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Utilities · head to head

Magnet vs WinDirStat

Magnet logo

Magnet

Utilities

Mac App Store window manager sold as a one-time paid app, with no free tier

From
$4.99/one-time
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
WinDirStat logo

WinDirStat

Utilities

Windows disk usage analyser that shows where space went as a colour-coded treemap

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only WinDirStat has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Magnet there is no free tier at all, so a user cannot try before buying beyond the Mac App Store return window.; WinDirStat it walks the directory tree rather than reading the NTFS master file table, so a full scan takes minutes where WizTree takes seconds on the same drive.
  • They diverge on capability: Magnet covers Keyboard shortcuts, WinDirStat covers Treemap visualisation.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Magnet and WinDirStat actually diverge.

Attributes where Magnet and WinDirStat differ
AttributeMagnetWinDirStat
Starting price$4.99/one-timeFree
Pricing modelOne-time purchaseOpen source, no licence fee
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsMacWindows

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Utilities).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Magnet

  • Keyboard shortcuts
  • Drag to snap
  • Multi-display support
  • Mac App Store distribution
  • Menu bar access
  • Third display layouts

Only in WinDirStat

  • Treemap visualisation
  • Three linked views
  • Multithreaded scanning
  • Cleanup actions
  • Any filesystem
  • GPL licensed

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Magnet

  • A user who wants the App Store handling licensing, family sharing and updates automaticallynot WinDirStat
  • Someone who prefers paying a small one-time fee up front over evaluating a free tool firstnot WinDirStat
  • A less technical user who does not want to install from GitHub or Homebrewnot WinDirStat
  • A family sharing one Apple ID that wants one purchase to cover multiple Macs in the householdnot WinDirStat

WinDirStat

  • Finding what filled a Windows system drive when the usual suspects are not responsiblenot Magnet
  • Auditing a shared or network drive where files are spread across thousands of foldersnot Magnet
  • Environments where licence terms forbid personal-use-only freeware on company machinesnot Magnet
  • Explaining disk usage visually to someone who will not read a list of folder sizesnot Magnet

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Magnet

  • There is no free tier at all, so a user cannot try before buying beyond the Mac App Store return window.
  • It offers fewer customisation options than Rectangle, such as fewer configurable snap zones and less granular per-app behaviour.
  • Update cadence has historically been slower than the actively developed open source Rectangle project.
  • It is Mac only and App Store only, so it cannot be scripted, redistributed internally by a company, or installed outside Apple normal channels.
  • Being a small independent app, support depends on the developer responding to App Store reviews or email rather than a dedicated support team.

WinDirStat

  • It walks the directory tree rather than reading the NTFS master file table, so a full scan takes minutes where WizTree takes seconds on the same drive.
  • The version most users have installed is the 2007 build, and because it was dormant for so long, search results and download mirrors still point at it.
  • It is Windows only, so a mixed estate needs a different tool for macOS and Linux machines.
  • There is no scheduling, reporting or export for fleet use, so it answers a question on one machine at a time rather than monitoring storage across an organisation.
  • Hard links, junctions and deduplicated volumes can be counted in ways that make the totals disagree with what Windows reports, which causes confusion on servers.

Pricing, plan by plan

Magnet

$4.99/one-time
  • Magnet$4.99/one-time
    • Full app unlocked immediately, no trial gating
    • Mac App Store purchase and family sharing
    • Free updates through the App Store

WinDirStat

Free
  • WinDirStatFree
    • GPL licensed
    • Commercial use permitted
    • No paid edition or feature gating

Which should you pick?

Choose Magnet if

  • You need keyboard shortcuts.
  • You work on Mac.
  • You also want drag to snap.
Magnet review

Choose WinDirStat if

  • You need treemap visualisation.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows.
  • You also want three linked views.
WinDirStat review

Questions people ask

Is Magnet or WinDirStat better?
Neither clearly leads. Magnet starts at $4.99/one-time and WinDirStat at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Magnet or WinDirStat?
WinDirStat has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $4.99/one-time for Magnet and Free for WinDirStat.
Does Magnet or WinDirStat run on more platforms?
Magnet runs on Mac. WinDirStat runs on Windows.
Can I use WinDirStat for free?
Yes. WinDirStat has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Magnet starts at $4.99/one-time.
What is Magnet best used for?
Magnet is most often used for a user who wants the app store handling licensing, family sharing and updates automatically, someone who prefers paying a small one-time fee up front over evaluating a free tool first, a less technical user who does not want to install from github or homebrew, a family sharing one apple id that wants one purchase to cover multiple macs in the household. Of those, a user who wants the app store handling licensing, family sharing and updates automatically and someone who prefers paying a small one-time fee up front over evaluating a free tool first are not what WinDirStat is typically brought in for.
What can Magnet do that WinDirStat cannot?
Magnet covers Keyboard shortcuts, Drag to snap, Multi-display support, Mac App Store distribution. WinDirStat covers Treemap visualisation, Three linked views, Multithreaded scanning, Cleanup actions.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Magnet: Does Magnet have a free version?

No. It has always been a paid Mac App Store purchase with no free tier.

WinDirStat: Is WinDirStat still maintained?

Yes. It was dormant from around 2007 until new maintainers resumed development and released the 2.x line with multithreaded scanning and current Windows support.

Magnet: Can I share one purchase across my family Macs?

Yes, through Apple Family Sharing on the Mac App Store, the same as any other App Store app.

WinDirStat: Can I use it at work?

Yes. It is GPL licensed with no personal-use restriction, which is the practical advantage over free-for-personal-use alternatives in this category.

Magnet: How is it different from Rectangle?

Magnet is a paid App Store app from the start; Rectangle is free and open source, with paid Pro features sold as a separate app.

WinDirStat: Why is it slower than WizTree?

Different method. WizTree reads the NTFS master file table directly; WinDirStat traverses directories, which is slower but works on any filesystem, including network shares.

WinDirStat: Does it run on macOS or Linux?

No. Separate projects exist with similar treemap interfaces, but WinDirStat itself is Windows only.

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