Activate your OneMacTools licence key, move it and get help
To activate your OneMacTools licence key, open the app, paste the key from your purchase email into the Activate OneMacTools screen and click Activate. A licence is a one-time purchase covering 1, 5, 15 or 25 Macs. You can free a Mac in Settings › Licence or on the Manage Licence page, then use the key on another, and OneMacTools keeps working offline.
On this page
- How OneMacTools licences work
- What works without a licence?
- How to buy and activate your OneMacTools licence key
- Licence key errors and what they mean
- How to move OneMacTools to a new Mac
- Does OneMacTools work offline?
- Lost licence key, upgrades, education discount and refunds
- Tools mentioned on this page
- Questions
How OneMacTools licences work
OneMacTools is a free download, and it asks for a licence key when it opens. There’s no free trial and no subscription: you pay once, keep the version you bought, and get free updates for version 1. Prices for each size are on the pricing page.
| Licence | Activates on | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Mac | 1 Mac at a time | Your own Mac |
| 5 Macs | Up to 5 Macs | A family, or a laptop plus a desktop plus spares |
| 15 Macs | Up to 15 Macs | A small team or classroom |
| 25 Macs | Up to 25 Macs | A larger team or lab |
“At a time” matters: the count is of Macs currently activated, not Macs ever used. Free one and the slot is available again straight away, as often as you need. If you need more than 25 Macs, contact us and choose Licences for teams.
Payments and licence keys are handled by Dodo Payments, the merchant of record. Dodo charges your card, handles sales tax or VAT, emails your receipt and key, and enforces how many Macs a key can activate.
What works without a licence?
Until a key is activated on a Mac, OneMacTools is locked. You can download it and open it, but:
- The main window shows Activate OneMacTools instead of the tools.
- The menu bar icon shows “OneMacTools isn’t activated yet” with Activate OneMacTools…, Buy a Licence… and Quit OneMacTools.
- Finder Quick Actions, Shortcuts actions and Watch Folders refuse to run, with “OneMacTools isn’t activated yet. Open OneMacTools and enter your licence key.”
- AI assistants connected over MCP get the same answer.
- Settings shows only the Licence section.
Once activated, every tool, theme, Your Mac screen and feature is unlocked. There are no tiers of features between licence sizes; the only difference is how many Macs.
How to buy and activate your OneMacTools licence key
- Choose a licence on the pricing page and pay through Dodo Payments’ checkout.
- After paying, the thank-you page shows your licence key and a Download button. Dodo also emails the receipt and key to the address you used.
- Download OneMacTools, drag it into Applications and open it. See install OneMacTools if you need help.
- On the Activate OneMacTools screen, paste the key (it looks like
XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX) into the Licence key field. - Click Activate or press Return. OneMacTools checks the key online, takes a few seconds, and opens the tools.
Activation needs an internet connection, because the key is checked with Dodo Payments. Only your licence key and this Mac’s name are sent, as described in the privacy policy. After that, OneMacTools shows the Choose your look sheet once, so you can pick a theme.
Licence key errors and what they mean
| Message | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| “That key wasn’t found. Check it’s copied in full from your purchase email.” | The key doesn’t match any purchase. | Copy it again from the receipt email; check you didn’t miss a character. |
| “That key is already in use on the maximum number of Macs for its plan…” | Every slot is taken. | Free a Mac in Settings › Licence on one of them, or on the Manage Licence page; or buy a larger licence. |
| “That key has been turned off (refunded or disabled).” | The purchase was refunded or the key disabled. | Contact us if you think this is a mistake. |
| “That key is for a different product.” | A Dodo key for another product. | Use the key from your OneMacTools receipt. |
| “Couldn’t reach Dodo Payments. Check your internet connection and try again.” | No connection, or a firewall blocked it. | Connect to the internet; pause VPN or network filters and retry. |
| “Dodo Payments couldn’t check the key (error …). Try again in a moment.” | A temporary problem at the payment service. | Wait a minute and click Activate again. |
How to move OneMacTools to a new Mac
If you still have the old Mac
- On the old Mac, open OneMacTools › Settings… and find the Licence section.
