RELATIVE RULER * LOUPE * COLOR HISTORY * EYEDROPPER * SNAP FRAME MEASURE LENGTH, DELTA & ANGLE * GUIDES * RELATIVE CALIBRATION SWIFT/SWIFTUI * APPLE INTENTS & SHORTCUTS * MULTIPLE MONITORS

Measure the universe within your Mac.
Distances, angles, deltas, colors and more

Calibrate once against something you already know. Like a map scale, a microscope legend, or a bar on the Calibration Card & every measurement after that is in your units: inches, miles, microns, fathoms, light years, or a unit you invent. Photoshop measures too but only in Photoshop. PixelStick does far more (see the table below).

15-day all-features tryout - no credit card, no ads.

PixelStick
App Family

PixelStick
Pro 3.0.1 (8)Pro released: 2026-09-13macOS 15-28

English

PixelStick Pro

Download ProBuy Pro

No credit card needed
15 days - all Pro features
Original PixelStick owners get a discount

Original PixelStick is on maintenance further down this page.

It's easy, simple, and fast.

Videos of PixelStick uses.

Raves from MacUpdate

I've been using Pixelstick for years. When I have to line up staves in a music book precisely horizontally or vertically this is my goto app! There are more complex tools for measuring distance, but for lining things up on a screen, it doesn't get much better or simpler. Good support also!

richievitaleMacUpdate

PixelStick is an inexpensive, quick and easy tool that does what it says. I'm a graphic designer and was looking for a replacement for Art Directors Toolbox. For what I need, PixelStick fits the bill and even has features I didn't know I needed until I used them. The color pickup tool and the onscreen rulers save me time on a job each time I use the app. An essential tool for me.

typeadesignMacUpdate

Great app! the only ruler app, that I could find, where you can measure inclined length on the screen. Also possible to set custom units, all-though not in the most intuitive way. Support via mail cleared things up for me with a great explanation. Definitely worth the money, and a MUST for every UI designer.

hotmailgatewayMacUpdate

Saves hours over the course of a web project. I don't know what I'd do without it!

dermod-woodMacUpdate

Pixelstick is uber useful being able to use it with any application (esp. in Photoshop and Indesign); an instant Swiss army knife on the screen. The guides can be shown or hidden with a hot key. I find the app indispensable.

nicb-1MacUpdate

Truly awesome - a must have app for anybody doing any sort of design work.

NiqMacUpdate

Very usefull. Should be part of every Mac system like the calculator or the disk utility.

ralph-10MacUpdate

Excellent! Incorporating the ability to constrain movements would make this a perfect graphics tool.

PhaleronMacUpdate

Absolutely fantasic, well-though out tool! Thanks alot! Just what I needed, and even more. I wonder why I didn't stumble upon it before.

MacdMacUpdate

PixelStick is a measuring tool you can pinch and stretch to measure anything on your screen. Use the eyedropper to copy colors for any app. Excellent for designers, navigators, mapmakers, biologists, astronomers, cartographers, graphic designers - or anyone who uses a microscope or telescope, or wants to measure a distance on screen in any window.

Feature matrix

Original PixelStick and PixelStick Pro

Shared core is what both apps do. New app rows are PixelStick Pro - the Swift rewrite, the relative ruler, handle lock, and the tools built for it.

Feature areaOriginalmaintenancePro
Programming languageObj-C / AppKitSwift / SwiftUI
Requires macOSmacOS 10.6-26macOS 15-28
Universal (Apple Silicon and Intel)
Uses RosettaYesNo
Shared core
On-screen ruler (A / C / Z)
Length, delta, and angle
Angle snap and locks
Click-through overlay
Eyedropper
Copy color in multiple formats
Magnifier / loop
Guides
Custom scaling / calibration
Map and design scale presets
Lock length or angle
Retina and multiple monitors
Sparkle updates (own feed)
New app - PixelStick Pro
Rewritten for Swift / SwiftUI-
Move to Applications on first launch-
Live magnifier while dragging-
Yellow landing-pixel outline-
Eyedropper stays on for many picks-
Color history with time / date-
Live cursor X & Y on the panel-
Calibration Card-
Scan Legend-
Snap Frame screenshots-
Shortcuts and App Intents-
Own URL scheme (pixelstickpro://)-
Relative ruler (calibrate once, any unit)-
Handle lock (right-click A / C / Z)-
Fine nudge (1 px) and big nudge (10 px)-
Real-pixel boxes (keys 1-9; Key 9 = 3×3)-
WCAG contrast checker-
Named palettes (.gpl / .json / CSS / ASE)-
Follows macOS Light and Dark-
15-day, All Features, Free Edition*-
DownloadDownload OriginalDownload Pro
Discount for previous owners.-
Licensing, Pricing and PurchasingNo longer soldBuy Pro
ManualManualManual

* 15-day all-features tryout. After that the ruler and guides still work. Eyedropper and Snap Frame are limited until you buy.

