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Rainbow Folders Review: Is It Worth Using in 2025?

Kirk McElhearn
Kirk McElhearn
Published:
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Is Rainbow Folders worth it for Mac users in 2025? Only if you enjoy frustration and minimal functionality.

Sarah, a video editor managing multiple client projects, needed a visual system to organize her production folders. After installing Rainbow Folders on her Mac, she encountered a clunky Windows-port with compatibility issues that crashed twice during setup. The few folder colors she managed to apply disappeared after a macOS update, forcing her to start over.

As one frustrated motion designer posted:

"Rainbow Folders on Mac feels like using Windows 95 software on modern macOS. Most features don't work properly, and it crashes when I try to apply colors to multiple folders. After the latest macOS update, all my colored folders reverted to blue."

Rainbow Folders vs. Folder Colorizer: Mac Compatibility Comparison

Feature

Rainbow Folders

Folder Colorizer

macOS Integration

⚠️ Poorly ported Windows app

✅ Built specifically for macOS

Stability on macOS

⚠️ Frequent crashes & glitches

✅ Stable native performance

Color customization

⚠️ Limited predefined palette

✅ Full color spectrum + hex codes

Custom folder images

❌ Not supported on Mac

✅ 3.1M+ stock photos + your images

Visual organization tools

❌ Colors only, often buggy

✅ Colors, emojis, decals, images

Multiple folder editing

⚠️ Crashes on Mac batch edits

✅ Fast batch folder processing

How to Change Mac Folder Colors with Folder Colorizer

  1. Download and install: Get Folder Colorizer from Softorino's website
  2. Select folders: Drop folders into the app interface (multiple selection supported)
  3. Apply visual styling: Choose colors, add emojis, insert decals, or apply backgrounds
  4. AI organization (optional): Use the magic wand for automatic folder styling
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Folder Colorizer for Mac

Change folder color & get organized

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Video editor Thomas M. organized 120 production folders in 15 minutes using Folder Colorizer's batch processing, compared to Rainbow Folders' individual folder editing that took over an hour and crashed twice.

See folder customization on Mac in action 🚀

For Windows Users: Folder Colorizer 2

If you need to customize Windows folders, Softorino offers Folder Colorizer 2 for Windows with the same intuitive design and powerful features as the Mac version. Perfect for users working across multiple platforms who need visual consistency.

Watch folder color changes on Windows 🎨

Why Rainbow Folders Fails Mac Users in Real-World Use

1. Constant Compatibility Issues

Mac user experiences reveal Rainbow Folders' fundamental problem—it wasn't designed for macOS. UX researcher Eliza J. explains:

"After each macOS update, Rainbow Folders stops working until the developers patch it—if they do at all. I've lost my folder organization three times after updates."

2. Limited Visual Organization Options

Rainbow Folders offers only basic colors with an interface that feels alien on Mac:

  • Limited color selection with no custom options

  • No image support for visual cues

  • No emoji integration for quick recognition

  • No decorative elements for categorization

3. Productivity-Killing Workflow

Creative professionals report severe workflow disruptions with Rainbow Folders on Mac:

  • Changes must be applied one folder at a time

  • The application frequently loses connection to folders

  • No batch processing capabilities that work reliably on Mac

  • Changes often don't persist across macOS updates

When Rainbow Folders Might Be Acceptable

Despite its serious Mac limitations, Rainbow Folders might work for:

  • Basic color needs with extremely limited expectations

  • Users already familiar with its Windows version

  • Situations where only simple color changes are needed temporarily

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Conclusion

Rainbow Folders represents a minimal effort to port Windows software to Mac, resulting in compatibility issues, crashes, and lost customizations after updates. Folder Colorizer was built from the ground up for macOS, providing reliable performance, rich customization options, and proper integration with the Mac ecosystem.

Try Folder Colorizer free today

FAQs

How to add color to folders on Mac?

Using Folder Colorizer, you can add colors to Mac folders by simply dragging them into the app and selecting from millions of color options. Rainbow Folders technically works on Mac but with frequent crashes and limited color options.

Is there a way to use custom images as folder icons?

Yes, Folder Colorizer lets you use over 3 million stock photos or your own images as Mac folder backgrounds. Rainbow Folders doesn't support custom images on Mac, offering only basic color changes.

How to batch rename and color folders?

Folder Colorizer allows you to select multiple folders and apply colors, images, or emojis to all of them simultaneously. Rainbow Folders often crashes on Mac when attempting batch operations, requiring tedious one-by-one editing.

Do folder colors stay after macOS updates?

Folder Colorizer's custom folders maintain their appearance through macOS updates because it integrates properly with the system. Rainbow Folders users frequently report losing all folder customizations after macOS updates.

What's the fastest way to organize video project folders?

Professional video editors recommend using Folder Colorizer's color-coding and emoji system to quickly identify project status, client, and content type. This visual organization makes file management much faster than standard folder structures.

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Folder Colorizer

For Mac

Easily change folder color on Mac

Customize Mac folders with ease using Folder Colorizer. Bring unique designs to boring baby-blue folders by changing colors, adding emojis, images, & decals.

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