macOS · beta · open source

Rule-based, never asks.

Triage is a native macOS menu-bar app that silently routes every clicked link to the right browser — and the right Chrome profile — based on rules you write in a YAML file.

No picker. No dock icon. No Node runtime. ~500 lines of Swift, single-digit MB of RAM at rest.

View on GitHub See how it works
$ brew install --cask jmanuelrosa/triage/triage

Built to disappear.

Six things Triage cares about, and nothing else.

  • Rule-based, never asks

    Routes by URL host, path, and source app — first match wins. You write the rules once; Triage just obeys.

  • First-class Chrome profiles

    Use friendly names in YAML ("Work [Dev]"); Triage resolves them to Chrome's directory names by reading Local State.

  • Native and invisible

    Pure Swift, no Node or Electron. Status-bar item only — no dock icon, no main window. Sleeping process at rest.

  • Live config reload

    Edit ~/.config/triage/config.yaml; Triage picks it up on save. Broken YAML pops a modal alert with a plain-text log.

  • Source-app aware

    Match by the app the link came from — Slack, WhatsApp, anything. Useful for routing every work-Slack link to the work browser.

  • Silent fallback

    URLs that match no rule open in your previous default browser, captured automatically. Configurable via the menu bar.

How it works

One YAML file. Three steps.

Set Triage as your default browser, write a config describing where links should go, and forget it. From then on, every clicked link gets routed deterministically.

  1. 01

    Click a link, anywhere

    Slack, Mail, Notes, Terminal — macOS hands the URL to the system default browser via Apple Events.

  2. 02

    Triage matches a rule

    The URL host, path, and originating app are evaluated top-down against your YAML. First match wins.

  3. 03

    The right browser opens

    Triage shells out: open -na <bundle> --args --profile-directory=<dir> <url>. Then it goes back to sleep.

  4. →

    Match rules use first-match-wins. host, path, and source_app are all optional — missing field means match anything. * globs are case-insensitive and anchored.

~/.config/triage/config.yaml 
browsers:
  personal:
    bundle_id: net.imput.helium
  work_general:
    bundle_id: com.google.Chrome
    profile: "Work"
  work_dev:
    bundle_id: com.google.Chrome
    profile: "Work [Dev]"

rules:
  # All work domains go to the dev Chrome profile
  - host: "*.example.com"
    browser: work_dev

  # Specific GitHub orgs go to specific places
  - host: github.com
    path: "/work-org/*"
    browser: work_general

  # Anything Slack opens, regardless of URL,
  # goes to the work browser
  - source_app: Slack
    browser: work_general

Install

Two paths. Same binary.

macOS 13 or later. Universal binary — Apple Silicon and Intel. The two paths below handle Gatekeeper for you; no Xcode required.

  • Recommended

    Homebrew

    Cask install. Auto-updates with brew upgrade --cask triage. Strips the Gatekeeper quarantine for you.

    brew install --cask jmanuelrosa/triage/triage

  • Install script

    Curl it, inspect it, run it. Downloads the latest release, copies Triage.app to /Applications, registers it with LaunchServices.

    curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/jmanuelrosa/triage/main/Scripts/install.sh | bash

Also available: DMG download · build from source

Unsigned beta — DMG users right-click Triage.app → Open the first time.

How it compares

Several good tools. Different niches.

If you want a picker, use Browserosaurus (free) or Velja (free with paid Pro). If you'd rather write rules in JavaScript, Finicky is excellent. If you'll pay for a polished GUI, use Choosy. If you want a tiny native binary you configure in YAML and never see again — that's Triage.

Tool Asks? Native? Chrome profiles Cost Niche
Triage No, rules only Swift First-class Free Silent rule-based routing, YAML-configured
Velja Picker by default Swift Limited Freemium (Pro) Picker-first; rule routing is a Pro feature
Browserosaurus Picker Electron — Free Picker-first, cross-platform-ish
Finicky Rules only Swift + JSCore Yes Free Rule-based, native — rules in JavaScript
Choosy Configurable Native Yes $12 Rule-based, native, GUI-configured

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about installing Triage, writing rules, Chrome profile support, and how it compares to other macOS browser routers.

  • What is Triage?
    Triage is a free, open-source macOS menu-bar app that routes every clicked link to the right browser — and the right Chrome profile — based on rules you write in a YAML file. It is written in pure Swift (~500 lines), has no dock icon, and never asks you to pick a browser.
  • Is Triage free and open source?
    Yes. Triage is MIT-licensed and developed in the open at github.com/jmanuelrosa/triage. There is no paid tier, no telemetry by default, and no account is required to use it.
  • What macOS versions does Triage support?
    Triage runs on macOS 13 (Ventura) or later. It ships as a universal binary, so it runs natively on both Apple Silicon (M1, M2, M3, M4) and Intel Macs. The app is daily-driven on the latest macOS release.
  • How does Triage compare to Velja, Finicky, Browserosaurus, and Choosy?
    Triage is rule-first and picker-free, like Finicky, but configured in YAML instead of JavaScript. Velja and Choosy lean on a graphical picker; Browserosaurus is an Electron picker. Triage is also fully free and open-source, where Velja and Choosy are paid or freemium.
  • Can Triage route links to different Chrome profiles?
    Yes — Chrome profile routing is first-class. You reference profiles by their friendly display name in YAML (for example "Work [Dev]") and Triage resolves them to Chrome's internal directory names by reading Chrome's Local State file.
  • Does Triage ever ask which browser to use?
    No. Triage is rules-only and never shows a picker. Every URL is evaluated against your YAML config top-down, first-match-wins. URLs that match no rule open in your previous default browser (captured automatically the first time you launch Triage).
  • How do I write rules?
    Rules live in ~/.config/triage/config.yaml as a list of objects with optional host, path, and source_app matchers plus a target browser. Save the file and Triage live-reloads. Broken YAML triggers a modal alert with a plain-text error log.
  • Can Triage match links by the source app, like Slack or WhatsApp?
    Yes. Each rule can include a source_app matcher, so you can send every link clicked from Slack to your work browser, every link clicked from WhatsApp to your personal browser, and so on — independent of the URL itself.
  • What happens to a link that doesn't match any rule?
    Triage opens it in your previous default browser, which it captures automatically the first time you set Triage as the system default. You can change the fallback at any time from the menu-bar item, without editing the YAML.
  • How do I install Triage?
    Recommended: brew install --cask jmanuelrosa/triage/triage. Homebrew handles the Gatekeeper quarantine and updates via brew upgrade --cask triage. You can also use the curl install script, download the DMG from GitHub Releases, or build from source.
  • Is Triage code-signed and notarized?
    Not yet — Triage is currently an unsigned beta. Homebrew users get the quarantine attribute stripped automatically. DMG users need to right-click Triage.app and choose Open the first time. Code signing and notarization are on the roadmap before the 1.0 release.

More questions? Open an issue on GitHub.