Recommendations you can check.
Scottish software developer working on Statamic and maintaining open-source addons such as Runway; writes at duncanmcclean.com.
21 things
PHPStormSoftware JetBrains
I started using PHPStorm last year and I love it. I honestly don't know how I managed to live without it. It makes it a breeze to refactor a large codebase or source dive some vendor code.
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
Things 3Software Cultured Code
I use Things 3 extensively for keeping on top of to-dos. It's got to be one of the most well-designed macOS and iOS apps out there!
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
FreeAgentService FreeAgent
I use FreeAgent for sending invoices and handling bookkeeping. I've been using it for over five years at this point and I don't know what I'd do without it.
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
TowerSoftware fournova
Tower (my Git GUI of choice)
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
TablePlusSoftware TablePlus
TablePlus (my database GUI of choice)
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
Laravel ForgeService Laravel
Laravel Forge for managing all my servers. The new UI is looking 🔥
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
FastmailService Fastmail
I use Fastmail to host my emails. I'm picky about email clients, but I like theirs.
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
Starling BankService Starling Bank
Starling Bank is one of the big challenger banks here in the UK. The app is easy-to-use, and it automatically syncs my transactions into FreeAgent.
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
WiseService Wise
I use Wise for sending & receiving money internationally. They have really low rates compared to the rest of the market.
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
Laravel IdeaSoftware
I also use the Laravel Idea plugin, which has recently become free.
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
GhosttySoftware Mitchell Hashimoto
When I'm not using the integrated terminal in PHPStorm, I'm probably using Ghostty:
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
tmuxSoftware tmux project
I'm currently trying out Tmux after watching Alex Six's talk at Laracon US.
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
SafariSoftware Apple
I primarily use Safari, but I'll open up Chrome when I need to use Vue Devtools.
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
TinkerwellSoftware Beyond Code
Tinkerwell for running PHP code here and there.
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
RaySoftware Spatie
Ray lets me debug code without cluttering my app's output with dumps.
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
TupleService Tuple
Tuple for pair programming
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
ClaudeSoftware Anthropic
Claude is currently my main AI tool. I use the Claude desktop app, and Claude Code via Opencode.
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
ObsidianSoftware Obsidian
I use Obsidian for all my work-related notes, and Apple Notes for everything else.
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
1PasswordSoftware AgileBits
I use 1Password for all my password management needs.
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
RaycastSoftware Raycast
I use Raycast as my launcher.
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
ZSA Voyager keyboardHardware ZSA
ZSA Voyager keyboard
His post "Uses (September 2025)", listing the tools, services and equipment he uses day to day.
2025-09-06·duncanmcclean.com ↗
Every entry is a verbatim quote and a link to the public post it came from. Nothing is paraphrased. If it is not on record somewhere public, it is not here.
The verdict is what they actually said: loved and liked are explicit; recommended means they told others to get it; uses means they only say they use it; read is a book on their public shelf with no verdict; mixed and disliked are kept too.
A dashed affiliate link, sponsored or their own label means the post disclosed a relationship. It is shown, never hidden.
The shading behind a date shows how dated a recommendation is for its kind of thing.
The shading behind a date shows how dated a recommendation is, for its kind of thing. Fully green is recent. It drains a quarter at a time as the post gets older, and is empty once it reads as dated.
What counts as old depends on the thing. A laptop praised four years ago has been replaced twice; a book loved twenty years ago is probably still loved. The shading is gone after about:
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