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Mac OS X: conventional places where binary files should live

Fresh5 days ago
Mar 15, 2026102838 views
Confidence Score1%
1%

Problem

I've downloaded an application that is a command-line application, and want to put it somewhere where I can run it from the command-line without having to type the path explicitly. What are the conventional paths used for something like this? ? Are there different options, one if I want it for all users, and one if I want it for just a particular user, like my administrator account? Or should I put it in its own directory under the Applications directory, and add it to the path? If so, which file controls where the path is set?

Error Output

/usr/bin

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Fix for: Mac OS X: conventional places where binary files should live

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Core answer: you probably want . Depending on how recent your macOS is, you may need to update your default . See below for further details. UPDATE 12-01-2018 At some point since I wrote my original answer, Apple changed its default . As a result, a lot of what I say below is irrelevant to recent Macs. If you type in a terminal, and is first, then you can ignore everything below about changing your . Original answer Macs are unusual in this regard. The default variable for a regular user looks …

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