Bottles vs Crosswire
Bottles
usebottles.com
Crosswire
grubwire.ioSide by side
| Figure | Bottles | Crosswire |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | — | Free |
| Free plan | — | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 0 | 1 |
| Spec score · Windows Compatibility Layers | 7.6 (#10) | 7.6 (#11) |
| Purpose | Bottles is an application for managing Windows prefixes and running Windows software on Linux. | Crosswire runs Windows games and apps on macOS; users can install a Windows .exe and launch it from a library. |
| Support | The site directs users to documentation and offers links to report bugs, request features, and report dependencies. | The maker directs users to its wiki for troubleshooting and provides an email address for bugs and feedback. |
Plans
In their own words
Bottles
Bottles manages Windows prefixes, called bottles, to run Windows applications and games on Linux through compatibility-layer runners. It offers Gaming, Application, and Custom environments, plus Wine and Proton runners such as Soda, Caffe, Vaniglia, and CrossOver builds. Installers apply rules to set up programs, while a dependency manager uses a community-driven repository of manifests. Users can manage graphics components including DXVK, VKD3D, DXVK-NVAPI, and LatencyFleX. The community App Store provides Windows application installers with compatibility grades from Bronze through Platinum. Bottles also lists backups, versioning, duplication, and importing bottles from other managers. The project recommends Flatpak: it bundles required dependencies and is described as the most supported and tested release, as well as the only fully sandboxed package. Bottles supports Linux and macOS and is free software. Connection-dependent features do not work offline. The project also warns that exposing the system home directory to a runner breaks the Flatpak sandbox and can put personal files at risk.
Crosswire
Crosswire runs Windows games and apps on macOS, letting users install a Windows .exe and open it from a searchable library. Each installation has an isolated space, keeping apps separate. During installation, Crosswire detects common runtimes such as Visual C++ and .NET and offers to install them. For recognized games, it applies known-good settings automatically. The app can check for and update its Windows compatibility layer; automatic releases are available on version 1.1.1 or later. Crosswire is free and open source under GPL-3.0, with source published on GitHub. It requires an Apple Silicon Mac running macOS 14.6 or later, plus about 1 GB of free disk space for the base install. It is not Apple-notarized yet, so macOS requires users to confirm opening it in Privacy & Security. Compatibility varies by app version and macOS release. Microsoft 365 is unsupported, while League of Legends and Valorant are blocked by Vanguard.