Steer or ControllerKeys? The facts, side by side.
Both turn a game controller into a way to run your Mac: pointer, typing, shortcuts, windows. Both do the basics well. ControllerKeys works with more controllers. Steer does more with the ones it knows. Here is where each one is ahead.
| Capability | Steer | ControllerKeys |
|---|---|---|
| Off-brand and older controllers | 300+, in beta | 300+ via a mapping database |
| On-screen keyboard | Stick-driven | Swipe typing |
| Adaptive triggers you can feel | Yes | — |
| Button layers per setup (the base layer included) | 6 | 13 |
| Automation | Shortcuts, URLs, AppleScript, shell | JavaScript, webhooks, shell |
| Walled off by macOS (sandboxed) | Yes | No |
| No usage analytics | Yes | — |
| Languages (Steer's are machine-translated for now) | 32 | 5 |
| Pinch as a real gesture (on by default, some apps) | Yes | Yes |
| Rotate as a real gesture (on by default, some apps) | Yes | — |
| Native rumble on PlayStation and Switch Pro pads | Yes | — |
| Snap windows by aiming the stick (through Rectangle, Raycast, or macOS 15 tiling) | Yes | — |
| Use one Mac's controller on another | — | Yes |
| Apple TV Siri Remote as an input | — | Yes |
| MIDI output, for Lightroom and music apps | — | Yes |
| Xbox Elite rear paddles | Beta | Yes |
Both apps are notarized direct downloads. ControllerKeys documents that it runs outside Apple's sandbox because system-wide remapping needs broad permissions; Steer keeps the sandbox anyway.
Off-brand controller support and Elite rear paddle support are both built and in beta. Steer bundles 300+ community controller mappings of its own, but none of them has been confirmed on real hardware yet, so it stays in beta rather than claiming parity. We're looking for testers.
Checked against ControllerKeys v2.9.0 on 6 October 2026. They ship often, so check their site too.
Your Mac can remap a controller. It can't use one as a mouse or keyboard.
macOS has a Game Controllers pane, and it does one job: swap a button for another button, inside games. Nothing in it points, types, or opens an app.
- One button becomes another button
- Inside games only
- Light bar colour
- Haptics on or off
- Point and click anywhere
- Type without a keyboard
- Open any app
- Arrange windows
Checked in System Settings › Game Controllers. If Apple adds more, this page will say so.