Follows your files
Rename a file or move it to another folder and its shelf item keeps up. If you delete it, the item says so instead of failing when you need it.
The 
shelf
your Dock was missing
Shelfy turns the empty space beside your Dock into a glass shelf. Drop files there to keep them close, and find your newest screenshots and downloads on the other side, ready to drag. It uses no CPU while you’re not using it.
Launch price for the first 20 licenses. Then $9.99, and $15.99 after the launch.
One-time payment · Free updates · macOS 14 Sonoma or later
To: Sam
Subject: Files for Friday
Hi Sam, here’s everything for Friday.
Drag something here from the shelf.
Drop Files Here
Go ahead, drag a file onto the shelf.
This is Shelfy, working in your browser. Drag the desktop files onto the shelf (or tap them), right-click something on the shelf, and drag it into the message.
0.1 %CPU when idle
20 MBof memory
2 MBdownload
0accounts or trackers
The shelf
A place for files in between.
Halfway between where a file is and where it’s going, it needs somewhere to wait. Usually that’s the Desktop, and the Desktop never gets tidied.
Drop anything on Shelfy’s shelf: files, folders, links, text and images. When you need one, drag it out. The original stays exactly where it was.
Screenshot 2026-10-14 at 09.41.12.png
Proposal (3).pdf
Untitled folder 2
Screenshot 2026-10-15 at 17.02.55.png
IMG_4471.HEIC
notes copy.txt
Archive (2).zip
Proposal final FINAL.pdf
New Folder
IMG_4472.HEIC
Screenshot 2026-10-16 at 11.11.11.png
todo.txt
Invoice.pdf
Old stuff
The four things you’re using, next to your Dock.
Everything else stays in its folder.
Proposal.pdf
Hero shot.heic
Notes.txt
Brand
Pin what matters
Pinned items stay at the far end of the shelf. Everything else clears itself after 7 days, or 1 day, 30 days or never: your choice.
Undo, always
Removed the wrong thing? Undo puts it back exactly where it was, and Shelfy’s own copies wait until undoing is no longer possible.
Screenshots & downloads
Your newest screenshot is already waiting.
The other side of the Dock shows your ten newest screenshots and downloads. Drag one straight into Messages, Mail or Slack without opening Finder.
Screenshots copied to the clipboard with ⌃⇧⌘3 or ⌃⇧⌘4 show up too, so a quick capture is never lost the moment you copy something else.
Only finished downloads
Files still downloading stay hidden until they’re done, so you never drag half a file into an email.
Clipboard screenshots too
Shelfy keeps the newest twenty screenshots you copied, for a week. Anything else you copy is never read or kept.
Keep on Shelf
One click moves a screenshot or download onto the shelf, where it stays as long as you need it.
Keyboard
Everything, one shortcut away.
Press ⇧⌘Space in any app and your whole shelf opens in one panel. Type to search names, links and notes. Press Space for Quick Look and Return to open.
Or rest the pointer on a shelf to peek, without taking the keyboard from the app you’re in. Pick your own shortcut in Settings.
One-click actions
Fix files right on the shelf.
Right-click anything on the shelf. The result is a new file next to it, and your original is never changed.
Compress images
Smaller files at the same size on screen, for email and chat limits.
Convert
JPEG, PNG, HEIC and WebP. Transparent images get a white background in JPEG.
Remove hidden info
Drops the location, camera and date from photos before you share them.
Copy text
Reads the text in images and PDFs onto your clipboard, right on your Mac.
Zip
One archive from everything you selected, named the way Finder would.
Made for the Dock
It moves when your Dock does.
Shelfy lines up with your Dock to the pixel and resizes as it does. When the Dock hides, the shelves slide away with it. Full-screen apps get the whole screen.
Dock on the left or right? The shelves sit above and below it. On a smaller Dock they show icons only, and next to a crowded Dock the shelf becomes a small tab.
Add from Finder
Right-click files in Finder and choose Add to Shelfy, even when the Dock is out of sight.
Drop on the menu bar
Shelfy’s menu bar icon takes drops too, and lights up while you hover.
Paste with ⌘V
Copied a file, a link or an image? Paste it into the open panel to keep it.
Compare
Everything the Desktop was never good at.
| Feature | Shelfy | macOS on its own |
|---|---|---|
| A place for the files you’re working with | Beside the Dock | The Desktop |
| Newest screenshots one drag away | For 5 seconds | |
| Keeps screenshots copied to the clipboard | — | |
| Search your working files with one shortcut | — | |
| Compress, convert, remove location in one click | Some, in Preview | |
| Copy text from images and PDFs | Live Text | |
| Clears itself, keeps what you pin | — | |
| Price | $5.99 | Free |
Also looking at Dockside, Yoink or Dropover? They’re good apps that do more: Dockside, for example, can put shelves on any screen edge and run automations from drop zones. Shelfy does less on purpose: one shelf, one strip, one shortcut, nothing to set up. Shelfy vs Dockside →
Privacy
Your files never leave your Mac.
Shelfy only remembers where your files are. It doesn’t upload, scan or index them, and everything it does, including reading text from images, happens on your Mac.
No account
Nothing to sign up for. Buy it, paste your license key, done.
No analytics
No tracking and no telemetry. Shelfy doesn’t know which files you keep or when.
Permissions, explained
Accessibility only reads where the Dock is. Desktop and Downloads access only lists what’s new. Both are optional.
Pricing
Pay once. Keep it.
The earlier you buy, the less you pay. The price goes up as each launch batch sells out.
Shelfy for MacOne-time purchase
$5.99$15.99
Launch price
Now$5.99First 20
$9.99Next 40
$15.99After launch
- Shelf beside the Dock
- Screenshots & downloads
- Search with ⇧⌘Space
- Quick Look & peek
- One-click actions
- Clipboard screenshots
- Add from Finder & menu bar
- Free updates
macOS 14 Sonoma or later · Apple silicon and Intel · 2 MB · Signed and notarized
Your license key appears the moment you pay and arrives by email too. Works on up to 3 of your Macs.
Questions
Does Shelfy move or copy my files?
No. Shelfy remembers where each file is, and dragging an item out copies it, so the original stays where it was. Only things that aren’t files yet, like an image dragged from a web page, are saved by Shelfy as its own copy.
What happens if I rename or move a file that’s on the shelf?
Its shelf item follows it. If the file is deleted or moved to the Trash, the item says it’s missing instead of failing when you use it.
Why does Shelfy ask for Accessibility access?
Only to read where the Dock is and how big it is, so the shelves line up with it exactly. It’s optional: without it, Shelfy works out the Dock’s position on its own.
Will it slow down my Mac?
No. When nothing is happening Shelfy uses about 0.1 % CPU and around 20 MB of memory.
Does it work with a hidden Dock, full-screen apps or a Dock on the side?
Yes. The shelves slide away with a hiding Dock, step aside for full-screen apps, and sit above and below a Dock on the left or right.
Can I change the shortcut?
Yes. ⇧⌘Space is the default, picked to stay clear of Spotlight, Raycast and Alfred. Record any other shortcut in Settings, or turn it off.
Why isn’t Shelfy on the Mac App Store?
To line up with the Dock, Shelfy reads the Dock’s position through Accessibility, which apps in the Mac App Store aren’t allowed to do.
Can I try Shelfy before buying?
Yes, right on this page: the demo at the top works like the app. Drag files onto the shelf, right-click them, and open the panel with ⇧⌘Space.
How many Macs can I use it on?
Up to three of your own Macs with one license.
Give your Dock a shelf.
Launch price: $5.99 for the first 20 people.
Get Shelfy for $5.99