Show HN: InputConfig, a free open-source app to run your Mac with any controller

InputConfig is a free, open-source controller mapper for macOS. Map any PS5, Xbox or Switch controller to keyboard keys and mouse movement, use a controller as a mouse, run your Mac from a MIDI knob box, play games that never supported controllers, or replace a keyboard entirely if using one is difficult. It works in every app, not only games.

Works with PS5 DualSense and DualSense Edge, PS4 DualShock 4, Xbox Wireless, Series and Elite, Switch Pro, Switch 2 and Joy-Con, 8BitDo Pro 2 and Ultimate 2C, the PlayStation Access Controller, the Xbox Adaptive Controller, MIDI keyboards and pad controllers, and any HID-compatible gamepad. No drivers, no subscription, no account.

Website and documentation: inputconfig.com, with help for every feature, guides, and ready-made presets for 450+ games and apps.

Plug in your device, pick a preset, and go. Or build your own from scratch: every button, trigger, stick, key, knob, and pad can send keys, clicks, mouse motion, scroll, macros, MIDI, spoken phrases, or a system function like volume, brightness, or a Siri Shortcut.

It is not just for game controllers. Your Mac keyboard, a second keyboard, extra mouse buttons, the trackpad (including Force Touch pressure), regions of the screen, and full MIDI gear all work as inputs too.

Access controller: Socket 1 to 8, the stick, the center, PS and Profile buttons, and whatever is plugged into E1 to E4 are read by name, over USB-C and Bluetooth

Access profiles: a Profile chip in the Live Visualizer lists the three stored profiles over USB-C, switches them, and edits one beside the drawing with the PS5's own settings

Controller Profile, a new output: a row switches an Access controller to the next, previous, or a numbered profile

DualSense Edge: its four stored profiles are read over USB-C and listed with what each one remaps

Trigger feel: click L2 or R2 in the Live Visualizer of a DualSense or DualSense Edge for light, medium or firm resistance

Switch 2 controllers over Bluetooth: with the new Devices setting on, a paired Switch 2 Pro, GameCube or Joy-Con 2 controller is read wirelessly; Joy-Con 2 are read over USB in the grip too

Switch 2 Pro and GameCube controllers read their stick and trigger calibration and their motion sensors from the controller

Xbox pads over Bluetooth: Share works on every firmware, Elite Series 2 paddles and profiles are read, and the Devices menu names the pads macOS does not read over USB

Pen tablets: pressure, tilt, pen buttons, eraser and in range are inputs of their own

Contour ShuttlePRO and 3Dconnexion SpaceMouse are read, jog, shuttle and all six axes included

Triple tap: a row can do something else on three quick taps, beside its hold and double tap actions

Wireless controllers: optionally disconnect a controller after it sits unused for 5 to 60 minutes, and try to reconnect paired controllers when the app opens, the Mac wakes or a preset starts

Full release history in CHANGELOG.md. This section tracks the latest release.

Open InputConfig and everything it can do is on one screen. Controllers, keyboards, mice, trackpads, and MIDI gear go in; keys, mouse, macros, MIDI, system functions, and Siri Shortcuts come out. Forty-six presets ship with it, sorted into folders you can name and color, and the Smart Preset Maker draws on a library of more than 450 games and apps.

Scanning maps any input the instant you touch it. No manual codes, no guesswork, and it works for controllers, MIDI gear, and your Mac's own keyboard and trackpad.

One press can send a key, a click, a MIDI note, and a spoken phrase at once, then repeat while held, send Return on a double tap, run a two-step macro, and rumble, with every timing set right in the row.

Every key on the keyboard, every click, scroll gesture, and Force Touch on the trackpad or mouse, any area of the screen, and a knock on the palm rest can all be scanned and mapped like a controller button.

Drive your whole Mac from a single stick. One-stick driving steers, accelerates, brakes, and shifts from one control, and it outputs keyboard and mouse, so it works in games that never planned for it. Built with the PlayStation Access Controller and other adaptive hardware in mind.

Play notes into your DAW through a virtual MIDI port, or let a MIDI keyboard or knob box drive the Mac itself: volume, tracks, brightness, Mission Control, a Siri Shortcut. Every binding shows exactly what it sends.

The Live Visualizer mirrors your controller and your MIDI gear in real time. Sticks, triggers, keys, and knobs light up as you play, clicking any control jumps straight to its binding, and Edit Layout rearranges the keyboard, mouse, touchpad and generic maps; a drawn controller keeps its real layout.

Draw regions right in the editor: rings on a stick, bands along a trigger's pull, and areas on a controller touchpad or the screen. Each region is a button of its own, and the Live Visualizer lights it as you reach it.

Set the Deadzone and Full push at points on every stick and trigger and watch the row follow live, so drift disappears and full travel stays. Bind gyroscope rotation to the mouse for motion aim in any app, with live sensor readings and a resting-zero calibration.

No accounts, no tracking, no locked features. Built by one person who needed it.

InputConfig Joystick Mapper Gamepad Companion Enjoyable Karabiner-Elements

Cost Free Paid Paid Free Free

Open source Yes, MIT No No Yes Yes

Game controllers Yes Yes Yes Yes No, keyboards only

MIDI keyboards and pads as input Yes No No No No

Mac keyboard/mouse/trackpad as input Yes No No No Keyboard only

DualSense Edge paddles and extras Yes No No No No

System functions and Siri Shortcuts Yes No No No Limited

Per-app preset switching Yes No No No Yes

Macros, turbo, tap and hold Yes Limited Limited No Limited

MIDI output Yes No No No No

Gyroscope and motion Yes No No No No

Light bar control Yes No No No No

Still updated Yes Rarely Rarely No Yes

Checked August 2026. Some of these have been around far longer than mine and are good tools. Check for yourself before you switch.

