Dash — Mac download

Dash 8 brought a handful of polished refinements. The results dropdown is now resizable, docset updates pause automatically when Low Data Mode is active, and keyword filters let you scope searches to specific docsets. Nothing radical — just practical adjustments that keep the browser feeling responsive.

Check system compatibility

Dash 8.1.1 requires macOS 10.14 Mojave or later. It runs natively on both Intel and Apple Silicon Macs and every interface element is retina-ready.

Browse API docs offline

Call up any docset and Dash displays methods in a dedicated table of contents with in-page search highlighting. Filter by keyword to search only the language or framework you need right now.

Manage and expand code snippets

The built-in snippet manager accepts variable placeholders — @clipboard, @cursor, @date, @time — that you edit before pasting. Sync the whole library with Dropbox to share snippets across machines.

First-day adjustments that pay off

Spend thirty minutes early on and Dash gets out of your way for months. Start with the search profiles pane. Create one for daily work — your main language, your secondary framework, the platform docs you check most — and give it a short keyword filter like work. A second profile named css that scopes to just CSS and SVG docsets saves you from typing language prefixes in every query.

Next, open Preferences and set Dash to run as a menu bar item. The compact panel slides out on a hotkey and vanishes after you paste. Dock mode is fine, but the menu bar keeps one hand on the keyboard.

Turn off auto-update for docsets you rarely use. The storage difference is noticeable, and Dash respects Low Data Mode if your connection is metered. Finally, place your snippet library folder in Dropbox. After the first sync, every machine you set up with dash for mac pulls the same library.

Hands-Off UIView Lookup with Keyword Filters

You are halfway through a layout component and need the exact signature for UIView.animate. Your hands stay on the keyboard.

1. Tap the Dash hotkey. The search field opens.
2. Type work: followed by animate. The keyword filter restricts results to the docsets in your work profile.
3. Arrow down twice to highlight the UIKit method. Press Return.
4. Dash opens the documentation page. The table of contents on the left lists sibling methods — you notice animateKeyframes and read the discussion paragraph right inside the app.
5. You bookmark the page with ⌘D for later and switch back to Xcode.

Two minutes later you need the guard-let snippet you wrote last week. Dash is still running in the menu bar. You open the snippet manager, type guard, and the list narrows to three entries. You pick the one with the @cursor placeholder, paste it into your editor, and the cursor lands exactly where you need to type the binding name. No scrolling, no website tabs, no context switch. That loop — search, read, bookmark, paste — repeats a dozen times before lunch and gets faster each round.

• macOS 10.14 or later
• Apple Silicon or Intel 64-bit