The major criteria for a good freeware download site is accuracy and safety.
- Reliable sites don’t require you to install adware to install a program.
They don’t bundle another developer’s freeware into their own adware wrapper. There are other, better ways to monetize your site than to take advantage of and exploit developers and/or your visitors’ trust.
Don’t use download sites run by people with no integrity.
- Reliable sites investigate and remove malware from their listings, when it is reported to them.
They will also ban a developer if there are too many malware complaints about multiple apps.
Don’t use download sites that don’t care if their listings are known to cause harm.
- Reliable sites describe programs accurately, including if a program is an adware, trial, or demo version.
They don’t need to lie about the applications they list, just to make it seem as if they have more freeware to offer, or perhaps to make people think they have an exclusive, special free version of something people normally would have to pay for, except it’s the same demo or shareware you can download from just about anywhere else.
Don’t use download sites run by liars.
The following sites are considered reliable, at least at the time they were last evaluated, and offer freeware downloads and/or reviews for a wide range of different types of applications. We do periodically re-evaluate the sites on this list and will remove dead sites and those whose ethics may have changed.
If a site on this list violates one of the above rules, please let us know by leaving a comment, below. We’ll investigate it and remove the site from this list, if necessary.
And of course, if I have missed any sites that you feel should be on this list, please leave a comment and let me know.
NOTE: All listings on this page contain a screenshot of the website, with a black border and a drop shadow, and a last evaluated date. There may be ads inserted between the listings. The ads typically do not contain a black border or a drop shadow. They will also state that they are ads, if you look on the upper left corner of the image associated with it. Ads also do not contain a last evaluated date.
File Hippo (last evaluated July 02, 2020)
File Hippo contains a large amount of hand picked software for Windows and Mac, that is tested for malware, adware and viruses, and contains no added bundles, installers or toolbars. Not everything on their site is freeware, though, so read the license type in the listings before downloading. The site does have a lot of ads, and an ad blocker will remove most but not all of them. Be aware that some of their software listing are ads, but they are marked as ads, so look for that before clicking. Try the Site Map linked at the very bottom of their site, for a full category list of what they have.
Gratilog (last evaluated July 02, 2020)
[FRENCH] Gratilog is a hand curated listing of over 2000 freeware applications for Windows, that are free of malware, and other unwanted behaviors. The site is in French, but you can use Google Translate to translate the pages to English. Many of the applications do support English, once you download, install, and run them. Occasionally you’ll find ones that the application is also in French. They do have a French language forum where they discuss the applications, where users can report any malicious behaviors that might have slipped through, but from what I can see everything in their listing is good, clean, reputable freeware. You can find a full directory of software categories by visiting the Sitemap link (Plan du site) on the sidebar)
Snap Files (last evaluated: July 02, 2020)
Snap Files has built a reputation of only listing good clean downloads, free of spyware, malware, popups, home page hijackers, and other harmful stuff. However, you may find some software bundled with browser toolbars, so please be cautious when installing, and opt out if you don’t want any. They offer both shareware and freeware, but the link provided above goes directly to their freeware section. I recommend using an ad blocker, since some of their ads can be mistaken for download buttons.
The Portable Freeware Collection (last evaluated July 02, 2020)
Everything you will find on The Portable Freeware Collection is hand curated, tested to ensure it does not contain anything malicious, that you can really use it for free, that it is portable, and that it is not adware. How you define “free”, “adware” and “portable” may differ from their definitions, though, and you can see the rules they follow for consideration on their FAQ and About pages. They also have a forum where they discuss the applications they have added, and whether or not it should be kept or removed, if it falls on the borderline between what they define as freeware or not, adware or not, and portable or not. Ultimately, they let the community decide in many cases, with a vote.
