Mac file manager comparisonBurrow vs Commander One
Commander One is a two-panel file manager in the Total Commander tradition, with a free version and a PRO Pack. In PRO it adds FTP upload and cloud storage services, and mounts phones, which Burrow doesn't do. Burrow is built around notes, image tools and git for work on your Mac.
Features side by side
| Feature | Burrow | Commander One |
|---|---|---|
| Panes side by side | ✓Yes Up to four, as a 2×2 grid | ✓Yes Two panels |
| Tabs and saved layouts | ✓Yes Tabs, and workspaces that save tabs and panes | ✓Yes Unlimited tabs |
| Command palette | ✓Yes ⌘K: every command, folder and setting | ?Not listed Custom hotkeys for any action |
| Servers: SFTP, FTP and cloud storage | ✓Yes SFTP through your own ssh; SMB, AFP, NFS and WebDAV shares; FTP read-only. No FTP upload, and no S3 or cloud storage APIs | ✓Yes PRO: FTP, SFTP, WebDAV, S3, Backblaze B2, Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, Box, MEGA, pCloud |
| Archives | ✓Yes Makes zips; opens zip, tar, gz, 7z and rar; looks inside first | ✓Yes ZIP free; RAR, 7z and TarGz in PRO |
| Batch rename | ✓Yes Find and replace, regular expressions, live preview | ?Not listed Renames while copying |
| Compare and sync folders | ✓Yes Either way, both ways, or mirror, with one undo | ?Not listed |
| Disk space map | ✓Yes A treemap of any folder, and every drive | ?Not listed |
| Duplicate finder | ✓Yes Grouped by wasted space | ?Not listed |
| Built-in terminal | ✓Yes A real shell that follows your folder | ✓Yes PRO, website version only |
| Git | ✓Yes Review, stage, commit, branches, pull, push, history | ?Not listed |
| Markdown notes | ✓Yes Editor, daily notes, tasks, wikilinks | ?Not listed |
| Folders as tables and boards | ✓Yes Table, board, gallery and calendar views | ?Not listed |
| Image tools | ✓Yes Remove Background, Copy Text, convert, resize, @1x–@3x | ?Not listed |
| Finder tags | ✓Yes The same tags Finder uses | ?Not listed |
| Drop shelf | ✓Yes Hold files while you browse | ?Not listed |
"Not listed" means Commander One's own site doesn't mention it, not that it's missing. Burrow's column links to the article in its guide.
Price and platform
| Burrow | Commander One | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $19, once | Free; PRO Pack $29.99, once |
| What it covers | 2 Macs, a year of updates; keeps working after | 1 Mac (PRO); Team license $99.99 for 5 Macs |
| Free trial | 14 days, everything included | 14 days of PRO |
| Requires | macOS 15 or later, Apple silicon or Intel | macOS 10.13 or later |
| Where to get it | Download from tryburrow.app | Download from ftp-mac.com, or the Mac App Store (fewer features there) |
Where Commander One is stronger
- A free version, with two panels, tabs, ZIP archives and regex search.
- FTP upload and cloud storage services (Amazon S3, Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, Box and more) in PRO.
- Mounts iPhones, Android phones and MTP devices (PRO), and can restart with root access.
- A process viewer and a hex viewer, and it runs on macOS 10.13 or later.
Where Burrow is stronger
- A ⌘K palette with every command, folder and setting, and up to four panes.
- Git review: diffs, staging, commits, branches, pull and push.
- SFTP through your own ssh config, keys and agent, with a terminal that opens on the server.
- Markdown notes, daily notes and tasks, and folders as tables and boards.
- Image tools: Remove Background, Copy Text, convert, resize and @1x–@3x sets.
- Folder compare and sync, a disk-space treemap and a duplicate finder.
Which one suits you
Commander One suits people coming from Total Commander, and anyone who needs cloud storage services or phones in their file manager, or wants a free one.
Burrow suits designers and developers whose files live on their Mac and who want notes, image tools and git in the same window. You can try it free for 14 days.
Commander One's details come only from its own pages, checked on 2 November 2026: Commander One home page, Commander One purchase page, Free and PRO Pack compared, Website and App Store versions, Commander One in the Mac App Store. Burrow's come from its guide. If something here is out of date, email [email protected] and we'll fix it.