Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Karabiner VS Multi Task Tool

Compare Karabiner VS Multi Task Tool and see what are their differences

Karabiner logo Karabiner

Karabiner, previously called KeyRemap4MacBook, is a very powerful keyboard remapper for Mac OS X.

Multi Task Tool logo Multi Task Tool

Execute Multiple Tasks With One Tool!
  • Karabiner Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-06
  • Multi Task Tool Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-04-13

Karabiner features and specs

  • Customizability
    Karabiner-Elements allows users to remap keys and create complex keyboard configurations that can greatly enhance productivity and convenience.
  • Open Source
    Being an open-source tool, Karabiner-Elements is free to use and comes with the potential for community contributions and transparency in development.
  • Flexibility
    The tool supports a wide range of devices and configurations, making it adaptable to various user needs and setups.
  • Ease of Use
    The user interface is designed to be intuitive, allowing both novice and experienced users to easily configure and remap their keyboards.
  • Regular Updates
    The tool is actively maintained with regular updates, ensuring compatibility with the latest macOS versions and adding new features.

Possible disadvantages of Karabiner

  • Compatibility Issues
    Some users may experience compatibility issues with certain applications or hardware, potentially causing unexpected behavior.
  • Learning Curve
    Although the interface is intuitive, mastering its full range of features, especially for complex configurations, can require a steep learning curve.
  • System Performance
    On occasion, Karabiner-Elements may consume significant system resources, which could impact overall system performance.
  • Limited Platform Support
    As of now, Karabiner-Elements only supports macOS, limiting its utility for users on other operating systems such as Windows or Linux.
  • Potential for Errors
    Incorrect configuration or updates may lead to errors in key mappings, which can disrupt the user experience until resolved.

Multi Task Tool features and specs

  • Versatility
    The Multi Task Tool offers a wide range of functionalities within a single platform, making it suitable for various tasks and reducing the need for multiple separate tools.
  • Cost-Effective
    By combining multiple tools in one, users can save money compared to purchasing each tool separately, potentially reducing overall expenses for individuals or businesses.
  • Efficiency
    Having multiple tools in one place can lead to increased efficiency as users do not need to switch between different applications or platforms, thus saving time during task execution.

Possible disadvantages of Multi Task Tool

  • Complexity
    Due to its multifaceted nature, the tool might have a steeper learning curve, making it difficult for new users to understand and fully utilize all its features.
  • Potential for Bloat
    Integrating too many features into a single tool can lead to software bloat, where the application becomes overly complicated and sluggish, impacting performance.
  • Limited Specialization
    The tool may not excel in specialized tasks as dedicated tools might, potentially leading to compromises in functionality and performance for specific needs.

Analysis of Karabiner

Overall verdict

  • Karabiner-Elements is considered a good tool for macOS users seeking to customize their keyboard. Its reliability, versatility, and active community support make it a valuable addition to any power user's toolkit.

Why this product is good

  • Karabiner-Elements is highly regarded for its ability to customize and remap keyboard keys on macOS. It offers a powerful and flexible suite of features that allow users to tailor their keyboard setup to their specific needs, enhancing productivity and ergonomics. With an intuitive interface and extensive documentation, both novice and advanced users can benefit from its functionality.

Recommended for

  • Developers who need custom keyboard shortcuts.
  • Mac users experiencing discomfort with standard keyboard layouts.
  • Professionals requiring specific keybindings for software applications.
  • Users transitioning from Windows or Linux who want to emulate key behaviors from those systems.

Karabiner videos

REVIEW: Should you play the Vetterli 71 Karabiner? [Hunt Gun Review #1]

More videos:

  • Review - Vim screencast #59: Karabiner Elements
  • Review - Evolution of the Karabiner 98k, From Prewar to Kriegsmodell

Multi Task Tool videos

No Multi Task Tool videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Add video

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Karabiner and Multi Task Tool)
Automation
92 92%
8% 8
Note Taking
88 88%
12% 12
Windows Tools
82 82%
18% 18
Window Manager
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Karabiner seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 274 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Karabiner mentions (274)

  • Ask HN: What Are You Working On? (July 2025)
    Hey! These kinds of keyboard related things are well solved by Karabiner elements: https://karabiner-elements.pqrs.org/ There you can map (whatever key) to (whatever other key). E.g. I have right command mapped to F20, available to all other apps . - Source: Hacker News / 2 months ago
  • Ergonomic Mac Keyboard Setup
    I use Karabiner as the driver for keyboard customizations. Karabiner intercepts hardware keystrokes and sends keystrokes to the computer allowing me to configure Karabiner to have a flexible setup and map key(s) presses to other keys(s) or commands. - Source: dev.to / 5 months ago
  • Recommended Software for Mac that You cannot Miss
    This software is free and can be downloaded from the official website; itโ€™s also open-source, so you can find it on GitHub Releases. - Source: dev.to / 12 months ago
  • Ask HN: What macOS apps/programs do you use daily and recommend?
    Besides the usual Firefox/Chrome, Spotify, etc I use the following: - Karabiner-Elements for key remapping, specifically, for making caps lock into ctrl/esc. I don't know of anything else that does this job. Everyone who remaps keys seems to use this. - Kitty as my terminal of choice. I spend most of my time logged in remotely to a server via ssh where I attach to a tmux session. Kitty was easy enough to... - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • Ask HN: What macOS apps/programs do you use daily and recommend?
    If I had to recommend 1 app/script that I use daily: https://github.com/banga/git-split-diffs) to disable things like "Apple + Q" -> nothing worse than going to close a single tab and then your whole app quits. Also able to re-map caps-lock into escape, ect `iterm2` for terminal (colored tabs are great; albeit I disable the hell out of many of the options like "clickable urls" ect) for cli, I try to gnu... - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
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Multi Task Tool mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of Multi Task Tool yet. Tracking of Multi Task Tool recommendations started around Mar 2021.

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Karabiner and Multi Task Tool, you can also consider the following products

BTT Remote - A remote control for you Mac, using your iPhone or iPad

SteerMouse - Advanced driver for USB and Bluetooth mouses.

Rectangle - Window management app based on Spectacle, written in Swift.

X-Mouse Button Control - XMouse Button Control (XMBC) allows you to create application and window specific profiles.

btnx-config - Button Extension - application to customize pointing devices on Linux systems.

SharpKeys - SharpKeys is a utility that manages a Registry key that allows Windows to remap one key to any...