How does SaneHosts compare to competitors for Mac users?

##What SaneHosts is (and isn’t)

SaneHosts is a native macOS hosts-file manager: it edits /etc/hosts to block domains using curated blocklists and profiles. It’s aimed at “set a protection level → activate → done,” with quick rollback.

From the repo:

• No telemetry/analytics; data stored locally; network only when you import URLs; optional Sparkle update checks to sanehosts.com/appcast.xml (see PRIVACY.md).
• Security model: not sandboxed (needs /etc/hosts access), hardened runtime + notarization, and a privileged helper daemon for root writes + DNS flush. The helper validates the connecting app by code-signing Team ID + bundle ID before accepting XPC connections (SaneHostsHelper/main.swift). Fallback is AppleScript do shell script ... with administrator privileges (HostsService.swift).

This gives SaneHosts a better UX than “sudo in Terminal” hosts editing, but it’s still fundamentally domain-level blocking (won’t block in-app IP endpoints, first-party subresources, or YouTube-style ads the way content blockers/proxy filters can).

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##“Top competitors” for a Mac user (closest alternatives)

I’m comparing in three buckets: hosts managers, DNS-level services, and system-wide network/privacy tools. Ratings are 1–10 from a user-advocate lens (security, features, price, transparency, UX). Pricing can vary by region/promotions; I’m using commonly advertised pricing where available from official sources.

###Scorecard (overall)

###Notes per product

####SaneHosts (8.3/10)

Best at: simple, profile-based hosts blocking with modern UX.

• Security: Strong for this category: privileged helper runs as root but enforces code-signing checks on inbound XPC connections (Team ID + bundle ID). Also has a safe temp-file strategy for AppleScript fallback to reduce injection risk (HostsService.swift).
• Privacy/transparency: Excellent: explicit “no analytics/telemetry,” local storage, optional update checks (Sparkle), open source.
• Features: Profiles, merging/deduping, “protection levels,” remote imports, DNS flush, backups/recovery, menu bar switching (per README).
• Main limitation: hosts-file blocking is coarse; can cause site breakage; doesn’t give per-app controls or visibility like a firewall, and doesn’t do cosmetic filtering.

####AdGuard for Mac (7.3/10)

Best at: “it just blocks” across browsers/apps with richer filtering than hosts.

• Features/UX: Very strong—system-wide filtering, lots of knobs.
• Price: Paid licenses; AdGuard sells 1-year and lifetime options (official purchase page lists license options, device counts, etc. on adguard.com).
• Transparency: Mixed: proprietary; more moving parts (filtering engine, certificates/HTTPS filtering in some modes), larger trust surface than hosts.
• Security/privacy: Generally reputable, but you’re trusting a closed-source network filtering stack.

####NextDNS (7.8/10)

Best at: cross-device, encrypted DNS filtering with good logs/controls.

• Features: Great blocklist ecosystem, per-device policies, and generally less breakage than huge hosts files.
• Price/value: Usually good (often free tier + paid plans depending on query volume).
• Security/privacy: Good if you trust the provider; but it’s a cloud service—your DNS goes through them (even if encrypted), so transparency/trust matters.

####Little Snitch 6 (7.8/10)

Best at: deep network visibility + per-app control.

• Security: Excellent tool class; very strong control over outbound connections. Official press release lists $59 single license and macOS 14+ support.
• Features: Monitoring, rules, (now) DNS encryption and integrated blocklists (per Objective Development press release).
• UX tradeoff: More complex; users can misconfigure and break apps.
• Value: Pricier than hosts/DNS options, but you’re paying for power and insight.

####Gas Mask (6.7/10)

Best at: basic hosts switching (classic Mac utility).

• Price: Free/open source.
• Downsides: Feels dated; long-term maintenance/OS friction risk; typically less robust around modern macOS privilege patterns than newer tools.

####Helm (6.9/10)

Best at: developer-centric hosts editing and switching.

• Price: Listed as Free on the Mac App Store page excerpted in search results; also has a GitHub repo.
• Downsides: Not primarily an “ad/tracker protection product”; more of an editor/switcher; security posture depends on its privilege approach (not evaluated here like we did for SaneHosts).

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##Final recommendation for a Mac user

• If your goal is simple, local, privacy-first domain blocking with easy on/off and you’re comfortable with the inherent limitations of /etc/hosts: choose SaneHosts. It’s unusually strong on transparency and UX for this niche, and its privileged-helper design includes meaningful safeguards (code-signing validation for XPC clients).
• If you want maximum blocking with fewer “why didn’t that host entry work?” moments (and are okay paying + trusting proprietary filtering): AdGuard for Mac.
• If you care most about seeing and controlling what each app is doing on the network (not just ads): Little Snitch 6 (and optionally pair it with a DNS service).
• If you want cross-device, low-maintenance blocking (Mac + phone + router): NextDNS is often the best “set-and-forget” choice.

If you tell me your priority (privacy vs “blocks the most” vs minimal breakage vs per-app control) and whether you need iPhone coverage too, I’ll tailor the recommendation to one clear setup.