Input sources

Every button, trigger, joystick, and D-pad on any MFi or HID-compatible gamepad

DualSense Edge extras: both back paddles, both FN buttons, and the mute button, over USB and Bluetooth

Controller touchpads: cursor control, two-finger tracking, regions, and one-finger and two-finger taps

Gyroscope, accelerometer, and absolute attitude on Sony controllers (DualSense, DualShock 4)

MIDI notes and pads, CC knobs, sliders, and pedals, the pitch wheel, channel and polyphonic aftertouch, Program Change, and transport Start, Continue, and Stop, from any MIDI device over USB or Bluetooth

Three knob modes for MIDI dials: Switch (fires past halfway), Dial (speed grows from center, like a stick), and Turn (a nudge per step of rotation, for knobs and for endless encoders set to absolute mode)

Per-binding MIDI channel and device filters, so two keyboards stay independent

Your Mac keyboard as an input: every key, including Shift, Control, Option, Command, Caps Lock, fn, and the brightness, media, and volume keys, on the built-in keyboard or any keyboard you connect (all keyboards read as one)

Your mouse and trackpad as inputs: every button, double click, scroll in four directions, scroll gestures, Force Touch pressure, and Force Click

Tap the Mac: knock on the palm rest and the MacBook's motion sensor fires any output, single to quintuple taps, with a live calibration plot

Screen regions: areas of any display that act as inputs while the pointer is inside them, per display or on every display

Bluetooth headset and hearing aid buttons as media keys

Switches, pedals, and sticks plugged into a PlayStation Access Controller or Xbox Adaptive Controller

Stick regions as rings, trigger bands, and stick gestures such as pulling a stick back twice, each with its own bindings

Outputs

Keyboard keys, including full modifier combos (Cmd+Shift+3 and friends fire as real chords)

Type whole words or phrases from a single press

Mouse buttons, analog mouse motion, smooth scrolling, and single scroll steps

Macro sequences with custom timing, chord steps that hold one key while tapping others, and interrupt-on-release

MIDI out to your DAW through a virtual port: notes with velocity, CC, pitch bend, Program Change, and transport (start, stop, continue)

Spoken phrases, in the system voice or any installed voice

Haptic feedback with adjustable strength and duration

App actions: switch presets, jump to a specific preset, pause and resume output, all from the controller

System functions

Volume up, volume down, and mute, in the same steps as the keyboard keys

System volume as a fader: the Mac's level follows a knob's position 1-to-1, and only takes over once you actually move it

Play/pause, next track, and previous track, as real media keys

Screen brightness up and down

Mission Control, Launchpad, Spotlight, lock screen, and the screenshot toolbar

Run any Siri Shortcut by name, picked from a list of your installed Shortcuts, without stealing focus

Open any app or any URL, from https links to app schemes

Per-binding control

Toggle mode: press once to latch, press again to release

Turbo with an adjustable rate, and repeat counts with custom delays

Hold actions and double-tap actions, each with their own outputs and timing windows

Chords: a row can require up to three controls held together, each chosen from the menu or scanned

Deadzone and Full push at on every stick and trigger, shown live in the row and in a full calibrator

Axis inversion and three sensitivity curves: linear, smooth, aggressive

Variable sensitivity: trigger pressure and stick depth scale the output speed

Stacked outputs: one input firing several outputs in parallel

A note field on every binding, so a preset explains itself

Presets

46 built-in presets: Easy Browse and Easy Edit, an Auto Clicker, the Access Controller and One-Stick Driving, the Mac's own keyboard, trackpad, and modifiers, desktop navigation, web browsing, media control, popular games, MIDI and creative work, and feature showcases, every row annotated

Smart Preset Maker builds a tailored preset from a few questions, from a library of more than 450 games, apps, and workflows, and can add a touchpad-as-trackpad, gyro fine aim, and trigger rumble

Folders with names and colors, and unlimited presets of your own

Per-app auto-switch: presets activate themselves when their app comes to the front

Per-preset automation: launch an app or URL on activate, confine the cursor, auto-recenter, hide the pointer

Import, export, and share presets, and convert them between controller types

A global keyboard shortcut to toggle the most recent preset from anywhere

Crash recovery offers to start your active preset again after a crash

Live Visualizer

A real-time mirror of every connected device, one panel per slot

Switchable layouts per slot: controller, keyboard, mouse and trackpad, controller touchpad, screen regions, or MIDI instrument, with auto-detection from the bindings

The MIDI instrument: a seven-octave velocity-shaded keyboard, a named dial for every knob (Mod Wheel, Cutoff, Sustain and the rest), knob-mode badges, pitch bend and aftertouch meters, a 16-channel activity strip, and a rolling event log

Click any control to jump straight to its binding in the editor

Edit Layout to rearrange the keyboard, mouse, touchpad and generic maps (a drawn controller keeps its real layout), plus zoom, pan, and four backgrounds

A keyboard map in the shape of your keyboard, ANSI, ISO or JIS, with every key labeled in your own layout

Accessibility

One-stick driving: steer, accelerate, brake, and shift from a single stick

App-wide text size, bold text, reduced transparency, and reduced motion, layered on top of the system settings

VoiceOver support throughout, including the Live Visualizer spoken in plain words

Built-in presets for the PlayStation Access