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AppleScript

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by Apple Inc. · Language · also known as osascript, Script Editor

Apple's English-like scripting language that drives scriptable macOS applications through Apple events, run from Script Editor, osascript or other automation tools

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Link verified Nov 2, 2026

Overview

AppleScript is Apple's scripting language for controlling scriptable Macintosh applications and parts of macOS. Introduced in 1993 and still included in every macOS release, it sends Apple events, the inter-application messages of the Mac, to applications such as Finder, Mail, Safari, Numbers or any third-party app that publishes a scripting dictionary. The language has a small core and an English-like syntax; most vocabulary comes from the terminology each application defines.

Scripts are written and tested in the bundled Script Editor, run from the command line with osascript (which also executes JavaScript for Automation), embedded in Automator and Shortcuts steps, or triggered by tools like Keyboard Maestro and Hammerspoon. GUI scripting through System Events can click menus and buttons in apps that lack a dictionary, subject to Accessibility permission.

Apple's AppleScript Language Guide lives in the Documentation Archive and was last revised in 2016, and the language has seen few changes since; it is best treated as stable, maintained infrastructure. Its verbose syntax, inconsistent application dictionaries and macOS-only scope are the usual complaints.

Capabilities

  • Control of scriptable applications via Apple events
  • GUI scripting through System Events and Accessibility
  • Command-line execution with osascript
  • Embedding in Automator, Shortcuts and third-party automation tools
  • Script bundles and applets with persistent properties

Typical workflows

  1. Export data from Numbers or Mail on a schedule
  2. Automate a legacy app that has no API but has a scripting dictionary
  3. Call AppleScript from a shell or Python script via osascript

Strengths

  • Available on every Mac without installation
  • Deep hooks into Apple's own apps
  • Works from any tool that can shell out

Limitations

  • macOS only
  • Verbose, idiosyncratic syntax and uneven app dictionaries
  • Official documentation is archived and dated

Prerequisites

  • macOS
  • Automation and Accessibility permissions for target apps

Who it is for

  • Mac power users and administrators
  • Developers gluing macOS apps into pipelines

Alternatives & comparison

  • Automator

    Apple's long-standing drag-and-drop workflow builder for macOS that produces apps, Quick Actions, folder actions and calendar-triggered automations

    ProprietaryFree
  • cliclick

    Small open-source macOS command-line tool that emulates mouse clicks, drags, movements, key presses and typing for scripted GUI control

    Open sourceOpen source
  • Hammerspoon

    Open-source macOS automation app that exposes system APIs to a Lua configuration file for hotkeys, window management and event-driven scripts

    Open sourceOpen source
  • Python

    General-purpose, dynamically typed programming language with a large standard library and the dominant ecosystem for data science and machine learning

    Open sourceOpen source
  • Shortcuts

    Apple's built-in visual automation app for macOS, iOS and iPadOS that chains app actions, scripts and system functions into runnable shortcuts

    ProprietaryFree
Compare AppleScript with its alternatives →

Sources & verification

Primary sources consulted for this record. Claims are tied to the fields each source supports; the automated link checker re-verifies every URL on a schedule.

  • Official documentation
    AppleScript Overview

    https://developer.apple.com/library/archive/documentation/AppleScript/Conceptual/AppleScriptX/AppleScriptX.html

    Supports: capabilities

    checked Nov 1, 2026
  • Official documentation
    Script Editor User Guide

    https://support.apple.com/guide/script-editor/welcome/mac

    Supports: capabilities, integrations

    checked Nov 1, 2026
  • Official site
    AppleScript Language Guide – Introduction

    https://developer.apple.com/library/archive/documentation/AppleScript/Conceptual/AppleScriptLangGuide/introduction/ASLR_intro.html

    Supports: name, summary, description

    Documentation Archive; updated 2016

    checked Nov 1, 2026
Confidence
High
Reviewed
Nov 1, 2026
Links
Verified · Nov 2, 2026

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