What to look for
- Does it move files into folders you can see in Finder, or make albums inside a library?
- After you file a photo, does the next one come up by itself?
- Can you undo a move, and does the undo survive quitting the app?
- Does it open what you have: HEIC from an iPhone, RAW from a camera, video?
- What happens to the photos you don't want: a folder, the bin, or gone?
At a glance
| App | How you sort | Where photos end up | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| cullzy | one photo at a time, number keys 1–9 | real folders on disk | free in early access, one-time price at launch |
| PhotoChoice | one photo at a time, keys 1–9 | folders; rejects to the bin | free, build it yourself |
| GraphicConverter | slideshow, with keys 0–9 set to move into sort folders | folders | paid |
| Adobe Bridge | browse a grid, then drag or File → Move To | folders | free, with an Adobe account |
| XnView MP | browse, then a move-to-folder shortcut | folders | free for personal use |
| Slidebox, SwipePhotos | swipes or arrow keys, one at a time | albums, or deleted, inside Apple Photos | subscription or lifetime |
| PhotoSorter, FolioSort | automatic, by date taken | year and month folders | paid (FolioSort has a free tier) |
The keyboard sorters
Cullzy
A Mac app built around one loop: a photo fills the screen, a number key moves it into that folder, and the next one is already there. Every pile is a real folder next to the originals. Undo survives quitting. Screenshots, WhatsApp forwards and duplicates are found first and offered as one selection each, a RAW and its JPEG move together, and nothing is deleted unless you ask.
Not for: anyone off a Mac (macOS 12 or later, Apple silicon for now; a Windows build is planned), or photographers culling one shoot: it sorts archives into folders, and the professional culling tools below are built for that job. It's also new, and in early access. Everything it does.
PhotoChoice
A free Mac app on GitHub that works the same way: keys 1–9 move the photo into up to nine folders, rejects go to the bin, and there's undo and RAW support. It needs macOS 26.2 or later, and you build it yourself with Xcode, so it suits people comfortable doing that.
GraphicConverter
A long-running Mac image editor and browser. Its slideshow has a setting that makes keys 0–9 move the photo on screen into sort folders, which turns it into a keyboard sorter. It's a buried feature in a large app, and good value if you already own it.
The viewers with a move command
Adobe Bridge
Free, and a capable browser for big folders and RAW files. Moving is a drag, or File → Move To, so each decision is a few clicks rather than a key. A good fit if you already work in Adobe's apps.
XnView MP
Free for personal use on Mac, Windows and Linux, and it opens almost anything. Once set up, a move-to-folder shortcut makes it quick. The interface is dense, and it's a viewer first, so the next photo doesn't arrive on its own.
The swipe apps, inside Apple Photos
Slidebox and SwipePhotos do the one-at-a-time loop very well, with swipes on a phone or arrow keys on a Mac. They work on the Apple Photos library, so the result is albums, and a drive full of files is out of their reach. If your photos live in iCloud Photos, they're a good pick. More in Slidebox for Mac.
The date sorters
PhotoSorter and FolioSort read the date each photo was taken and file it into year and month folders automatically. They're a quick first pass when dates are all you want. They can't tell a holiday from a receipt.
The professional culling tools
Photo Mechanic, Aftershoot, Narrative Select and FastRawViewer are built for photographers picking the best frames from a shoot: fast RAW previews, ratings, Lightroom hand-off, and for some, AI that picks for you. They're priced for professionals and more than a family archive needs.
Which one should you use?
- Your photos are in Apple Photos and on your phone: Slidebox or SwipePhotos.
- You only want year and month folders: a date sorter.
- A folder or drive of mixed photos, sorted by what's in them: a keyboard sorter. Cullzy, or PhotoChoice if you're happy building from source.
- You already pay for GraphicConverter or Adobe: try their move features first.
- You're a photographer culling a shoot: one of the professional tools.
Why we built cullzy anyway
The viewers above can move a file. None of them was built around moving ten thousand, one keypress each, without losing your place or your nerve. That loop is the whole of cullzy: the next photo is already on screen when you file one, an undo is still there next week, and the delete pile is only a folder. How to do it with any tool, not just this one, is in how to sort thousands of photos into folders.
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