Homebrew Services: How to Use, How It Works, and Alternatives

Why Homebrew on macOS?

Homebrew (or simply brew) is the missing package manager for macOS. Instead of hunting DMGs, dragging apps to Applications, and fixing paths by hand, you install libraries, CLIs, and full apps with one command.

For developers, that stability and speed translate into a cleaner, more predictable environment — no more “it works on my machine.”

Brew Structure & Essential Commands

Brew revolves around a single command — brew. Under the hood it’s a well-thought-out system that handles installs, upgrades, and dependencies with minimal fuss.

Formulae vs. Casks: What’s the Difference?

In Homebrew, formulae install CLI tools and libraries. Casks install macOS apps distributed as DMG/PKG (Chrome, Figma, Spotify).

Formulae (CLI & libraries)

Perfect for dev tools (Git, Node.js, Python) and system libs. Brew resolves dependencies and can install binaries or build from source.

Casks (GUI apps)

Automate DMG/PKG downloads and installs — App Store convenience, command-line flexibility.

What “Services” Mean in Homebrew

brew services manages background daemons like PostgreSQL, Redis, or Nginx via macOS launchd. One command, same interface across tools — start, stop, restart, auto-start on login.

Popular Services You Can Run

Managing Services with brew services

start, stop, restart, list

These four commands cover 95% of your workflow:

1# Start a service
2brew services start postgresql
3
4# Stop a service
5brew services stop postgresql
6
7# Restart a service
8brew services restart postgresql
9
10# List all services and their status
11brew services list

Checking Service Status

Use brew services list for a quick overview. For deeper dives, check launchctl, logs, and whether the service itself responds to connections.

1$ brew services list
2Name       Status  User    Plist
3mysql      started username /Users/username/Library/LaunchAgents/homebrew.mxcl.mysql.plist
4postgresql stopped
5redis      started username /Users/username/Library/LaunchAgents/homebrew.mxcl.redis.plist

Under the Hood: launchd & plist

macOS manages daemons with launchd and per-service .plist configs. Homebrew generates and registers those files so your services can start at boot and be supervised by the system.

1<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
2<!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd">
3<plist version="1.0">
4<dict>
5  <key>Label</key>
6  <string>homebrew.mxcl.postgresql</string>
7  <key>ProgramArguments</key>
8  <array>
9    <string>/usr/local/opt/postgresql/bin/postgres</string>
10    <string>-D</string>
11    <string>/usr/local/var/postgres</string>
12  </array>
13  <key>RunAtLoad</key>
14  <true/>
15  <key>KeepAlive</key>
16  <true/>
17  <key>WorkingDirectory</key>
18  <string>/usr/local/var</string>
19  <key>StandardErrorPath</key>
20  <string>/usr/local/var/log/postgres.log</string>
21  <key>StandardOutPath</key>
22  <string>/usr/local/var/log/postgres.log</string>
23</dict>
24</plist>

Docker vs. Homebrew: Which One to Use?

Choose Homebrew for native performance, low overhead, and a macOS-first experience. Choose Docker for isolated, reproducible stacks, multiple versions, and parity with production.

Handy Tools for Monitoring

Start simple with Activity Monitor and logs. For the terminal, combine brew’s status with system tools.

1# Quick audit
2brew services list
3
4# Check system processes
5ps aux | grep postgres
6
7# Tail logs
8tail -f /usr/local/var/log/postgres.log
9
10# launchd status
11launchctl list | grep postgres

Need more? htop and glances are great on a laptop. For critical local setups, you can even wire up Prometheus/Grafana or Zabbix — overkill for most, but powerful.