Setup RewriteBar

Use this checklist once. After this, RewriteBar should work reliably across apps.

Guided Onboarding On First Launch

On first launch, RewriteBar walks you through:

  1. License activation (trial or paid)
  2. Granting Accessibility permission
  3. Setting the main keyboard shortcut to trigger RewriteBar

You can complete everything there, then continue to your first rewrite.

1. Activate License or Trial

  1. Open RewriteBar
  2. Enter your license key or start your trial
  3. Click Activate
  4. Confirm status shows as activated

If you skip onboarding, you can activate later in:

  1. RewriteBar Settings
  2. License
  3. Enter key and click Activate

2. Grant Accessibility Permission

RewriteBar needs macOS Accessibility access to replace selected text.

  1. Open System Settings -> Privacy & Security -> Accessibility
  2. Enable RewriteBar
  3. Restart RewriteBar if macOS asks

This step is also requested during first-launch onboarding.

3. Configure Your AI Provider

  1. Open RewriteBar Settings -> AI Providers
  2. Select your preferred provider
  3. Add your API key for cloud providers
  4. Test the provider connection

Provider details: AI Providers

4. Set Trigger Shortcut

  1. Open RewriteBar Settings -> Shortcuts
  2. Set your global trigger shortcut
  3. Check it does not conflict with another app

Shortcut reference: Shortcuts

5. Run a First Rewrite Test

  1. Select text in any app
  2. Trigger RewriteBar
  3. Choose Fix Grammar & Spelling
  4. Apply the result

Trigger options: Trigger RewriteBar

Quick Checks If It Does Not Work

  1. RewriteBar is running
  2. Accessibility permission is enabled
  3. Provider is configured and valid
  4. Shortcut has no conflict

More help: Troubleshooting