PixelStick Pro is a new app. Classic PixelStick remains the 2.16.x product, with its own download and its own updates.

Original stays. Pro is the Swift rewrite.

Download ProDownload OriginalManual

Determining the RGB color code of individual pixels and performing pixel-precise distance measurements on-screen has never been easier - thank you for this awesome little App!

Alexander · PixelStick user

Measure on any Mac, in any app.

Works everywhere

Unlike app-specific tools, PixelStick works in any application, between apps, in Finder, and across the desktop. No need to switch apps to measure.

Any scale you know

The Calibration Card teaches the relative ruler: drag across a labeled bar, save a profile, then maps, slides, and comps all speak the same language. Inches, miles, microns, parsecs, light-years - or a unit you invent.

Used by people who measure

Designers, mapmakers, microscopists, astronomers, forensics, UI work - anyone who needs to measure what is on the Mac, in any app.

A ruler that does not cover the screen.

Two apps. Same idea. New foundation.

PixelStick Pro is a new app, rewritten in Swift and SwiftUI. Classic PixelStick stays on maintenance for people who already own it.

You can keep using the original. You can try Pro. They do not replace each other, and they do not share a Sparkle feed.

I've used a number of different screen rulers over the years, including Free Ruler and the rulers in Art Directors Toolkit. But nothing comes close to PixelStick. Bottom line: If you want to rule your screen, don't use a ruler, shake a PixelStick.

Robert Ellis · Upstart Blogger

Pixel-precise. Anywhere on screen.

Pricing

PixelStick Pro

A full rewrite in Swift and SwiftUI. Try every feature for 15 days, then buy the license that fits.

Pro

PixelStick Pro

macOS 15-28

$24.99

  • Relative ruler - calibrate once, measure in any unit
  • 15-day all-features tryout, then the ruler stays; pro tools wait for a license
  • macOS 15-28
Buy Pro

Download Pro

PixelStick works in any app and anywhere on screen anytime and costs a hundred times less than the tools that only work inside Photoshop.

Plum Amazing

From microns to light-years - if you know the scale.

Who it's for

A professional measuring tool

Anyone who measures on a Mac

Launch it, drag the endpoints, read length and angle. No more limiting measurement to a single app.

Designers and developers

Measure UI elements, check spacing, verify alignment, and capture exact colors. The overlay stays out of the way so you can still click the app underneath.

Science, maps, and making

Astronomers, biologists, cartographers, microscopists, engineers - open the Calibration Card, teach the stick a scale, then measure the real world on screen.

Color as well as distance

Eyedropper copies CSS, HTML, RGB, and hex. Pro keeps a dated color history, named palettes, and a WCAG contrast checker. The live magnifier follows the pipette tip.

Download ProPricing

Screenshots

See it on screen

Classic PixelStick shots from the current page, plus the same kind of work in the new app.

It's a measuring tool you can pinch and stretch to measure anything on your screen. The interface is intuitive and provides all the measurement data you need at a glance.

PixelStick

Drag. Read. Copy. Done.

Details

How the two apps fit together

Why a new app

Apple is moving the Mac forward. PixelStick Pro is written in Swift and SwiftUI so it can keep going on current and future macOS. Classic PixelStick stays as the original, for people who want that version.

They stay separate

Different bundle IDs, different Sparkle feeds, different zips. Installing Pro does not overwrite Original. You can run both.

Pro tryout

Try every feature for 15 days. No credit card. No ads. When the tryout ends, PixelStick Pro does not brick - you can still drag the ruler and use the guides. Unlimited eyedropper, screenshots, and keeping calibrations wait for a license.

If you already own Original

Keep using it. If you try Pro, Preferences → Purchase has a field to enter and validate your original store license for a discount code. We do not replace your classic download with Pro.

Download and buy

Get PixelStick Pro

One modern Mac app. Try every feature for 15 days, then buy Pro when you want to keep going.

AppVersionRequiresDownloadBuy
PixelStick Pro3.0.1 (8)macOS 15-28Download ProBuy Pro

Maintenance

Original PixelStick

macOS 10.6-26 · Intel and Apple Silicon · version 2.16.4

The original PixelStick is still here for people who already own it. Same measuring line, same idea: drag endpoints, read pixels, angles, and colors, without a fat ruler covering the screen.

It is on maintenance. We keep the download available for original owners. It is no longer sold. PixelStick Pro is the app we are building now.

If you already own original PixelStick, you can download it here.

Download for original owners:

Download Original

Original zip: downloads.plumamazing.com/bin/pixelstick/PixelStick.zip - not the Pro zip.