macOS Charge Limit vs AlDente: do you still need it?

Checked 13 October 2026 against Apple Support, AlDente's website and AlDente's release notes on GitHub. Features and prices change; see the sources at the end.

What changed in macOS 26.4

For years, macOS only had Optimized Battery Charging (macOS 11 and later), which learns your routine and decides by itself when to hold at 80%. macOS 26.4 added Charge Limit: a fixed ceiling you choose, on Macs with Apple silicon (Apple). It's still there in macOS 27.

A fixed limit is what AlDente, a menu bar app, has offered since February 2020. Its developers responded in a post titled "We Got Sherlocked — Or Did We?", written when macOS 26.4 was in its first beta. They welcomed the change, said Apple's approach prioritizes simplicity while AlDente focuses on control, and said they had already worked out how to integrate Apple's new charge management into AlDente (AppHouseKitchen).

Since then, AlDente 1.39 (September 2026) rebuilt its charge control with macOS 27 support, and on Apple silicon now asks you to switch on a setting before using limits below 80%, "for the best experience with Apple's new charge control systems", in the words of its release notes.

How Apple's Charge Limit works

1. Open System Settings › Battery and click the info button ⓘ next to Charging.
2. Choose a Charge Limit between 80% and 100%, then click Done.

Apple describes the behavior like this:

• Your Mac charges to within a few percentage points of the limit, stops, and shows Charged to [%] Limit in the battery menu.
• If the level drops more than 5% while plugged in, it charges back up to the limit.
• Now and then it charges to 100% anyway, to keep its battery estimates accurate.
• When you need a full battery, choose Charge to Full Now from the battery menu.

On macOS 26 and 27, the battery menu also stops showing a time-to-full estimate while the limit is below 100%. If your Mac seems stuck at 80% and you're not sure why, plugged in but not charging walks through every reason.

What AlDente does that Apple's limit doesn't

• Limits below 80%. AlDente's Charge Limiter, in its free version, holds any level you choose. On Apple silicon, levels below 80% are a setting you switch on in AlDente's Charge Settings.
• Discharge while plugged in (free). AlDente can run your Mac from the battery while it's connected, to bring the charge down to your limit. Automatic Discharge and Discharge in Clamshell Mode are in AlDente Pro.
• Heat Protection (Pro). AlDente pauses charging when the battery temperature rises past a limit you set. macOS has its own safeguard, since charging may stop at 80% when the battery is too warm, but it isn't a setting you control.
• Sailing Mode (Pro). A lower bound you choose before charging resumes, instead of Apple's fixed 5%.
• Top Up and Calibration Mode (Pro). A one-off charge to 100% that ends when you unplug, and a guided full cycle. AlDente says Calibration Mode now detects and works with Apple's own battery calibration.
• Automation and extras (Pro): schedules, Apple Shortcuts, Stop Charging when Sleeping, MagSafe LED control, a hardware battery percentage and a live power flow diagram.
• More Macs. AlDente supports Apple silicon and Intel MacBooks, on macOS 12 Monterey to macOS 27. Apple's Charge Limit needs Apple silicon and macOS 26.4 or later.

What Apple's limit does that AlDente can't

• It's part of macOS. Nothing to install, no account, no license, and Apple maintains it with every update.
• No third-party access to charging. AlDente's own documentation says it "taps into low-level system functions to control charging" and asks you to use it at your own risk. AlDente is notarized by Apple, and that approach has a long track record; with Apple's limit, the question simply doesn't arise.
• No catching up after macOS updates. Third-party charge control has to be adapted when macOS changes. AlDente's September 2026 releases, 1.39 to 1.39.4, rebuilt it for macOS 27 and fixed issues on several macOS versions. That's good maintenance, and it's also work Apple's built-in limit doesn't need.
• It's free.

Side by side

Can you use both?

You can have both installed, but think of it as one limit at a time. AlDente says it integrates with Apple's new charge system, yet neither Apple nor AlDente documents what happens if you set different limits in each, and we haven't tested every combination. With two limits active, it's hard to tell which one stopped charging.

So pick one to own the limit. If you keep AlDente, leave macOS's Charge Limit at 100%. If you switch to Apple's, turn off AlDente's Charge Limiter or remove the app.

Which to choose

Do you need a limit at all?

A limit helps most if your Mac sits plugged in near 100% for hours every day, and mostly costs runtime if you use the battery daily. Should I use a charge limit? walks through the evidence and a simple way to decide.

Where Tend fits

Tend isn't a third option for controlling charging: it never stops or starts charging itself. Its free Battery Coach looks at how you actually charge and tells you whether a limit is worth it for you. With Tend Pro, the Battery page shows whether macOS's Charge Limit is on and at what level. Tend vs AlDente has the full comparison, and Tend's help explains how it works with Apple's limit.

Questions

Related guides

Sources

• Apple, About Optimized Battery Charging and Charge Limit on Mac
• Apple, If your Mac battery won't charge and Monitor your Mac laptop's battery
• AppHouseKitchen, AlDente pricing and AlDente features, checked 13 October 2026
• AppHouseKitchen, We Got Sherlocked — Or Did We?
• AlDente on GitHub: README (requirements, limits below 80%, disclaimer) and release notes for 1.39 to 1.39.4

AlDente is a trademark of its owner. Tend isn't affiliated with AppHouseKitchen. Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we'll fix it.