Dockside vs Portals: Desktop Organization
Dockside
thedockside.appPortals: Desktop Organization
portals-app.comSide by side
| Figure | Dockside | Portals: Desktop Organization |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | — | Free |
| Free plan | — | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 1 | 1 |
| Spec score · Desktop Organization Software | 7.9 (#8) | 7.3 (#27) |
| Maker | Hachipoo Apps says indie developer Prajwal built Dockside as his first macOS app. | Portals is developed by Ross Patterson. |
| Support | The lifetime license includes support and updates; the maker lists Discord and email as contact channels. | The contact page lists [email protected] as the support contact. |
Plans
In their own words
Portals: Desktop Organization
Portals: Desktop Organization displays selected folder contents directly on a Windows desktop in customizable portals. Users can adjust colors, fonts, borders, margins, header position, icon sizes, and backgrounds, with individual portals able to override settings such as color and font. Portals can be minimized, sorted using custom or predefined orders, and arranged in tabs linked to separate folders. The folders can be stored outside the desktop, such as in Documents. Users can save portal arrangements as layouts and apply them automatically when display setups change; settings profiles can also be linked to layouts. A configurable keyboard shortcut brings all portals to the top. The app supports command-line actions for creating portals and applying layouts or profiles, and it can use QuickLook or Seer for file previews. The installer can add registry keys for Portals buttons in Windows folder and desktop-background context menus. The maker describes the app as lightweight with minimal background resource usage. It is free, with a pay-what-you-want license that allows users to enter any amount.