Aldente 2021 May 2026

While Apple’s built-in "Optimized Battery Charging" tries to help, it is notoriously passive. It learns your habits and might hold at 80% if you have a very rigid schedule (e.g., plugging in at 10 PM every night).

Or, even worse: you use your MacBook 90% of the time, connected to a monitor with the charger permanently plugged in. aldente

But if your schedule varies—or if you keep your laptop plugged in for three days straight while editing video—Apple’s software gives up and charges to 100%. Keeping a battery at 100% for long periods creates high voltage stress, which chemically ages the battery faster. AlDente (named after the pasta state—firm, not mushy) is a free and open-source tool for macOS that gives you manual control over your charging limit. But if your schedule varies—or if you keep

If that sounds like you, your battery health is silently suffering. Enter . The Lithium-Ion Problem MacBooks use lithium-ion batteries. They hate two things: extreme heat and extreme charge states (0% or 100%). If that sounds like you, your battery health

Heat is the silent killer. If AlDente detects your battery is too hot (e.g., during a Final Cut Pro export), it automatically stops charging to prevent thermal damage.

Have you tried AlDente? What percentage do you lock your MacBook at? Let me know in the comments below!

AlDente costs nothing (or a cheap one-time purchase for Pro) and can extend your battery’s lifespan by . For a $200+ battery replacement, that is a no-brainer.