# Tintd — Customize and Colorize Folder Icons on macOS

> Tintd is a macOS app (macOS 14 Sonoma or later) that lets you colorize and customize Finder folder icons. Start from the standard gray folder, tint it with any color at any intensity, and optionally add an icon — a Lucide icon, SF Symbol, emoji, or your own image — in one of four styles. Apply it to any folder in a click.

Website: https://www.tintd.app
Platform: macOS 14.0 or later
Current version: 2.0.0
Distribution: Direct download from https://www.tintd.app (licensed via Stripe, auto-updated via Sparkle) and on Setapp.
Privacy: All color and icon suggestions are computed locally on the Mac. Folder names never leave the device, and Tintd does not call any AI service.

## What Tintd does

Tintd takes a gray folder base image, tints it with a chosen HSL color at a chosen intensity, and optionally composites an icon overlay (Lucide SVG, SF Symbol, emoji, or custom image) in one of four styles: vibrant, original, custom color, or inverted. The result is applied to the folder as its Finder icon and persisted on the folder itself, so it stays even if the folder is moved.

## Key features

- **Manual colorization** — Pick a color, intensity, icon, icon size, and style per folder. Edit a single folder or many folders at once.
- **Smart Color (AI-assisted, on-device)** — Looks at the colors already used by neighboring folders and picks a color that fills a gap on the color wheel, so a new folder looks consistent rather than random.
- **Smart Icon (AI-assisted, on-device)** — Matches a folder's name against a library of 11,000+ icons and emojis and assigns one that fits (e.g. a camera for "Photos", a music note for "Music"). Lets you give meaningful icons to many folders quickly.
- **Folder Watcher (auto-colorize)** — Watches the locations you choose and automatically colors and icons every new folder you create there, based on its name. Requires Full Disk Access, which macOS prompts for the first time you enable it.
- **Large icon libraries** — ~1,500 bundled Lucide icons, ~5,000 SF Symbols, ~1,800 emojis, plus your own imported images: 11,000+ icons and emojis total.
- **Bulk editing** — Select many folders and apply a color and icon to all of them at once, or let Smart Icon give each its own fitting icon simultaneously.
- **One-click restore** — Revert any customized folder back to the default macOS folder icon.
- **Finder integration** — A Finder Sync extension adds right-click menu items to set a smart icon or a manual icon directly from Finder.
- **Localized** — Available in 11 languages: English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese (Brazil), Russian, Czech, Japanese, Korean, and Simplified Chinese.

## Common use cases

- Color-code project folders by status, client, or priority (e.g. red for urgent, blue for client work, green for done).
- Make a desktop or a documents folder easier to scan at a glance.
- Give a whole set of subfolders matching, meaningful icons in one action.
- Automatically style new folders as you create them, with no manual step.

## Frequently asked questions

**How do I customize Mac folder icons in bulk?**
With Tintd, you can customize multiple Mac folder icons at once. Select multiple folders and change their icons simultaneously in a few clicks — no need to do them one by one. This saves significant time when organizing your Mac.

**Is it safe to change folder colors on Mac? Will it affect my files?**
Yes, it's completely safe. Modifying folder icons with Tintd is purely cosmetic and doesn't affect any files or subfolders inside. Your folder contents stay exactly the same — only the visual appearance changes.

**How do I restore default Mac folder icons?**
You can revert any customized folder back to the original macOS Finder folder icon with one click, making it easy to undo customizations whenever needed.

**Do custom folder icons sync between Macs using iCloud?**
Custom folder icons are stored locally on each device. While your files sync through iCloud Drive or other cloud storage, folder icon customizations need to be set up separately on each Mac. Tintd makes it quick to recreate your folder icon system across multiple Macs.

**What's the best way to organize folders on Mac with custom icons?**
Adding custom colored icons is an excellent visual organization method. Color-code folders by project, priority, or category for an intuitive system — for example, red for urgent items, blue for client work, green for completed projects.

**How do I use an emoji as a folder icon on Mac?**
Select the emoji from the emoji library in the app, then drag and drop it onto the folder you want to customize. The emoji becomes the folder icon automatically.

**How do I use a custom icon as a folder icon on Mac?**
Select the icon from the custom icon library in the app, then drag and drop it onto the folder. The icon becomes the folder icon automatically.

**Does Tintd send my data to an AI?**
No. All icon and color suggestions run locally on your Mac. Your folder names never leave your device, and Tintd doesn't call any AI service.

**Can Tintd choose folder icons automatically based on the folder's name?**
Yes. The Smart Icon feature matches a folder's name against its library of more than 11,000 icons and emojis and picks one that fits — a camera for "Photos", a music note for "Music", and so on. This makes it fast to give icons to a large number of folders.

**How do I automatically change the icon of new folders when I create them?**
Turn on the Folder Watcher for the locations you choose. It detects every new folder you create there and automatically gives it a matching color and icon based on its name. The watcher needs Full Disk Access, which macOS prompts you to grant the first time you enable it.

**How does Tintd pick a color and icon that match my existing folders?**
Smart Color and Smart Icon look at the colors and icons you've already given neighboring folders, then choose a color that fills a gap on the color wheel and an icon that suits the folder's name — so the result stays consistent with the folders around it.

**Can I auto-colorize a whole set of subfolders at once?**
Yes. Select many folders and apply a color and icon to all of them in one action, or let Smart Icon give each folder its own fitting icon at the same time.

**What macOS permission does automatic folder colorization need?**
The Folder Watcher needs Full Disk Access so it can see new folders as they're created. macOS prompts you to grant it the first time you enable the feature, and you can turn it off again any time in System Settings. Colorizing folders manually doesn't require this permission.

## Links

- Home: https://www.tintd.app/
- Download: https://www.tintd.app/download
- Blog: https://www.tintd.app/blog
- How to change folder icon color on macOS Tahoe (2026): https://www.tintd.app/blog/change-folder-icon-color-macos-tahoe-2026
- How to customize folder icons on Mac (2026): https://www.tintd.app/blog/customize-folder-icon-mac
- How to use emojis as folder icons on Mac: https://www.tintd.app/blog/how-to-use-emojis-as-folder-icons-mac
- How to automatically change folder icons on Mac: https://www.tintd.app/blog/how-to-automatically-change-folder-icons-mac
- Contact: https://www.tintd.app/contact
- Privacy: https://www.tintd.app/privacy
- Terms: https://www.tintd.app/terms