the file, at which signal you can continue sharing the file (known equally seeding).

I person has to seed the whole of the file in the commencement identify for other to share information technology. BitTorrent is an efficient way to share large files across multiple computers. It has something of a bad reputation considering of its association with file-sharing sites like The Pirate Bay, but the technology is often used to share less controversial large files, such as software updates, Linux installation distributions, and open-source or copyright-costless programs, movies, music and other large files.

To download a torrent you must download first a torrent client. This accepts the file and logs on to peer-to-peer networks to hunt for other people sharing the file. Once it'south institute them it will begin downloading the file.

Are torrents legal?

Torrents and BitTorrent technology are, themselves, completely legal. However, many people use torrent technology to download files from popular filesharing sites like The Pirate Bay.

Many of the files shared, such as the latest movies or television shows, may be subject to copyright laws, and downloading them is generally bailiwick to copyright law in about countries. Film and music companies have been known to monitor torrent activity and bring courtroom cases against individuals it suspects of copyright infringement.

What are torrent magnet links?

A magnet link is another way of using BitTorrent to download large files, simply you don't even demand to download the torrent file. Instead, you click on a magnet link in a website, and your default torrent app will automatically outset downloading the whole file using BitTorrent. Magnet links contain a hash code that is unique for each different file. All modern BitTorrent apps likewise support magnet links.

BitTorrent

BitTorrent for Mac

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The official BitTorrent customer is a great place to outset as it has all the tools you demand for downloading torrents. The app imposes no limits on data size or the number of files you download, plus its bandwidth booster does a good job of keeping things ticking along nicely in the background without eating upwards system resources.

It besides has the option of assuasive users to log on to the BitTorrent Remote site (after yous've created a free business relationship) and command all of the downloads on your Mac via the web. So you lot tin leave your computer running at home, then monitor it all from work or a coffee shop via your iPhone.

BitTorrent does include ads equally a way to pay for the app, only if you want to get rid of them there is a Pro tier which costs £16/$xix.95 and brings with it the additional benefits of anti-virus software, previews for files that are downloading, file conversion, and a HD media actor.

qBittorent

qBittorrent

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qBittorrent is a relatively obscure program, so at that place's a good chance you oasis't heard of it. Even so, we accept swiftly go fans. It's simple to operate, easy on the optics and perfectly functional. We found information technology used picayune groundwork processing and insufficient of adverts and spam.

The interface is a bit clunky compared to the likes of Manual, and despite being new, it looks similar an app from an old version of Mac Os X.

However, it has a very dainty combination of features and ease of use. While other torrent programs are often either also simplistic or overtly complicated, qBittorrent strikes the middle ground confidently. Information technology'due south easy to download single or multiple files, and to cull files from within a single torrent.

Manual

Transmission

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Of all the apps here, Transmission is the most Mac-like, with a gorgeous interface and Apple-like simplicity - not that Apple would ever make a BitTorrent app; information technology won't even allow them on the App Store.

Transmission is an extremely low-cal BitTorrent client with a good range of features. Information technology needs very little configuration and is designed to be as minimalist as possible, so files but open up in a small window displaying a unmarried upload bar. You can get more than information on files but this opens in a separate window.

There was a controversy a while back, when hackers managed to infect a release of Transmission with malware, but the visitor moved rapidly to replace that version with one that removed the offending software and have remained vigilant ever since.

Nosotros think Transmission takes the simplicity thing a niggling too far, and qBittorrent offers a wider range of features (such as in-app search). But if you very rarely download torrents, simply want a torrent customer only in case, this is a good choice.

uTorrent

uTorrent

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For a long time uTorrent was one of our favourite torrent clients for Mac, combining a lightweight UI with a solid feature set.

It lost our recommendation for a while when it began bundling in some unwelcome extensions and setting Yahoo as the default search engine, but we're pleased to say that if that put y'all off in the past, don't worry - uTorrent is at present free of all of that, and so long as you read the installation options carefully and unclick whatsoever boxes offering additional 'bonuses'.

The outcome is a not bad little torrent app that's lightweight and easy to apply. In that location are ads, but other than that at that place's very little to complain about hither.

Vuze

Vuze

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If uTorrent has got dorsum into our favour, Vuze has lost it. Only similar uTorrent used to, information technology'southward been known to gear up Yahoo to your default search engine and install unwelcome extensions. It's not really malware, but information technology'due south even so a wealth of unwanted crud all over your Mac.

If you keep an center out during the installation you can click Decline, but this is yet enough of an annoyance for us to drop Vuze all the style from the top of the list to the bottom. It'southward a shame because these things aside information technology'due south a cracking picayune app.

Vuze, which was previously known as Azureus, offers far more item than qBittorrent and Transmission, but withal has a good macOS-friendly interface. With Vuze it'southward easier to pick parts from torrent files, such equally a big audio file containing different songs. You can likewise send files to different target locations and search for torrents from inside the app.

If the interminable ads are too much for you, the Vuze Plus tier removes them and too adds unlimited DVDs burns of files (if people nevertheless do that), built-in antivirus, and the ability to preview files as they download. At the fourth dimension of writing the yearly subscription rate was bachelor for $nine.99/£8.