Comparison
AlDente alternative: Chargeberry vs AlDente
AlDente is the best-known Mac charge limiter, with a free tier and Intel support. Chargeberry includes everything for $5.99 once, on Apple silicon.
Chargeberry vs AlDente at a glance
| Feature |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $5.99 once, everything included | Free; Pro €11.49 a year or €23.99 lifetime |
| Macs per license | Up to 3 | Up to 3 user accounts or Macs |
| Charge limit | 50–100% (80–100% on macOS 27) | Yes, free (below 80% on macOS 27 with a toggle) |
| Heat protection | Yes | Pro |
| Charge to 100% now | Yes | Pro (Top Up) |
| Full by a set time, or every weekday | Yes | Pro (Schedule) |
| Drain down with the charger plugged in | By hand or automatically | Free by hand; automatic in Pro |
| Battery calibration | Full cycle, monthly reminder | Pro (Calibration Mode) |
| Keeps the limit through sleep | Yes | Pro (Sleep Control) |
| Sailing Mode / MagSafe LED control | No | Pro |
| Live power flow and daily health history | Yes | Not on its feature list |
| Intel MacBooks | No | Most from 2013 |
| macOS | macOS 14 Sonoma or later | macOS 12 Monterey to macOS 27 |
| Offline for a month | Keeps working | Switches to the free version |
AlDente facts are from its pricing page, FAQ and 1.39 release notes, checked November 6, 2026; prices are as its site showed them, in euros. “Not on its feature list” means we didn’t find it there, not that AlDente can’t show any battery readings.
What AlDente is, and why so many people use it
AlDente, by AppHouseKitchen, is the charge limiter most Mac users have heard of. It started as an open-source project (its early “Classic” versions are open source; today’s Free and Pro aren’t) and grew into a polished app with a free tier, a Pro tier and a place on Setapp. It runs on macOS 12 Monterey through macOS 27, on Apple silicon and on most Intel MacBooks back to 2013, which no other app on this page can say.
The free version gives you the important part: a charge limit and a manual discharge. Pro adds a long list on top, from heat protection and Sailing Mode (a band the charge can drift in before charging resumes) to MagSafe LED control, schedules, sleep control, Low Power Mode control and Apple Shortcuts.
Where AlDente is better
- Intel Macs and older macOS. Most Intel MacBooks from 2013 on, and macOS 12 Monterey. Chargeberry needs Apple silicon and macOS 14.
- A free charge limit. If a limit is all you want and you don’t want to pay anything, AlDente Free does it.
- Below 80% on macOS 27. Since 1.39 AlDente can hold a lower limit on macOS 27 with a toggle; Chargeberry follows macOS’s own 80–100% there.
- More switches. MagSafe LED control, Low Power Mode control, Apple Shortcuts actions and customizable menu bar icons are in AlDente Pro and not in Chargeberry.
- Years of reviews. AlDente has a long track record and a large community. Chargeberry was first released on October 25, 2026.
Where Chargeberry is better
- Everything for $5.99, once. Heat protection, Charge to 100%, Full by, schedules, drain down (by hand or automatically), calibration, health history and Battery Wrapped are all in the one purchase. With AlDente, most of that is Pro.
- Full by a time, planned from your own charger. Tell Chargeberry “full by 8:30 on weekdays” and it holds your limit overnight, then starts charging just in time, using how fast your Mac actually charged in the past. The battery spends minutes at 100%, not hours.
- Offline is fine. Chargeberry checks its license when it can and never locks you out for being offline. AlDente Pro must reach its server at least every 30 days or it drops to the free version.
- See what the battery is doing. A live diagram shows the watts going between the charger, the battery and the Mac, and a daily health record shows how fast the battery is wearing.
- Built to fail safe. If anything holding the charging switches quits or crashes, normal charging comes back on its own.