- Click Free This Mac… and confirm Free This Mac. OneMacTools locks on that Mac, and the activation becomes available for another.
- On the new Mac, install OneMacTools and enter the same key.
If the old Mac is lost, sold or broken
- Go to the Manage Licence page.
- Enter your Licence key and the Email you bought with, then click Show my Macs.
- You’ll see how many Macs are in use out of your limit, with each Mac’s name and the date it was activated. Click Free this Mac next to the one you no longer have and confirm.
- Enter the key on your new Mac.
The Mac’s name in the list is the name it had when you activated (System Settings › General › Sharing). Giving each Mac a distinct name makes this list easier to read. A Mac freed from the website asks for a key again the next time it checks its licence.
Does OneMacTools work offline?
Yes. After activation, OneMacTools works without an internet connection. About once a week, when you’re online, it quietly re-checks the key. Only a clear answer that the key is no longer valid (it was refunded, disabled, or this Mac was freed from the website) locks the app again. Being offline, on a plane or behind a firewall never locks it.
Tools that need the internet by nature still do: Download Video and Web Page to PDF fetch the address you give them, and installing FFmpeg uses Homebrew. Everything else, including on-device AI, runs offline.
Lost licence key, upgrades, education discount and refunds
Lost your key?
It’s in your receipt email from Dodo Payments, or in Dodo’s customer portal. Search your inbox for “Dodo Payments” or “OneMacTools”. In the app, Settings › Licence shows only the first and last four characters, so it can help you identify which key is in use but can’t reveal the whole key. Still stuck? Contact us and choose Refund or licence key, with your order number if you have it.
Need more Macs?
Settings › Licence has a Get More Macs button (shown unless you already have 25) that opens the pricing page. Activate the new key on the extra Macs.
Education discount
Students, teachers and school staff get every licence at half price. Email from your school address (such as .edu or .ac.uk) saying which licence you’d like; we usually reply within a day with a one-use 50% code to use at checkout. Details on the education page.
Refunds
If OneMacTools doesn’t work on your Mac as described (for example, it won’t open or activate on a Mac that meets the requirements) and we can’t fix it, you can have a full refund within 14 days of purchase. Licences aren’t refundable for a change of mind. Refunds go back to the original payment method, usually within 5–10 business days, and the key is deactivated. See the refund policy.
Tools mentioned on this page
Questions
Is there a free trial of OneMacTools?
No. The app is a free download but asks for a licence key when it opens. Each tool’s page shows what it does with real results, and if it doesn’t work on your Mac and we can’t fix it, you can have a refund within 14 days.
Can I use one OneMacTools licence on two Macs?
A 1-Mac licence activates on one Mac at a time. To use two at once, buy the 5-Mac licence. Or free the first Mac in Settings › Licence before activating the second.
What happens to my licence if I reinstall macOS or erase my Mac?
The activation stays counted until you free it. Before erasing, use Free This Mac; if you forgot, free it on the Manage Licence page with your key and purchase email, then activate again.
Is OneMacTools a subscription?
No. You pay once and keep it, with free updates for version 1. If there’s ever a paid version 2, existing owners get an upgrade discount and version 1 keeps working.
Do I need to be online to use OneMacTools?
Only to activate. After that it works offline and re-checks the key about once a week when a connection is available; being offline never locks it.
Does freeing a Mac delete my files or settings?
No. Free This Mac only gives the activation back. Your results in the output folder, History, presets and settings stay on the Mac; OneMacTools simply shows the Activate OneMacTools screen until a key is entered again.
Which name does my Mac appear under on the Manage Licence page?
The Mac’s name at the moment you activated, taken from System Settings › General › Sharing. Settings › Licence shows it under This Mac. Rename Macs before activating if several share a name like “MacBook Pro”.
Can I share my licence key with a friend?
Only within your plan’s Mac limit. The licence agreement doesn’t allow reselling, renting or sharing keys beyond the activations your plan includes, and the payment service enforces the limit.
