Burette for MAC
Free, open-source molecular workspace for Apple Silicon Macs with 3D Quick Look previews, compound collections and a molecule editor.
Burette Overview
Burette brings molecular previews, structure inspection and collection browsing into one Mac workspace. Select a molecular file in Finder and press Space, and its Quick Look extension shows the structure in 3D, ready to rotate and zoom. Open the app itself for a full workspace with tabs, a project sidebar, a command palette and side panels, where you can explore a protein and its ligand, step through a trajectory, filter compounds by their properties or sketch a molecule.
Burette uses the Mol* viewer for most structure files, including PDB, CIF, SDF, MOL2 and XYZ, and an RDKit-powered grid for SDF, SMILES, CSV and TSV collections, with search, sorting and SMARTS filtering. It also opens molecular dynamics trajectories and mass spectrometry files, and includes the Ketcher editor for small molecules; macromolecule editing is not enabled. Some formats need the separate xyzrender program installed. The project is developed by Sergei Nikolenko and contributors under the MIT license. Current Mac releases need an Apple Silicon Mac and macOS 12 or later; the download is about 209 MB. Version 2026.10.38 is a bug-fix release for Quick Look previews.
Key Features
Burette is a viewer and workspace for anyone who works with molecular files.
- Quick Look: Press Space in Finder to see a molecular file in 3D.
- Mol* viewer: Rotate, zoom, focus on chains and choose representations.
- Many formats: PDB, CIF, SDF, MOL2, XYZ, GRO and many more.
- Collections: Browse SDF, SMILES, CSV and TSV files with search, sorting and SMARTS filters.
- Ketcher editor: Sketch small molecules and send them to the viewer or a grid.
- Trajectories: Step through molecular dynamics trajectories with playback controls.
- Spectra: Open mass spectrometry files in a spectrum viewer.
- Workspace: Tabs, project sidebar, command palette and docks to compare structures.
What’s New in Version 2026.10.38
Burette 2026.10.38 is a bug-fix release.
- Finder Quick Look previews now load all shared viewer helpers.
Burette FAQ
Is Burette free?
Yes. Burette is free and open source under the MIT license.
What is Burette used for?
Burette previews and inspects molecular files. You can view structures in 3D, compare compounds, browse collections, step through trajectories and sketch small molecules.
Which Macs can run Burette?
Current Burette releases for macOS need an Apple Silicon Mac and macOS 12 or later. Intel Macs are not supported by these releases.
How do I preview a molecular file in Finder?
Open Burette once from Applications so macOS registers its Quick Look extension. Then select a supported file in Finder and press Space.
Which file formats does Burette open?
Most structure files open in the Mol* viewer, including PDB, CIF, MMCIF, SDF, MOL, MOL2, XYZ and GRO. It also opens SMILES, CSV and TSV collections, molecular dynamics trajectories and mass spectrometry files.
Can I edit molecules in Burette?
Yes, small molecules. Burette includes the Ketcher editor for sketching and editing small molecules. Macromolecule editing is not enabled.
Does Burette need other software?
Not for most files. Some formats use the external xyzrender renderer, which must be installed separately, and an optional handoff to VESTA appears when VESTA is installed.
What if Quick Look previews do not appear?
Open the command palette in Burette and run Reset Quick Look. Open Logs Folder and Export Diagnostics are available there too.
Can I install Burette with Homebrew?
Yes, from the developer's tap: brew tap SergeiNikolenko/burette, then brew install --cask burette.
Where does the Burette download on burette.FULLMAC.app come from?
The download button leads to the official Burette releases on GitHub at https://github.com/SergeiNikolenko/Burette/releases/latest. burette.FULLMAC.app does not change or repackage the app.
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