According to Chargeberry’s own tests, when the process holding a charging switch was killed, normal charging came back within 1 second, and the app itself used about 0.1% CPU (0.13% on average, 0.4% at its busiest moment) and 13 MB of memory while it sits in the menu bar, and its helper about 0.03% CPU and 7 MB.
On macOS 27
macOS 27 locked the low-level charging controls every limiter used, and both apps adapted. AlDente 1.39 rebuilt its charge control for it. Chargeberry, since 1.1, sets macOS’s own charge limit on those Macs, which macOS then holds even while the Mac sleeps.
- Health
- 83%
- Cycles
- 349 of 1000
- Temperature
- 30.8 °C
- Charger
- 30 W
A working model of Chargeberry, not a video, running the same charging rules as the app. Plug the charger in and out, change the limit, turn up the heat, try Charge to 100% and Full by. Time runs fast here: two minutes every second, and faster with S.
What each costs
For one Mac with everything turned on: Chargeberry is $5.99 once. AlDente Pro is €11.49 a year or €23.99 lifetime, or part of Setapp at $9.99 a month. Both licenses cover up to three Macs. If the free features are enough for you, AlDente costs nothing, and that’s a fair reason to pick it.
Switching from AlDente to Chargeberry
Turn AlDente off
Quit AlDente and, in its settings, remove its helper (or uninstall it), so only one app controls charging.
Check macOS’s own settings
Turn off Optimized Battery Charging, and on macOS 26.4 or later set macOS’s Charge Limit to 100%, in System Settings › Battery › Charging (ⓘ). Chargeberry reminds you if either is on.
Install Chargeberry
Download it, drag it to Applications, open it, and approve its helper once in System Settings › General › Login Items & Extensions. The welcome walks you through it.
Pick your limit
Daily 80% suits most people. Set heat protection, a Full by schedule or a low battery warning if you want them.
Which should you pick?
Start with your Mac. On an Intel MacBook, AlDente is the answer; Chargeberry won’t run there. If you’re on macOS 27 and need a limit below 80%, AlDente (or the free batt) also wins for now.
On Apple silicon, the question is how much you want. If a limit is all you need, AlDente Free or macOS’s own Charge Limit will do. If you want the battery kept cool, full by the time you leave, calibrated now and then and tracked over months, Chargeberry does all of it for $5.99 once, with nothing behind a subscription. Try the demo above and see if it fits how you work.
Questions about Chargeberry and AlDente
Is Chargeberry a good AlDente alternative?
Yes, on a Mac with Apple silicon and macOS 14 or later. Chargeberry includes heat protection, Charge to 100%, Full by schedules, drain down, calibration and a battery health history for one payment of $5.99. On an Intel MacBook, or for a free limiter, AlDente is the better choice.
Is AlDente free?
AlDente Free includes the charge limiter and manual discharge. Heat protection, Top Up, Sailing Mode, calibration, schedules, sleep control and the rest are in AlDente Pro, which is €11.49 a year or €23.99 lifetime (prices shown on its pricing page on November 6, 2026).
Does Chargeberry work on Intel Macs like AlDente does?
No. Chargeberry needs a MacBook with Apple silicon (M1 or newer). AlDente supports Apple silicon and most Intel MacBooks from 2013, so on an Intel Mac AlDente is the one to use.
Do AlDente Pro and Chargeberry need to go online?
AlDente Pro checks its license online at least every 30 days and switches to the free version if a Mac stays offline longer. Chargeberry checks its license about once a day when it can, but being offline never locks you out: only a refunded or disabled key does.
Which one holds a limit below 80% on macOS 27?
AlDente does, with a toggle in its Charge Settings (since version 1.39). On macOS 27 Chargeberry uses macOS’s own charge limit, which runs from 80 to 100%. On macOS 26 and earlier, Chargeberry holds any limit from 50 to 100%.
Can I run AlDente and Chargeberry at the same time?
No, keep one. Two apps controlling charging work against each other. Chargeberry spots AlDente when it’s installed and tells you; quit AlDente and remove its helper before you rely on Chargeberry’s limit.
