lightweight torrent client for Mac

how to open a magnet link on a Mac

1. drop a .torrent file into the panel, or paste a magnet link
2. pick which files you want — before the download starts, or partway through
3. pause and resume as you like; progress stays in the panel

hop can register itself as the default handler for .torrent files and magnet links, so a click in the browser lands in the right place.

it stops seeding on its own

seeding continues after a download finishes, and forgetting about it is the normal outcome — a client left running for weeks, uploading in the background.

hop stops automatically at a ratio of 1.0: you have given back as much as you took, and it stops there unless you decide otherwise.

the engine is a separate download

the torrent engine is not bundled with the app. the first time you use this module, hop fetches it — about 26 mb — and only then.

so people who never touch it never carry it. that is also why the app itself is small.

how it compares

Transmission and qBittorrent are mature clients with settings for everything: scheduling, bandwidth rules, remote control, detailed peer information. that is what they are built for.

this module is deliberately small: a link, a file list, a progress bar and a ratio limit, inside an icon you already have open.

choosing what to download is the part that matters

most torrents are not one file. a pack arrives with duplicates in three formats, a folder of extras nobody asked for, and the one thing you wanted sitting in the middle of it.

hop lists the contents before anything starts and lets you tick only what you need — and change your mind partway through, deselecting something that turned out to be irrelevant while the rest keeps going.

on a laptop with a small disk that is not a convenience, it is the difference between fitting and not fitting.

ratio 1.0, and why that default

a ratio of 1.0 means you have uploaded as much as you downloaded — given back exactly what you took. stopping there is the polite default and the one most people would choose if they remembered to.

the alternative is what usually happens: a client left running for weeks, quietly uploading, noticed only when someone asks why the connection is slow.

frequently asked questions

can i choose which files to download?

yes, before starting or partway through. useful when an archive holds far more than you need.

does it keep seeding forever?

no. it stops automatically at ratio 1.0, once you have given back as much as you took.

why is the engine downloaded separately?

so that people who never use this module do not carry 26 mb they have no use for. it arrives the first time you open it.

can it handle magnet links from my browser?

yes. hop can be set as the default handler for magnet links and .torrent files.

is it as capable as Transmission?

no, and deliberately. scheduling, bandwidth rules and remote control are not here — a dedicated client is built for that kind of use.

other tools in hop

• text recognitionpull text off anything on screen — a video in Chrome or VLC, a locked pdf, another app's window.
• archiveszip, rar, 7z and the rest — unpacked right where you are looking.
• app uninstallerremove an app together with what it left in about thirty places.

what people pay for this

prices checked at the vendor's own page on 2 september 2026